The "Stoned" Hand-drum

By Benjamin Franklin Jacoby

bjacoby@Iwaynet.net
(Copyright March, 2003) Rev. 1

A labor of love! The following book has been a labor of love. Its purpose is to help hand-drummers improve their playing skills (chops) rather than to make money by sales of this book. Therefore, fair use is permitted for interested persons who may download a free copy for student or research uses. However, commercial use requires permission of author. Commercial applications ARE encouraged! The author can be contacted at the email address listed on the cover page or at the snail-mail address below. While the purpose of this little work was not as a money making project, this book can be considered as "shareware". If you find this work to be of some value, a donation of a few bucks stuffed in an envelope and mailed to : B. Jacoby 88 W. Frankfort St. Columbus OH, 43206 will insure my continued interest in these projects and will help provide motivation to continue the series. A number of projects have already been started. I hope that not only student hand-drummers, but also teachers and players at all levels might find something of value within this little book. Additional copies of this book in the form of a .pdf file can be downloaded from my socalled website: www.Iwaynet.net/~bjacoby. To download simply click on the appropriate topic found under the titles on the first page and proceed as usual. Enjoy!

Contents
A labor of Love Contents Stone's "Stick Control" Applied to Hand-Drums Preface Why These Exercises Work Tone Separation How to Practice These Exercises Tablature Box Notation Key Exercises in 4/4 Time Exercises in 6/8 Time Exercises in "other sounds" The Muff Tone The Touch Note "Bent" Tones Rim Shots Flams "Heel-Toe" Exercises in 4/4 Time for the Conga Drum "Heel-Toe" Exercises in 6/8 Time for the Conga Drum Blank "Tab" Page in 4/4 Time Blank "Tab" Page in 6/8 Time Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 4 Page 4 Page 4 Page 5 Page 7 Page 8 Page 13 Page 18 Page 18 Page 19 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 27 Page 30 Page 31

Stone's "Stick Control " applied to Hand - Drums Preface

Chances are that if you are just starting on conga drums you may have already read my companion book "A Newbie's Introduction to Conga Drums". While that book was designed for rank beginners, this book is intended for the player who has mastered the basics, but now wishes to build techniques and mastery of the instrument. In that first book we strongly recommended obtaining a copy of the book "Stick Control" by George Lawrence Stone1 and adapting those exercises to the conga drums. Here we do that work for you and adapt the Stone-like exercises to any hand-drums using bass, open tone and slap as the primary sounds. This includes common hand-drums such as congas, djembes and ashikos. However, we have also included an additional "bonus" exercise section using "heel-toe" just for conga players. Typically, "heel-toe" technique is not used with other hand-drums.

Why These Exercises Work

The idea behind these exercises is quite old, but nevertheless very effective. This idea found in the classic piano exercises of Hanon as well as in the above mentioned snare drum book by Stone revolves around separating musical knowledge from pure muscle motions. Musical knowledge is not covered here. You must obtain that in other ways. The whole purpose of these exercises is to simply build "muscle memory" and force new nervous pathways in your brain! And we are sorry to relate that the only way we know to do this is constant repetition. Yes these patterns are going to be boring! If you want to be amused we suggest you look elsewhere! But we also suggest that "elsewhere" is not as likely to give you the killer hand-drum chops you seek! While drummers often ask how one develops limb independence or how one makes the left hand (weak hand) as strong and fast as the right (strong) hand, the answer is not usually appreciated. Practice! How do you make any muscle strong? You go to the gym and do horrible boring repetitive strokes that train and develop the muscle in question! It's exactly the same for musicians be they piano players or drummers. The hand-drum exercises in this book have been inspired by the earlier works of Hanon and Stone, but have been specifically designed to develop the techniques needed by hand-drummers. They consist of various permutations of drum patterns using both hands for the bass, open, and slap sounds.

Tone Separation
Hand-drums, unlike drums played with sticks, produce a number of different sounds or "notes" depending upon how you strike the drumhead with your hands. We assume that
1

"Stick Control for the Snare Drummer" by George Lawrence Stone; Copyright 1935, 1963 by George B. Stone & Son, Inc.; P.O. Box 324, Randolph, MA 02368-2437 4

the student already knows how to produce these basic sounds correctly. However, when playing rhythmic patterns each of these different sounds, or notes, must be clear and distinct. The ability to do this is called "Tone Separation". If the student is sloppy and notes like slaps and open tones start to sound alike, you will actually be playing a different rhythm than the correct one! Clear distinct notes are part of each rhythmic pattern! If you play a given rhythm and then through lack of tone separation you exchange the slaps and open notes in your sound, you will then be playing some other rhythmic pattern! Thus as you play these exercises care must be taken to keep each hand-sound clear and distinct. Slaps must not sound like opens and bass notes must not muffle a following open tone or slap. Tone separation is one key to what makes a master drummer! Never play these exercises so rapidly that you begin to loose tone separation. This point will occur at different speeds for different exercises. Play slowly and clearly and speed will come with time.

