How do I fix my inaccurate perception of reality?

[Houndog]

How in the world did Gadd and Porcaro play so well all coked up ?????

Maybe you need a habit Tornado ???

 

[Matched Gripper]

I don’t think that helps ……
You are depending on that drummer .
It’s a different story when it’s just you and a band ……..

It helps a lot - the discipline needed to keep steady time and maintain a feel and grove throughout an entire song. You do depend on the recorded drummer, in part, the same as you depend in a metronome when practicing. Soon enough, you internalize the tempo and the groove and the ability to maintain them on your own.

 

[Matched Gripper]

Ever notice that you know all the words to a song until you have to sing it without the recording???

I think the same thing applies to developing time with records ….

Not the same thing. Try playing the exact drum part of a song without cues from the music, or a chart.

 

[Seb77]

That can be hard to do sometimes. Something I tend to do is play The Big Fill louder than the rest of the song, which is so cringey to hear back. A lot of this stuff is things most people wouldn't notice or care about, but it kills me to hear it.

It sounds harsh, like in the video below. I think feeling joy, love etc. are not meant to be abandoned here, rather it's about not trying to add emotion.

 

[Tornado]

It helps a lot - the discipline needed to keep steady time and maintain a feel and grove throughout an entire song. You do depend on the recorded drummer, in part, the same as you depend in a metronome when practicing. Soon enough, you internalize the tempo and the groove and the ability to maintain them on your own.

I think how loud the recording is vs how loud you are makes a big difference in results. It's easy to play along with a record badly if you can barely hear yourself. If the recording volume is lower, you really have to make sure your time is good and listen well so that you don't get off from the track. I think this is where a lot of people, myself included, have gone wrong when playing along with records.

 

[Houndog]

Not the same thing. Try playing the exact drum part of a song without cues from the music, or a chart.

I don’t understand what you are trying to convey ???

 

[Tornado]

It sounds harsh, like in the video below. I think feeling joy, love etc. are not meant to be abandoned here, rather it's about not trying to add emotion.

Wow, this is gold.

 

[Pat A Flafla]

It sounds harsh, like in the video below. I think feeling joy, love etc. are not meant to be abandoned here, rather it's about not trying to add emotion.

Depends on the kind of music you're making, and what people are hiring you to do. If Kenny Aronoff got some of those memos (and I think he probably did, at IU--you don't get paid to play timps the way he plays drums), he's ignored them to the benefit of his career.

 

[Tornado]

Depends on the kind of music you're making, and what people are hiring you to do. If Kenny Aronoff got some of those memos (and I think he probably did, at IU--you don't get paid to play timps the way he plays drums), he's ignored them to the benefit of his career.

The overarching message of the video though is really insightful though, I think. He goes deeper into it from the second half until the end. Using sounds to manipulate the instrument (which is actually YOU, not the physical thing in front of you) rather than you manipulating the physical thing in front of you to create sounds. It's a mind, ear, and focus thing that I'd love to have take over my playing.

 

[Wideglyd]

Constant recording of practicing and performances will definitely help. With my playing I found I was rushing certain fills or transitions from one part of the kit to the next. Exercises and noodling to a click helped me tremendously. I also have been working on really cleaning up my single strokes…it has paid off with a confidence in approaching certain fills and execution of other fills. Also, I like to mentally reference a certain section of a song to lock in tempo with muscle memory from practice. It may be a crucial transition that I have a tendency to rush a little or a chorus section.

 

[Pat A Flafla]

The overarching message of the video though is really insightful though, I think. He goes deeper into it from the second half until the end. Using sounds to manipulate the instrument (which is actually YOU, not the physical thing in front of you) rather than you manipulating the physical thing in front of you to create sounds. It's a mind, ear, and focus thing that I'd love to have take over my playing.

Oh yeah, I'm not saying it's a bad video. It has a lot of good stuff in there to think about when deciding which musical strategies will serve you best in each different artistic situation.

 

[Matched Gripper]

I don’t understand what you are trying to convey ???

Don’t know if I can say it any better. Will just say that, of all the things a drummer can spend his practice time on, IMO, playing along to recordings is the most efficient and productive use of that time. Improves your timekeeping, your groove, your ability to express your ideas within the context of a song and to respond to what you hear other musicians play, etc.

 

[dale w miller]

Stop taking so much acid.

On a serious note, we are at a point where producers are visually checking how on you on more so than hearing it.

 

[Houndog]

Don’t know if I can say it any better. Will just say that, of all the things a drummer can spend his practice time on, IMO, playing along to recordings is the most efficient and productive use of that time. Improves your timekeeping, your groove, your ability to express your ideas within the context of a song and to respond to what you hear other musicians play, etc.

I found the opposite for myself , all you learn from records is how to copy .
And that’s a necessary part of learning to drum , but I think you should be able to play with a metronome all alone and have it sound good . I’ve seen a lot of drummers who taught themselves with records .
Those guys can’t solo can’t improvise and most of them can’t keep time worth a darn .

You just don’t get a sense of the space between notes jamming to records …

I became acutely aware of all this when I discovered I wasn’t really playing right …

 

[Matched Gripper]

I found the opposite for myself , all you learn from records is how to copy .
And that’s a necessary part of learning to drum , but I think you should be able to play with a metronome all alone and have it sound good . I’ve seen a lot of drummers who taught themselves with records .
Those guys can’t solo can’t improvise and most of them can’t keep time worth a darn .

You just don’t get a sense of the space between notes jamming to records …

I became acutely aware of all this when I discovered I wasn’t really playing right …

That hasn’t been my experience. YMMV.

 

[Houndog]

That hasn’t been my experience. YMMV.

That hasn’t been my experience. YMMV.

No lessons ???

 

[Matched Gripper]

No lessons ???

Have I had lessons? Definitely!

 

[Houndog]

Have I had lessons? Definitely!

I’m not trying to argue trust me ..
Did you have lessons from the start or close to it on top of playing to records ?

My comments were pertaining to self taught folks playing along to records such as myself …
I took lessons years into playing ….

 

[Matched Gripper]

I’m not trying to argue trust me ..
Did you have lessons from the start or close to it on top of playing to records ?

My comments were pertaining to self taught folks playing along to records such as myself …
I took lessons years into playing ….

I had lessons close to the beginning and again after a long period away from playing. But, I don’t think that mattered. My teachers were great teachers and great players. They knew what they were doing and I trusted and respected them.

PS: Most importantly, they taught me how to teach myself.

My first teacher was Steve Bagby who passed away in 2007. Loved the guy! Here’s a short article on him.

Drummer Steve Bagby Dies at 66

University of Miami drum-set instructor Stephen Bagby died from cancer on June 27 at a Fort Lauderdale hospice. The 66-year-old had served on the faculty … Read More "Drummer Steve Bagby Dies at 66"

jazztimes.com

 

[Chalmers]

Besides the style/feel/lope/swing that comes from playing along to recordings, you’ll get more HD hearing from accurately transcribing a few bars on a consistent basis.

I gain quite a bit of processing power from practicing certain things with a subdivided click. All of the 16ths or triplets at 200 (whatever is fast for you).Then playing the same things with a 1/2 note click.

Even learning (recording yourself) how to groove on a fast two hand 16th note funk groove with doubles/triples on the bass drum while hearing all the 16th partials on the met.

I’ve found things that groove easily at faster tempos on quarter and eighth note subdivisions feel like your processing power is zapped when you’re hearing all the 16ths.

You’ll end up with a more consistent (realistic) idea of the subdivisions when playing live and the wow and flutter effect will be minimized.