What drum skill, or piece, was your ‘most challenging’ to play.

[notINtheband]

It’s been several years, but the one that challenged me the most, was the Purdie shuffle, specifically, playing the ghost note that immediately follows the snare;

That little bugger took me several sessions, and required me to slow the tempo down to an absolute crawl to play.

Today it’s auto-pilot, and I play it without even a thought. But I well remember the dedication it took to wrap my mind around forcing my hand to release the stick for the grace note after that snare strike, I felt like I had summited Everest the first time I was able to just sit and play it. Lol.

A second for me would be learning to play a Waltz, which I do regularly in our set these days without struggle. (Shout out to @DamnSingerAlsoDrums who mentioned this in another thread) But again, there was a time my feeble 4/4 mind fought against the strange, awkward auto-pilot I had engrained over the years.

What’s yours?

 

[Houndog]

How many half time shuffles are in your set list ??

 

[notINtheband]

How many half time shuffles are in your set list ??

2 in half time
1 in 6/8

 

[Houndog]

I gave up on that Grace note !!!

The list of my struggles is large …..

 

[Squirrel Man]

The drum part.

 

[Plaid Sabbath]

The Jeopardy version of my answer…”What is the entire Rush catalog?”

 

[goodcat1337]

I've never taken any formal lessons, and I'm slowly trying to learn to read sheet music. So most everything I learn, I do it by just trying to replicate what I hear or see.

That said, the main groove for Everybody Wants To Rule The World gave me fits for the longest time. I couldn't get the triplets on the hi hat to coordinate with the kick pattern to save my life.

 

[langmick]

2 and 4 through an entire song with the same feel.

And Soul Vaccination.

 

[Tornado]

I'm currently learning Soul Vaccination. The four way coordinate was challenging, but I got it. Playing it clean with all the proper accents and ghost notes at consistent volumes up to speed ain't easy. I'm good for about 20 bpm slower than the record. This is the hardest thing I've done in a long time.

 

[Houndog]

Took me 2 weeks to play Heard It On The X - ZZ-Top properly …..

 

[notINtheband]

Took me 2 weeks to play Heard It On The X - ZZ-Top properly …..

But you put in the two weeks and now you play it properly. It doesn’t matter how long it took you, it only matters that you did your time and now for the rest of your life you can play it.

 

[Houndog]

3:05-3:16 Been messing with it for years .
There are a couple more songs with breaks like this I struggle with ..

 

[Houndog]

4:25-4:37

 

[yetanotherdrummer]

Here is an interesting take from someone who isn't a drummer.

Professional Drummers Playing Famous Drum Tracks Without Hearing Them First

I remember what must be one of the very first videos I ever watched on YouTube way back in the day. It was a live clip of Jimi Hendrix tearing through 'All Along the Watchtower'. Since those early days, the...

www.pajiba.com

 

[JimmyM]

Shuffles mess me up.

 

[Houndog]

Shuffles mess me up.

A lot of my drumming buddies say the same thing …

 

[notINtheband]

A lot of my drumming buddies say the same thing …

They have become my favorite thing to play, after getting comfortable playing them of course as it took a while.

Currently the most difficult groove (for me) is also my absolute favorite. It’s a modified Texas shuffle that has grace notes both immediately before And after the main snare note, along with a buzz stroke that introduces all three.
So the left hand is playing a buzz stroke followed by a ghost note/snare/ghost note.
Even during the song I maybe play it right 80% of the time and the rest isn’t as clean.
But I honestly feel like a musician when I play it correct and smooth and have some flow to it.
It’s always the highlight of any set for me.

 

[Big Ken]

One day I will master the ostinato. Boom Chicka Boom, Baby.

 

[dale w miller]

Anything fast is always a struggle for me.

 

[Steech]

4:25-4:37

The kick doubles?
There are ways around those, you know….