How to practice these exercises

When you start to play a new instrument, at first you tend to be rather spastic and have limited control over your hands/feet/fingers or whatever is required to play the instrument. The reason is that you have never done this before and the nervous pathways in your brain needed to effect this control have not formed yet so every motion is forced. But the human brain is a wondrous organ. It is also a lazy organ. It doesn't like to think if it doesn't have to. Therefore, if a given operation is repeated often enough, the brain grows new pathways that essentially wire it for performing those operations without thinking. THIS is what practicing a musical instrument is all about! Studies with dancers have shown that it takes about 180 repetitions for the brain to "hardwire" any given set of moves. This gives you an indication of the amount of work necessary to master this little book! These exercises use these facts to hone your technical skills. The way they are used is to obtain a metronome, set the metronome at a slow speed and practice the exercises by repeating each one at least 20 times before going on to the next one. As you repeat these exercises increase the tempo of the metronome, but it is absolutely essential that you not try to practice the exercises faster than a tempo at which they can be done perfectly! Speed comes automatically with practice. If you try to force speed and play sloppily, you will be training your hands to play the wrong things! Always keep your metronome at a speed at which you can play the patterns perfectly. Also remember that 20 minutes of practice every day is far more effective than 8 hours of practice one day and doing nothing for the rest of the week. Studies have also shown that after a practice session, the brain continues to think about the rhythms and continue perfecting pathways for up to 5 hours after you quit! This explains why daily short practice sessions are much more effective than one weekly monster session. Furthermore if you practice too many different rhythms at one sitting rather than concentrating on simply repeating a single pattern or two over and over, your brain can become confused and you loose a great deal of the effect of the "afterglow". The bottom line, therefore is to practice daily with short sessions and stick to emphasizing one or two new patterns in each session.

The use of a metronome is essential as it provides a reference point to tell the student where the "1" is. Without the "1" many of these exercises are identical hand motions whether they start on the left hand or right hand. Giving a slight accent to the "1" or to each metronome beat will help ingrain this relationship of hands to the "1". Be aware of the "1". As you start to develop some drum chops, and your speed and strength increase, you can also extend the time you practice the patterns. Long periods at high (but perfect!) speeds are great for developing the stamina you need to play hand-drums. Remember to relax and drop those shoulders! You need to relax your mind as well, which is why the boring repetitive nature of these exercises is good. When you can play these patterns perfectly at high speed for 5 minutes (a long time in drumming!) without faltering or straining, you will be well on the way to master drummer as far as your technique goes. To really be a master drummer, of course also requires the musical knowledge that these exercises cannot and are not intended to give you. This book is divided into two parts consisting of 4/4 patterns (based on 4 beats to the measure) and 6/8 patterns based on 3 or 6 beats to the measure. Observe that in all patterns with an odd number of beats (such as 3) your hands reverse after each measure. Hence the first pattern may start on your right hand, but when you repeat the rhythm in the next measure it will start with the left hand. It takes some practice to get used to this. All note values in these patterns are equal. The patterns are all even strokes with no notes ever being omitted. Tempo is always relative to the metronome setting you choose. The patterns start with simple alternating hand stokes and develop into more complex moves as the numbers get higher. You do not have to practice the patterns in any particular order, although the lower numbers may be easier for beginners than the more complex patterns. In any case, if a given pattern is too complex or difficult to perform perfectly, then slow down the metronome until you can do it smoothly and correctly. A simple "tablature" box notation is used for the exercise patterns so that the student is not required to be able to read normal music notation in order to use this book. Each "box" represents a sixteenth note of standard music notation and the letter inside the box tells which hand stroke should be used to play the given note. B means a bass note, O means and open tone, and S means a slap sound should be played for that box. For playing patterns at a slower tempo it can help if you assign a click to every other stroke or even to each stroke. We have included blank 4/4 and 6/8 tablature pages in the back of this book which will allow you to add your own rhythms or patterns. We noted above that patterns with odd numbers of strokes are naturally selfreversing. This means that first the pattern starts with one hand and the next time it starts with the other hand. But for patterns which do not self-reverse we have printed out two versions one starting with your strong hand and the other starting with your weak hand. Some or the patterns lead with the right hand in one part and lead with the left in another portion. These patterns are not printed reversed as both leads are used within the exercise. The great hand-drumming goal is to be able to play any pattern starting with either hand.

Another great goal is to have perfect tone separation. Bass, open tones, and slaps should be clearly distinguishable and should not sound alike. Furthermore, a bass note, an open note, or a slap note should sound the same with either hand. A person listening to you with their eyes closed should not be able to tell which hand you used to play a given note! Practice these things and good luck!

