STRICTLY TECHNIQUE

Chops Builders
PART 2: DIDDLES AND ROLLS
by Bill Bachman

T
his month we’re going to attack some diddle and roll figures. The exercises cover most of the combi-
nations of diddles and rolls that you’ll encounter, and built into the patterns are the following rudi-
ments: drags, ruffs, five-stroke rolls, six-stroke rolls, and seven-stroke rolls. There’s no need to think
about these rudiments individually as you work through the examples, though. Just find a comfortable flow
and make the exercises groove with relaxed hands. Once you have all of these patterns programmed within
your rudimental arsenal, you can use whichever one fits your musical whim behind the kit.
Mastery of the double-stroke roll will help with all of these diddle/roll patterns. Use the “alley-oop”
wrist/finger combination to play open diddles, and avoid weakly bounced or stiffly stroked-out diddles.
There are two-count check patterns preceding each diddle or roll pattern, which set up the hand motions
that you should use for the diddles and rolls. With the exception of adding forearm to ease the wrist’s work-
load while playing diddle/roll patterns at fast tempos, the timing, stick heights, stick angles, wrist/finger
ratio, velocity, and volume of the strokes should match between the check and the diddle/roll pattern.
Focus on a consistent hand motion more than on the individual diddle/roll patterns for the best possible
timing and steadiness.
Practice these exercises with a metronome or recorded music so that good timing will become a habit.
Avoid playing at a tempo that is too fast to be comfortable. It’s important to practice using the correct hand
motions and coordination. Feel free to isolate any pattern that is uncomfortable, and be sure to take the
repeats, which change the exercises to left-hand lead. Remember that as you get faster you’ll need to add
the forearms, lower the stick heights, and lighten up your touch. Have fun!

80 MODERN DRUMMER • MARCH 2010

In these exercises we’ll add non-diddled accents within rolls.
Bill Bachman is an international drum clinician and a freelance drumset
player in Nashville, Tennessee. He is the author of the Row-Loff books
Rudimental Logic, Quad Logic, and Bass Logic, the producer of the instruc-
tional drum DVDs Reefed Beats and Rudimental Beats: A Technical Guide
For Everyone With Sticks In Their Hands, and the designer of Vic Firth’s
Heavy Hitter practice pads. For more information, visit billbachman.net.