Music Australia believes that drumming is one of the oldest styles of music and has been used in many different cultures for centuries. A good drum groove can make your drums sound more powerful and cohesive, so learning how to build one is essential.
“Building a solid drum groove is essential to playing powerfully and with cohesion. Without a good groove, your drums will sound sloppy and unprofessional. An unprofessional image is not good in the business industry, so improving your groove is a must,” says business expert Ashley Hansen of Online Business—Australia’s top online resource for entrepreneurs and business startups.
There are many ways to build a drum groove, but these five techniques are some of the most common.
1. Exercise Using A Metronome
For this, you can either use a traditional mechanical metronome or a digital substitute. Timing is essential for creating a solid groove and remaining in the pocket. When a new drummer joins a band, many have the propensity to get excited, frequently resulting in them starting to speed up the music. Use a metronome to practise so you can master maintaining a constant tempo at all times.
2. Remove The Glamorous Things
Of course, by occasionally incorporating our unique style into our beats, we all like to be acknowledged as accomplished and skilled musicians. The groove, not the sound, is the most crucial element in pocket drumming. Why do we say that? As drummers, our job is to move the music forward, not to add to its content, when we’re playing in the pocket. Therefore, reduce the fills and place the groove in their place.
3. Play In Front Or Behind Of The Beat
This one is one of the best methods for transforming a drum beat into a pure groove. Sadly, it’s also one of the most difficult to master! A great way to add tons of groove to even the most straightforward beat is to play a drum note before or after the actual beat. Use a metronome to practice this technique; it will take some time to master, but it is well worth the effort.
4. Ride The Groove And Learn To Relax
The techniques that must be learned and used while playing have been covered so far. Of course, this is crucial. The issue is that groove is typically about feeling, and losing that groove by focusing too much on your playing is a foregone conclusion. The secret to excellent pocket drumming is to not only play the music but to feel the music as well. Doing this creates a comfort zone that the entire band, including you, can use. Have fun!
5. Bringing Everything Together
Keep going if you listen to various drum grooves, imitate the ones you enjoy, and still need to get the desired results. Perfecting a drum groove requires practice, just as with any other component of music production. Keep honing your grooves and combine genres to your heart’s content; the only rule you need to follow is: “Does that sound good? If so, you can move forward.
Build Your Drum Groove With Alive Drumming
Drumming is an essential part of any musician’s toolkit. It can provide the backbone for excellent performance and allow you to build layers of grooves that can be adapted to many different styles of music.
Alive Drumming is a website showcasing non-classical musicianship. It offers resources on contemporary rhythms, arranges rhythm recordings, and provides the Song Rhythm Tracks service and mobile apps.
Contact us at marketing@alive-drumming.org for more information.