Tablature Box Notation Key

B = Bass Note P = Palm Note (Conga Bass Note plus "fingers" added) O = Open Tone o = Bent Tone (Open tone with pitch raised by elbow) M = Muff Note (Open tone muffled by keeping fingers pressed on drumhead after strike) C = "Cah" on a Djembe (Lion's Claw) S = Closed Conga Slap Note or Open Djembe Slap Note $ = Muted Slap (Open or closed slap with other hand on drumhead) p = Conga "Pop" K = Bass Flam L = Slap Flam N = Tone Flam R = Rim Shot H = "Heel" of a conga heel-toe-move T = "Toe" of a heel-toe move or a "Touch" when the note is alone
(Some people use "F" for "T", calling our "Touch" a "Fingers" stroke)

X = Stick on the side of the drum shell G = Ghost Note Some box notations make a distinction between a conga "touch" [T] where the fingers do not force the heel of the hand up off the drum and a "fingers" which we have called "toe" [T] where the heel of the hand is forced up. We have simply lumped these together allowing the player to determine the height of the heel in any given move. Touch is also a djembe note, though in that case it is usually not combined with heel-toe moves. Also, when more emphasis is desired for a given conga "touch" [T] note, a "palm" note can be used. Normally we indicate this as [P]. The player must determine the amount of "fingers" sound to incorporate into the given note in context. Some of the sounds in the table are not used in these exercises. Usually heel-toe as well as the "palm" sounds are only used for conga playing and are typically not used with other hand-drums. Thus we have only used these sounds in the Heel-toe section of this book which is specifically designed for conga players. Some of the sounds, such as muff and touch are used on all hand-drums, though performed differently on the various drums. Some sounds like a "Cah" are specific to the dejmbe. Except for the "other sounds" section and the heel-toe conga section, we have not employed any of these more advanced sounds in the exercises, and use only Bass, Tone and Open. However, the "other sounds" section has included a few exercises to practice these less common hand-drum notes, but these few exercises should not be considered definitive practice on these sounds.

The "Stoned" Hand-Drum

^ ^ Exercises in 4/4 time ^ ^ (metronome clicks)

1. 2. 3.

B B B B B B R L R L R L B B B B B L R L R L B R

B R B L O R O L S R S L O R O L B R B L S R S L B R B L

B L B R O L O R S L S R O L O R B L B R S L S R B L B R

B R B L O R O L S R S L B R B L O R O L B R B L S R S L

B L B R O L O R S L S R B L B R O L O R B L B R S L S R

B R B L O R O L S R S L O R O L B R B L S R S L B R B L

B L B R O L O R S L S R O L O R B L B R S L S R B L B R

B R B L O R O L S R S L B R B L O R O L B R B L S R S L

B L B R O L O R S L S R B L B R O L O R B L B R S L S R

B R B L O R O L S R S L O R O L B R B L S R S L B R B L

B L B R O L O R S L S R O L O R B L B R S L S R B L B R

O O O O O O R L R L R L O O O O O L R L R L O R

4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

S S S S S S R L R L R L S S S S S L R L R L S R

B B O O B B R L R L R L B B O O B L R L R L B R

O O B B O O R L R L R L O O B B O L R L R L O R

10. 11. 12. 13. 14.

B B S S B B R L R L R L B B S S B L R L R L B R

S S B B S S R L R L R L S S B B S L R L R L S R

15.

S S O O S S R L R L R L

O R

O L O R S L S R O L O R

S R S L O R O L B R B L

S L

O R

O L

S R

S L

O R

O L

16. 17.

S S O O S S O L R L R L R L O O S S O O R L R L R L O O S S O L R L R L O R S R S L O R O L

S O O S S O O R L R L R L O L O R B L B R S R S L O R O L S L S R O L O R O R O L S R S L O L O R S L S R S L O R S L S R O L

18. 19. 20.

B B O O S S R L R L R L B B O O L R L R B R B L B R B L O O L L O R O R S L S R

S O O R L R S R S L S L O O L L O O R R B R B L

21.

S S O O R R L L S L S L O R B R B L O R B L B R

B B O R R L B L B R B L B L B L B R O R O R O L

O S L R O S R L O L O R S R S L

22. 23. 24.

B B O O S S R L R L R L B B O O L R L R B R B L B R B L O O L L O R O R S L S R

S B B R L R S R S L B L B B L L B B R R B R B L

25.

S S B B R R L L S L S L B R B R B L B R B L B R

B B O R R L B L S R B L B L S L B R O R O R O L

O S L R O S R L O L O R B R B L

26. 27. 28.

S S O O B B R L R L R L S S O O L R L R S R S R O O L L B L B R

B B B R L R B R B B L L

29.

B B B B R R L L

S S O R R L

O B L R

30. 31. 32.

S L

S L

O R

O R

B L

B L

B R S R S L

B R S L S R

S L S R S L

S L S L S R

O R O R O L

O B R L O L O R B R B L

B L B L

B B R R S R S L

S S O O B B R L R L R L S S O O L R L R S R S L B R O R B R S R O R S R S R S L O O L L O R O R B L B R

B S S R L R B R B L S S L L S S R R

33.

