Translating the Traditional Grip (part three)

Welcome Back!  In Parts One and Two of this series I introduced the concepts of Translation between the hands, four tasks each hand needs to master,  how the four tasks relate to Stroke Types, and the standard exercises “8-on-a-hand” and “Tap-Accent”.  In this part I will discuss multiple bounce techniques, and rolls.

There are many paths to achieving multiple bounce technique, and I find people tend to get one method first, and use it to help understand the others.  I’ll introduce several methods in this post, which you can take on in any order you like.

“Down-Up” or “Open Closed”

I first learned how to play open rolls using a method taught to me as the “Down-Up”, and later as the “Open-Close” method.  It it important to note that “Down-Up” is not a reference to the Down and Up forces or Stroke Types, which is confusing, so I’ll be using quotations to differentiate.

It begins with the arm high and the Down force closed.  As the arm drops “Down”, the Down force “Opens”, and the Fulcrum allows the stick to bounce vertical.  Then the Down force “Closes”, and the arm moves “Up” after the stick hits the head.  Blending this into a single “Down-Up” arm motion results in two notes, one as the arm moves “Down” and one as it moves “Up”.

This technique extends from two notes to three, four and five by simply lifting the arm “Up” and moving the Down force “Closed” after the desired number of notes.  Practicing this way in both hands will even out buzz roll sound, and improve placement on Flam Taps and Swiss Triplets.

Down Orientation and Up Orientation

There are three things that contribute to multiple bounce mechanics:  The elbow moving the whole forearm, the Driver, and the Down force.  Isolating, developing and strengthening each part will greatly improve the overall quality of the technique.

Down Force Isolation:  16-8-4-2:

This is an 8-on-a-hand-style exercise but using mostly the Down force.  The goal is to increase power and stability by pumping the Full strokes with the Down force, and closing the Down stroke at very high speeds.  Tempo is 16ths at Quarter = 80-110

Driver Isolation: 16-8-4-2:

The same exercise as above, but this time on a surface with as little bounce as possible, like a pillow or a towel.  The goal is to increase Driver speed and efficiency by placing every note from a closed position.  Tempo range is 80-100.

Mastery of Down Orientation will balance the speed and power contributions of the Driver and Down force, and emphasize timing of each individual note as the tempo increases.

The previous exercise finished each set on a hand with a Down stroke.  Up Orientation requires ending everything with a Full stroke, in an upward position.

16th-Double:

The exercise switches between alternating 16ths and doubles.  Every note ends high. Balancing in this new approach requires increasing the tempo range to 16ths at Quarter note = 100-160

Mastering this motion adds the flow needed for open rolls, while utilizing the Driver and Down force power and speed developed from 16-8-4-2.

Arm Motion

Blending Down and Up Orientation and adding a downward arm “push” completes the open roll motion.  The arms pump straight up and down, the right hand is like bouncing a ball in the palm while the left is like a chop with the outside of the hand.  The elbows in both arms should react to this motion if the shoulders are relaxed correctly.

8th-16th Double/16th-32nd Double:

This exercise switches between alternating 8ths and 16th doubles.  The arm motion is always moving in 8ths, which creates a “check pattern”.  Find a balance in the Down force where it is the same in both 8ths and 16th doubles.  This means the rebound from the 8ths will be slightly absorbed, making them into something between a Down and a Full stroke.  The result is that the stick and arm motion will look basically the same throughout.  When it gets faster, it makes more sense to think of it in 16ths with 32nd note doubles, which is standard roll notation.

The volume of every note should be the same, as if they were played as single strokes.  This technique draws on all the previous material:  The “Down-Up” arm motion, the strength, speed and placement of the Down Orientation, and the flow of the Up Orientation.

These three posts together complete what I call The Big Three techniques of rudimental drumming:  8-on-a-hand, Tap-Accent, and Multiple Bounce.  Any rudiment or passage of rudimental literature can be understood in terms of these three concepts.

In the future I may add some posts applying these ideas to more advanced material.  Please comment or email me if you have any specific requests for content.

Thanks for reading!  Happy Drumming!