Practice makes.....

[wayne]

Depending on where you are or where you want to go, how serious are you about hitting the books [practice] to reach that goal?? Are you a play along with the song player,, or do you concentrate on "the challenge"?

 

[Tornado]

Practice makes permanent, to complete your subject line. My goal with practice these days is to undo much of what I made permanent years ago, and to reinforce new habits. I guess I'm concentrating on "the challenge" which for me is to sound more more perfect with every groove and fill, more locked in with the metronome, playing clean with no unintentional flaming, no rushing with any fill, consistent dynamics and tones, and a whole bunch of self flagellation. Some of that is working from books, most of that is playing along with records working on songs I know I'll be playing.

 

[Rick]

Kinda both. I could be better about practicing certain things. But mostly I just try to learn new grooves, implement ideas I hear good drummers play, and get better at independence. Doing those first two things kinda naturally improve my independence. But I sure wish back in the day that I had a serious drum set teacher that had put me through something like Gary Chester's "New Breed" system. All my percussion instructors were concert percussion guys and not really set players. I have a really good foundation with rudiments and general percussion techniques, but I'm mostly self taught on drum set. The good news is that I listen very carefully and have spent a lot of years trying to implement what I've heard... and I think I have a pretty good ear and musical feel. The bad news is that I'm sure I have some bad habits I've developed over the years too that get in the way of my progress.

 

[JazzAcolyte]

Depending on where you are or where you want to go, how serious are you about hitting the books [practice] to reach that goal?? Are you a play along with the song player,, or do you concentrate on "the challenge"?

I’m a beginner (got back to drumming after 25 years last March, got serious about jazz in October). I’m practicing about 2 hours a day - mixture of books, playing along, and other stuff. My first hour is Stick Control, Rudimental Ritual, and playing along with tunes at various tempos to work on my swing feel and timekeeping (first ride cymbal only, then with feet and comping). I think of that as my “eat your veggies” practice.

Second hour is fun stuff - whatever skills I’m trying to build up, and tunes I’m working on for jam sessions. Lately it’s been a lot of ballad brushes and Afro-Cuban grooves, plus memorizing Kenny Clarke brush solos and drills to get my swing speed up.

 

[pwc1141]

I must confess to have never had any practice routine and never practice. I will review any set list if it's available before a gig and that's it. What I play is based far more on experience and using ears on stage rather than technique. Mea Culpa.

 

[Steech]

I’ve been practicing by warming up with a pair of 2Bs and working on singles, doubles, and flams, and then 16th notes and flams and triplets on the bass drums to go along with those hand exercises. That’s it, the whole routine. No books. After that I do the same thing but to some online metronomes and I usually finish up with playing/trying out some wacky ideas that pop into my head.

 

[NobleCooleyNut]

I go in spurts of practicing and avoidance. I get inspired intermittently to woodshed something in particular . Lately I have been going through some of Jon Ramsey’s excellent books. I am also going through Florian Alexandru Zorn’s excellent book on brush playing .
Then there is the Gary Chester book The New Breed - boy that is one challenging book .

 

[JimmyM]

I’ve felt so terrible and just joined a new band on bass, so that’s taking precious drumming time away. I don’t feel good about it but I haven’t been in great shape lately.

 

[CC Cirillo]

My practice—if you can call it that—varies:

Pre Covid I was in three bands, two which gigged regularly with constant new material, so any practice “time”
was essentially just going to a rehearsal twice to three times a week, juggling that and family and work, learning and getting muscle/ear/brain memory on all that load.

During shutdown I did not play in bands and worked on my fluidity and dynamics within the kit. Really tried to reinforce those things while reinventing myself.

It’s a form of practice that does not focus on chops and not reliant on fast twitch muscle fiber. I’m not learning any cool new fills or patterns to force into a song.

Interpretation, feel, touch, focus, musicality. Those intangibles that make a song flow. Great players have that, regardless of chops. How can I get some of that—channel it— with my meager talent?

I guess my time playing alone is not so much “practice” as an effort towards evolution.

Now I’m back playing with others. Forming a band.

We’ll see how this works out.

 

[Pat A Flafla]

As my age advances I'm just trying to retain chops that are trying to sneak away. My brain might get better, maybe tone or tempo management, fill creativity (which I don't really *need* right now but it makes gigs more fun), but I don't see my speed, power, or conditioning improving past where it was, say, five years ago. When some doofus in the crowd yells, "Slayer!", I'd like to continue to be able to back up my 1&2 tom taunt to the rest of the band.
"Just kidding. I can't play it." = boo...

 

[dale w miller]

As my age advances I'm just trying to retain chops that are trying to sneak away.

This is huge for me as I am noticing damage in my left hand due to all of the epileptic seizures I have been having the last 20 years. There's frustration in that so practicing on the pad is about as much as I do on a regular basis. I will practice if I have a show coming up to confirm or learn the songs to performance respectability.

 

[JDA]

practice makes a profession


(that's all I got..

 

[JazzAcolyte]

There’s also practice away from the kit. I have a long commute, so while I’m driving I’ll learn the lyrics and melodies to standards, practice singing the melody of a standard over the solos, learn drum solos by ear, practice following the bass line, practice improvising by scat singing rhythms, etc. I consider all of that valuable practice time.

 

[shuffle]

I must confess to have never had any practice routine and never practice. I will review any set list if it's available before a gig and that's it. What I play is based far more on experience and using ears on stage rather than technique. Mea Culpa.

I'm of the same ilk,mileage and putting my ears on are what works for me. Now,I'd woodshed on difficult parts at home,work it out with the band at rehearsal but sitting down with book,no. Maybe, that's why I'm just a hobbiest now,I'm fine with that.

 

[BennyK]

If I spent half as much time behind the drums as I do on this site, I'd be a pretty darn slick drummer .

 

[doubleroll]

No practice routine, just use my old “jamming” techniques of listening and feeling the groove.

 

[pwc1141]

I'm of the same ilk,mileage and putting my ears on are what works for me. Now,I'd woodshed on difficult parts at home,work it out with the band at rehearsal but sitting down with book,no. Maybe, that's why I'm just a hobbiest now,I'm fine with that.

I am and always have been a weekend warrior and play jazz standards that I mostly know by heart after decades of doing it and in trios that call for keeping my part interesting but not really challenging other than making it swing - which you can only "practice" in a band setting ....

 

[Rock Salad]

My buddy says to me all the time, "practice makes proficient." I think there's a bit more to it than that, but he's right too.
As a beginner drummer coming from another instrument I know how much time I can waste practicing hard stuff that I'll never use. I also spend at least as much time here as I do behind the pad or kit, but I feel that this time is educational to me. Not always of course, but some Crucial bits of knowledge are here that have/are keeping my energies focused on what will make mine a good sound.
I practice mostly Stick Control basics, flam rudiments and even just the strokes- full, down, tap, up; with and without the metronome at medium tempo. Then behind the kit I try to just play and get good sound with that technique I worked on.

 

[Rick]

practice makes a profession


(that's all I got..

That's why they talk about doctors "practicing" medicine, right?

 

[JDA]

exactly. " Doc Johnson? O yea he's been practicing for near 40 years..."