B B S S R R L L B L B L O L B L S L O L S L B L S R S R

S S O R R L S L S L B L O L B L S L O L S L S L S L O R O L O R

O B L R O B R L

34. 35.

B O O L R R O B B L R R B S S L R R S B B L R R O S S L R R S O O L R R

B O O B R L L R O B B O R L L R B S S B R L L R S B B S R L L R O S S O R L L R S O O S R L L R O L B R B R O R B R

O O B R R L B B O R R L S S B R R L B B S R R L S S O R R L O O S R R L O R O L B R

B O O R L L O B B R L L B S S R L L S B B R L L O S S R L L S O O R L L S L O R O L

36. 37. 38. 39. 40.

41.

B S O O R L R R

B S O L R L

42. 43. 44.

B S O O B S O O R L R R L R L L O R B R O R S R S R O L S L B R S O O L L L O L S L O L

O O B R R L S S S R R L S L O L B R

S O O R L L S L O L O L S L O L O L

O S L L

10

45. 46. 47. 48. 49. 50. 51. 52.

B O S O L R R R B R S R S R O R O R S R O R B R S R O R B R S R S L O L S L O L O R B R O R S R

B L B L S L S L O L

O R

S R

O R

B O S O B O S O L R R R L R R R B O S O B O R R R R L L S S O B S S R R R R L L S O B O S O R R R R L L O B S S O B R R R R L L O L O S L L O L S L O L S L B R O R S R B R S R O R B L O L S L O L O L O R O R S R O R O L O L S O L L O B L L B O L L S S L L S R S R

O S O L L L S O B L L L O B O L L L B S S L L L S R S R

O O L L B R O R S R O L S L O L

S O O L R R B R O R S R B L O L S L

O O B R R L S S O R R L O O S R R L B R S R B L S R B L S L B R B R

B O R L O S R L S O R L O R O R S L B R

O B R L S O R L O S R L B R S R B L S L B R S L S R

53.

54.

O O B B O O R R L R L L O O S S O O R R L R L L S S L L S R S R B R O R O L B L B L S R S R

O B R L O S R L

55. 56.

S B B S S B L R L R R L O L O L O L S R S R S R

57. 58. 59.

O O L L

S S L L

B O O S R R R L S B O R L R

B B O O O S S S L L R R R L L L O B B S R L R R

O O B S R R L R

O O O S S L R L R L

11

60. 61. 62.

O O B S S B O O L L R L L R L L B O O R L L B S S R L L O R

B B S R L L

O O O S S R L R L R B R O B L R O B R L S L S R

O O S O O L L R L L

B O O B S S O L R R L R R L B S O O O O R L R R L L B B O O S S R R L L R L B B L L O R O S R L S L O R

O O S O O B R R L R R L S S L R O R O L

63. 64. 65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74.

S O O B S O O R R R L R L L O L S S L L S R S O O R R R S O L L O L S R O L O L

S O R L O S L R

O O L R S R

O S S S R R R L O L S R

S S S S O R R R R L

B B S L R R

O O O O O O O O O O O O O R L R R L R L L R L R R L S S S S S S S S S S S S S R L R R L R L L R L R R L B B B B B B B B B B B B B R L R R L R L L R L R R L B B O O B B S S B B O O B R L R R L R L L R L R R L B B S S B B O O B B S S B R L R R L R L L R L R R L B O S S B O S S B O S S B R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L

O O O R L R S S S R L R B B B R L R B S S R L R B O O R L R O S S R L R L R R L L R

12

The "Stoned" Hand-Drum

Exercises in 6/8 time (Exercises 1-27 represent all permutations of triplets using B, O, S) (Metronome Clicks)

1.

^ ^ ^ B B B B B B B R L R L R L R

B L O R S L O R O L S R B L S R O L O R B L B R B L

^ B B R L O L

B R

B L

2. 3.

O O O O O O O L R L R L R L S S S S S S R L R L R L S R

O O O R L R S L S R S L

S R O L O R S L B R S L B R S L B R O L S R

4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

B O O B O O B L R L R L R L S O O S O O R L R L R L S R

B O O R L R S L O R O L

B S S B S S B L R L R L R L S B B S B B R L R L R L S R

B S S R L R S L B R B L

O S S O S S O L R L R L R L O O B O O B R L R L R L O R

O S S R L R O L O R B L

9.

10. 11.

O O S O O S O L R L R L R L O B B O B B R L R L R L O R

O O S R L R O L B R B L

12. 13.

B B O B B O B L R L R L R L B B S B B S R L R L R L B R

B B O R L R B L B R S L

13

14. 15.

S S O S S O S L R L R L R L S S B S S B R L R L R L S R

S R S L O R O L S R S L B R B L S R S L B R B L O R O L

O L B R B L S R B L O R O L S R B L O R O L S R B L S R

S S O R L R S L S R B L

16. 17.

B O B B O B B L R L R L R L B O S B O S R L R L R L B R

B O B R L R B L O R S L

18.

