Triplet Rolls

Here's another classic of the marching arts repertoire.  It's simply called "Triplet Rolls", and that's exactly what it is, a roll exercise based in triplets.  You could wor /these skills just as easily by "diddling" The Grid, but still everyone knows this one, so it's something you can play with other people easily.

 

Just like a jazz standard, there are a few slightly different versions of it, but what I think of as the most common version looks like this:

 

Notice the lack of accents.  Everything should be at one even height.  It will vary depending on the speed, but in general it should be a medium height; nice and relaxed and beefy - not so high to where you're really having to push it, but not so low that you don't get any sound or power.  Try to keep the singles and doubles both at a consistent height and volume.

16th note grid

While less common for some reason, the same grid concept that we looked at last week can be applied to 16th notes.  Again, just vary each partial of the beat four times once, then two times twice, and once four times.  With the extra partial in each beat it makes for a longer exercise, but also means we have a little bit more room for whackier combinations to try out.  Here are some of the same options we looked at last time, but with 16th notes.

 

  

 

 

 

 

Also remember that we can add another layer of complexity by adding static elements and secondary elements, like:

Play a diddle on every first partial, but then move through the accent grid, leaving you with accented didles and drags

Grid flams, but always play a diddle after each flam 

Again, the possibilities are pretty much only limited to your imagination.  Don't forget to move your feet and/or count out loud.

Jim Chapin - "Modern Jazz Drumming with Rhythm Backgrounds for Home Participation"

Maybe this is old news, but I had no idea this existed.

I've owned Jim Chapin's Advanced Techniques for the Modern Drummer for years, but never spent much time with it, and it definitely didn't come with a CD.  Lately I've been digging in to it, and enjoying it a lot.  Curious about a few questions I had about the material I jumped online and ended up stumbling upon this....

Though the book was first published in 1948, it looks like the record wasn't released until 1970.  But in it, Chapin goes through the entire book, playing every exercise alone, and some with a bass player.  It answers pretty much every question I've seen on various forums about the interpretation of the book.  So, it, like me, you are working through this book and find yourself wondering what Chapin intended then be sure to check out the playlist above.  It's all there.