B S B B S B B L R L R L R L B S O B S O R L R L R L B R

B S B R L R B L S R O L

19.

20. 21.

O B O O B O O L R L R L R L O B S O B S R L R L R L O R

O B O R L R O L B R S L

22. 23.

O S B O S B O L R L R L R L O S O O S O R L R L R L O R

O S B R L R O L S R O L

24. 25.

S B O S B O S L R L R L R L S B S S B S R L R L R L S R

S B O R L R S L B R S L

26.

S O B S O B S L R L R L R L S O S S O S R L R L R L S R

S O B R L R S L O R S L

27.

14

28.

B B B O O O S L R L R L R L B B B O O O R L R L R L S R

S R S L B R B L S R S L B R B L O R O L O R O L S R S L B R

S L S R B L B R S L S R S L S R O L O R O L O R B L B R O L 15

O O O R L R O L O R O L

29.

30.

B B B O O O B L R L R L R L B B B O O O R L R L R L B R

S S S R L R S L S R S L

31.

32.

S S S O O O S L R L R L R L S S S O O O R L R L R L S R

B B B R L R B L O R O L B R O L O R B L O R O L

33.

34.

B B S O O O B L R L R L R L B B S O O O R L R L R L B R

35.

36.

B O O S O O B L R L R L R L B O O S O O R L R L R L B R

S O O R L R S L O R O L

37.

38.

B O O B S S B L R L R L R L B O O B S S R L R L R L B R

B S S R L R B L S R S L

39.

40.

B S B B O O B L R L R L R L B S B B O O R L R L R L B B R O L O R S L S R B R B L

B O O R L R B L O R O R S L O L S R

41

42.

43.

B B O O S S R L R L R L B B L L B R B R O O R L O O L R

B R

B L B L

O R O R

O L

S R

S L

44.

S S B R R L S S L L B R

O S S L R R O R S L S L

45.

B O R L S R S L S L O L O R O R

46.

S S O O B B S L R L R L R L S S O O B B R L R L R L S S L L S R S R O O R L O O L R S R

O B B R L R O L B R B L

47.

48. 49.

B B S R R L B B L L S R

O B B L R R O R B L B L

S O R L O R O L O R O L S R S L S R S L O L O R O L O R O L O R O L O R

50. 51.

B O O O S O B L R L R L R L B O O O S O R L R L R L B R

O S O R L R O L S R O L

52. 53.

S O O O B O S L R L R L R L S O O O B O R L R L R L S R

O B O R L R O L B R O L

54. 55.

B S O S S S B L R L R L R L B S O S S S R L R L R L B R

S S S R L R S L S R S L

56. 57.

S S O S B S S L R L R L R L S S O S B S R L R L R L S R

S B S R L R S L B R S L

16

58. 59.

B B O B S B B L R L R L R L B B O B S B R L R L R L B R

B R B L B R B L S R S L B R B L

O L O R O L O R S L S R B L B R

B S B R L R B L S R B L

60. 61.

S B O B B B S L R L R L R L S B O B B B R L R L R L S R

B B B R L R B L B R B L S R S L B R B L S L S R

62.

B B B O O O S L R L R L R L B B B O O O R L R L R L S R

O O O B B B R L R L R L O L O R O L B R B L B R

63.

S S R L B L B R

64.

S S S O O O B L R L R L R L S S S O O O R L R L R L B R

O O O S S S R L R L R L O L O R O L S R S L S R

65.

B B R L

66.

67.

68.

69.

17

The "Stoned" Hand-Drum

Exercises in "other sounds" in 4/4 time

The Muff Tone

The Muff tone is the usual open tone only the hand is pressed into the drumhead to partially muffle the tone. Careful practice is needed to train the hands to lift the opposite hand before striking the next muff tone. If the opposite hand is not lifted soon enough it will completely muffle the stroke and your muff note will turn into a "touch". Hence a rhythm Muff-Muff will begin to sound like Muff-Touch. It if very important to develop proper tone separation so that Muff notes, Open notes, and Touch notes are distinctly different and do not sound alike.
^ ^ ^ ^ (metronome clicks)

1.

M M M M M M R L R L R L M M M M M L R L R L M R M R M R

M R M L

M L M R M L M R O L O R

M R M L M R M L M R M L M R M L O R B R B R 18

M L M R

M R M L

M L M R

M R M L

M L M R M R M L M L M R

M R M L

M L M R

2.

3.

M M M M M L L R R L M R M M R L M L M R O R O L

M M R L

M M L R

M M L L M R O R O L M R O L O R

4.

M M L L

M M M M L R R L M L M R O R O L O L O R M R M L

5. 6. 7.

M M O O M M R L R L R L M M O O M L R L R L M R

M M O O M M O O R R L L R R L L M M L O R O R M L M L O R M R O R T R O R M L O L T L

M O R L M L O L B L B L O R S R M R O R

O M L R O R S L M L O L M L M R S R M R

M O O R L: L M L M L S L M L O R O R O R T R O R O L O L T L

8. 9. 10.

M M O O S S R L R L R L B B M M S S R L R L R L B B O O M M R L R L R L

11.

The Touch Note

The "touch" tone is performed by simply bringing the finger tips (or tip on some drums) down and touching the head. The finger(s) are held against the head rather than bounced off so the note is more like a dull thud than a singing open note. With the djembe, often just a single finger tip is used in the touch, while with congas the finger tips are usually bunched together to perform a touch. In the exercises that follow care should be taken to get the tone separation between the dull touches and the singing open notes. O T O T O T R L R L R L O T O T O L R L R L T R O R O L T L T R T L T R T R O R O L O R O L O L T R T L T L T R O L O R O L T L T R O R O L T L T R O R O L T L T

1. 2. 3. 5.

O O T T O O T R L R R L R L O O T T O L R L R L O R O R T T L L O R O R O L T L T R

T T O R R L

O T T R L L

O T T O O T T R L R L R L R O L T T O R R L O T T R L L

4. 6. 7.

T T T O T T T O R R R L R R R L T T L L T L O R T L T L T L O R

T T O T T T O R R L R R R L T T L L O R T L T L T L O R

Bent Tones
Bent notes are simply open notes played with the elbow of the other arm pressing into the drumhead to raise the pitch of the note. Here we use a lower case "o" to designate the open note with the higher pitch. On conga drums the elbow is usually placed just inside the drum rim, with other drums you may have to press closer to the center of the head to get good results. Experiment with elbow placement on your drum to find the best tone. O o O o O o O o O R R R R R R R R R O o L L O L o O L L o L O o L L O L O O o O o O o R R R R R R R O L O o L L O L o O L L o L

1. 2.

19

3. 4. 5. 6.

B B O O o O B B R L R R R R R L B B O L R L O L o O L L S R S L B L O R O L B R o R o L

B R B L S R S L

B O L R B O R L

O R O L

o R o L S R S L

O B B R R L O L B L B R o R O L

S S O o R L R R S S O L R L o L

S O o L R R S R O L o L

S O L R S O R L

S S L R

Rim Shots
Rim shots are high pitched notes obtained by striking the drum head with just The finger tip or tips projecting over the rim of the drum. For those familiar with bongos. A rim shot on a larger drum is very much the same as a bongo rim shot though the other notes are not played with just fingers as are many bongo tones. As with all the special notes in this section, care must be taken to generate complete tone separation so that the special notes stand out from the usual bass, open tone, and slap notes. Practice slowly and carefully! B R B O B R R L R L R L B R B O B L R L R L R R B R B L R R R L O R O L O R O L O R O L B R B L B R B L B R O L R L R R O L O R B L R L R R B R B L R R R L O R O L O R O L O R O L O R O L R L R R B R B L B R B L R R O L O R R L R R O L O R R L B R B L R R R L O R O L O O L O R O L R L

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

B O R O B O R L R L R L B O R O B L R L R L O R

B B O O R R R L R L R L O R L L O L R L O L O R R L R R

6. 7.

O R L L O R

R O L L

O R O R R R R R

R O R R

R O R R R R

Flams
20

A "flam" in drumming means that one hits the drum with both hands at once. Usually one hand is slightly delayed behind the other. It is the delayed hand that is on the beat, the hand that arrives first is ahead of the beat so that the first hit is a grace note slightly ahead of the main beat. The purpose of a flam is to "fatten" up the duration of a given drum sound by spreading it over two hits. While any stroke can be turned into a flam, usually in hand-drumming only Bass, Open tone and Slap Flams are common. One wants to practice until the timing of the two hits can be precisely controlled at will. This includes striking both hands exactly together to give increase loudness to a given note. That stroke is called a "flat flam". [K= Bass Flam; N = Open Flam; L = Slap Flam] For Flams R or L denotes the hand striking first K N S O K N S O R R R L R R R L B B N L R L K K R R K K L L N R N L N L N R N L B B L R N N L L K R B R N R B L S O R L K R N R S R O L

1.

2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

N N B B N N R R R L R R

L L N N B R R R R R L L N R N L L L N R N L N N L L O O R L O L O R

B O O S S O O L R L R L R L

B B O O S S O O R L R L R L R L L R L L B R L S S S O S O R R L R L R L L S L L B L S S O S R L R L O R

K K B B R R R L K K L L B L B R

K K N N R L R L

L L R L

N N R L

O O S R L R

S O O L R L

21

The "Stoned" Hand-Drum

"Heel-Toe" Exercises in 4/4 time for the Conga Drum ^ ^ ^ ^ (metronome clicks)

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

H T L L H R

H R

T H R L

T L

H R

T R

H L H R

T H T H T L R R L L T R H L T R T L T L T L T R H R H R H L

H R

T R

T H T H T H T R L L R R L L T R T L T R T L T R H R

T H T R L L H L H R T R T L T R T L T R H R

H H T T H H R L R L R L H H T T H L R L R L H T L L H R T R H H R L H R T L

H H R L H L H L H R H L H R H R

T T H H T L R R L L T R T L H L H R H R

T T H H T T H R L L R R L L H L H R T L T R H L H R B R T H T L R R T R H L H R T R T L

T T H R L L T R T L H R H L H R H L T L H R H L T R T L T R T L B R T R T L H R H L H R H L B R

H T L L H T R R T H L L T H R R H T L L H T R R H T L L

T H T L L L T R H L H R

8.

T H L L

H T H R R L T L H L T R

9. 10.

H T H T H T L R R R R L H R T L H T L L H L T R

T H T R R L T R

11.

T T H T H H L R R R R L T R T L H T L L T L B R H L B R B L H R H L H R

T H T L L L T R T L T R

12. 13. 14.

H T T R R L B B H R R L B L

B H R L

H T B B H T B R R L L R R L

B H T B B L R R L L

22

15. 16. 17. 18. 19.

H T L L

O R

O H R L

T L

O R

O R O L

H L H R

T L T R

O O H R R L O L

T L

O R

O R

H T O O H T O R R L L R R L H T L L H R T R S R S H R L T L S R

O H T O O L R R L L T L T R S R S R

S H R L H R H L

T S S H L R R L T S R L T L S H L R

S S H T S S L L R R L L O R O R H L T L S R S R S L B R B L

S S L L S R S R

H T L L H R T R

O O H T R R L L T R

20.

O O H T S L L R R L O R O R H L T L B R

H T O O H R R L L R H L H R T L T R T L T R T L T R T L T R T L

S S L L B R B L B R B L O R O L S R S L O R B R B L O R O L B R B L O R O L S R

21.

H T L L

O O H T R R L L O L B R B L O R O L O L H R T R T L T R T L T R T L T R T L

22. 23. 24.

H T O O H T B R R L L R R L H L T L B R O R H L T L B R

O H R L O L H R

O H R L O L H R

H T B O H T B R R L L R R L H L T L O R B R H L T L O R

25. 26. 27. 28.

B H R L B L O R O L H R H L H R

B H R L B L H R

H T O B H T O R R L L R R L H T L L S R O R H L T L S R

S O H R R L S L O R O H L R S H R L

H T S O H T S R R L L R R L H L T L O R S R H L T L O R

29.

S H R L

23

30.

H R

T R

O L B R

S L S R

H R H L

T O R L T L B R

S L S R S L O R O L O R O L

H R H L H R H L H R H L H R

T O S H R L L R T L T R B S H R R L B L S H L R O R O L O R H L H R H L

T O S R L L T L T R T L T R O R B R B L H L H R S R S L O R O L

31. 32.

H T L L

H T B S H T B R R L L R R L H T L L H R H L H R H L T R O R O L T L H L H R H L H R S R O R O L O R O L S R H T L L H R H L H R T L T R O R O L H L H L H R H L H R B R

33. 34.

T H L L T R O R O L T L T R H R H L

35.

H O L R

36.

H O H R L R S R B L S T R L O L T R

O H O L R L H L H R B R B L S R O L T L T R

37. 38.

B H R L B L T L T R O R H R H L H R H L

H T S S T H B R R L L R R L H T L L H R T R S R S L S R S L S R S L T L T R T L T R T L T R H L H R H L H R T L T R T L T R S R S L O R O L B R

39. 40.

T S T H T S L R L L L R T R T L T R T L S L S R S L S R T R T L T R T L T R H R H L H R H L T S R L

41. 42.

H T L L H R T R

T O O L R R T O R L T L B R O L O R

O H L R O H R L O L

43. 44.

H T L L H R T R

H T L L

H T B R R L

H T S R R L

H T B O R R L L

24

45.

H T L L H R T R

S R S L

T L T R

B O L R

B L

O H R L O L T L T R T L T R T L

T L

S R

T L T R T L T R T L T R

B L

O B R L

O R

46. 47.

B O B R L R S R S L S R S L H L H R

H T S R R L O R O L O R O L B R T L T R P L P R B R S R S L S R S L

B O R L O R O L O R O L T L T R P L P R

B O R L S R S L S R S L T L T R T L T R

O T S T O T R L R L R L O L T R S L T R O L T R

48. 49.

O P S T O P R L R L R L O L B R B L P R H L H R S L T L T R S R O L P R

50.

51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59.

S T R L S L T R

H T L L

S O O O R L R L O O O R L R T L O O R R O O L L S O R R S O L L O S R R O S L L B O R R

T S R L

T B B R L L

H T S R R L S R T L H L

H T L L

O T H T R L L L H R T R

O O H T R R L L O L O L

H T O T R R L R H T L L

H T S R R L S R

T H T R R R T L H L T L

S T H T R L L L H R T R

S O H T R R L L S L O L

H T S T R R L R H T L L

H T S R R L S R

T H T R R R T L H L T L

S T H T R L L L H R T R

O S H T R R L L O L S L

H T S T R R L R H T L L

H T S R R L S R

T H T R R R T L H L T L

B T H T R L L L

B O H T R R L L

25

60. 61. 62. 63.

H T B T R R L R H T L L

H R

T R

B L

O L

H T S R R L S R

T H T R R R T L H L T L

B O L L H O R R H O L L H O R R H O L L B O R R B O L L O O R R O O L L O O R R O O L L O O R R O O L L O O R R O O L L

S T H T R L L L H R T R

H O H T R R L L H L O L

H T S T R R L R H T L L

H T S R R L S R

T H T R R R T L H L O L

S T H O R L L L H R O R

H O H T R R L L H L O L

64. 65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72.

H T S T R R L R H T L L

H T S R R L S R

T H O R R R T L B L O L

S T B O R L L L B R O R

B O H T R R L L B L O L

H T S T R R L R H T L L

H T S R R L S R

T B O R R R S L H L T L

S S H T R L L L H R T R

O O H T R R L L O L O L

H T S S R R L R H T L L

H T S R R L S R

S H T R R R B L B L T L

S B B T R L L L B R T R

O O H T R R L L O L O L

H T S B R R L R O P L L

H T S R R L S R

B B T R R R T L H L T L

S T H T R L L L H R T R

O O H T R R L L O L O L

O P S T R R L R O P L L

H T S R R L S R

T H T R R R T L H L T L

73. 74.

S S H T R L L L H R T R

O O H T R R L L O L O L

O P S T R R L R

H T S R R L 26

T H T R R R

27

The "Stoned" Hand-Drum

"Heel-Toe" Exercises in 6/8 time for the Conga Drum [Emphasize beats to give triplet feel] (Metronome Clicks)

1.

^ B H T R L L

^ B H R L

^ T B L R

H L H R H L H R H L H R T L T R T L T R T L T R

T L T R T L T R T L T R

^ B H T R L L B L

2.

B H T B H T B L R R L R R L O H T R L L O H R L T L O R

H T R R

3.

O H T R L L O L H T R R

4.

O H T O H T O L R R L R R L S H T R L L S H R L T L S R

5.

S H T R L L S L H T R R B R B L O R O L S R S L

6.

S H T S H T S L R R L R R L H L H R H L H R H L H R T L T R T L T R T L T R B H R L B H L R O H R L O H L R S H R L S H L R T B L R T R B L H L H R H L H R H L H R

7.

B H T R L L B L H T R R

8.

9.

T O L R T R O L

O H T R L L O L H T R R

10.

11.

T S L R T R S L

S H T R L L S L H T R R

12.

28

13. 14.

H T L L H T R R H T L L H T R R H T L L

B B R L

S R

S R

H L H R

T B L R T B R L T H L R

B S S L R R B S S R L: L T O O R L R T L O O R L

B B S S L R L L

15. 16.

H T O O H R R L R L H T O O L L R L S T R L O R O R

H T H R R L H L H R H L H R S R T L S R

17.

T O O L R R T R O L O L

18.

H T S T O O R R L R L L H T L L B T R L S R O R

T S R L T L B R

19.

T S O L R R T R S L O L O R H T L L S R H L T L

20. 21.

H T B T S O R R L R L L B H T R L L O H R L T L

T B R L H L H R T L T R T L T R

B H T R L L B L

22.

B H T O H T S L R R L R R L H L H R B R B L T L T R S H R L S H L R T O L R T R O L H L H R

H T O R R L S R S L

H T S H T R R L R R O R H L T L B R

23.

B H T R L L B L H T R R

H T L L H T R R

24.

O H T B L R R L S R S L H L H R T S L R T R S L

25.

B B H T S H L R L L R L B R B L H R T R

T S B L R R S L B L

B B H T L R L L B R B L H R T R

26.

S H T L R R

29

27.

O R O L H L H R H L H R H L H R

O O H T S H L R L L R L O R T L T R T L T R T L T R O L H L H R H L H R H L H R H R B R B L O R O L S R S L T R

T S O L R R S L O L

O O H T L R L L O R B L B R O L O R O L B R B L O R O L H R H L T R T L

S R S L H L H R H L H R H L H R

H L H R

T S L R T R S L

28.

S H T L R R H L H R H L H R H L H R T L T R T L T R T L T R

29.

B B L R B R B L

H B L R H R B L

B B B R L R B L B R B L

30.

H T R R H L T L

31.

O O L R O R O L

H O L R H R H L H R O L S R S L

O O O R L R O L S R S L O R S L S R O L S R S L

32.

H T R R H L T L

33.

S S L R S R S L

S S L R S R S L

34.

H T R R

35.

36.

37.

38.

30

Blank "Tab" Diagrams in 4/4 Time (Make Copies to save your own patterns)

31

Blank "Tab" Diagrams in 6/8 Time (Make Copies to save your own patterns)

32