[the_duggler]

I was at a local guitar center store checking out some stuff and im not sure if its me or not, but i would see always young drummers banging skins out like they've been playing for 20 years. As a drummer that's been only playing for a year and a half, it would always discourage me to play. I'd be like "dang it, that kids hella good and i suck so bad!" (though im not really that old, im 25) I think its because i know exactly how it feels to be pretty good with what you do. Ive been playing guitar for 13 years, and its sucks to start drumming level 1 stuff,though i know its important to have a good foundation.

Dont get me wrong I love and admire young people (Or people on general) that challenges themselves to be better. (I used to teach guitar to young kids) But its just funny how i sometimes gets discourage seeing good drummers play and i really want to be like them.

Any advice on how to keep my confidence up in drums and not get discourage by outside factors. i would greatly appreciate it.

[ded548]

Everyday I play I remember Tony Royster Jr. and this video clip.
He's 12 years old in this clip. I can't believe how clean and beautiful his playing is.

AMAZING Drum Solo by Tony Royster Jr

All I keep in my mind is that he's the son of a great drummer, and he's done nothing but practice all his yourng life. I've got bills and a place to worry about keeping in my name, a daughter, a wonderful girlfriend and bills up the bunghole... It's all a question about where you direct your attention. If you want to play great, you have to apply yourself and practice every second you get a chance.

[the_duggler]

Thats true, saw that kid before and that kid rocks man! thanks for the advice dude, i'll keep that in mind

[CJDG]

Just remember who you are in competition with... it should only be yourself.
Any other drummer you see wailing on the skins like he owns them and truly does... should be seen as a learning opportunity. Try to find one thing that you hear and see if you can duplicate it later.

I do this same thing with guitar, bass, vocals, keys... etc... There is a pulse or feel behind someone who is jamming out. If you can tune into that you figure out ways to learn from them. It is all about what you hear, what you have in front of you, and how you can make the most of it. A four piece drum set doesn't give you four sounds only. There are ways to pitch bend the drum heads, cross-sticking, cymbal chokes, stand hits, rim hits, etc...

Think about an actual note from a guitar as a tom hit and then the muted/choked notes as stick hits to the rim of the tom. Things of that nature. I would say about two months of a year I will strip my drum set down to the very basics....

snare, tom, floor tom, bass drum
hi-hat, crash, ride
single bass pedal

Going back to these basic elements reminds me that there is so much more to a drum than just hitting the center.

Hope some of this has helped

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[pantera]

I'm just entering into drumming myself because my son has shown an aptitude for them and he really enjoys playing them. We have him in lessons but I'm trying to learn all I can on my own so I can help answer questions he has when we practice together during the week before his next lesson. I did have a great urge to be a drummer as a teen, but my dad refused to by drums for me so I moved onto other things. Secretly I now that desire is there all over again and I can actually do something about it.

I find it daunting also when I see video clips of drummers (past and present) and how amazing they are, how fast they move, and how some of the legendary rock drummers knew how to select what beats to match with certain songs.

My approach now is to gather everything there is about drumming; web articles, tutorials, youtube, magazines, books, instructional DVD's, etc. And I look at all of it, whether I understand it or not. Then I go back to doing the basics and some stuff becomes clearer to me, then I revisit all the big stuff and some of that makes more sense to me, and on it goes like a feedback loop.

I found the most important tool to have is tenacity. If something looks tough I just bear down even more and tackle it. If I fail too much at it I move onto something else, keeping in mind I never finished that previous task, so I go back until I get it. I pretend I have my own coach or teacher looking over me, and what their expectation is for where I need to be.

[zildian999]

I'm only 16, and I was pretty good at 9 years. I'll post some vids if I can upload them to YouTube.

[parkerdj]

I've been playing a long time, and when there's something I want to do and can't I get terribly frustrated. Then I sit and play it over and over until I get the muscle memory to do it without thinking.

You're only as good as you think you are, and conversely you are only as bad as you allow yourself to think you are!

[chuck]

Oh yeah, those youngins' wailin' on the kits at my local GC.
pre teens and teens have lots more time to practice year in and year out than folks that have a f/t job and a relationship, so don't loose hope.
I'm in the same position as an ex pro bass player.

But one thing I don't hear from most of those little wailers is a GROOVE,
for more than a few measures. And they usually have wobbly time.
But they be better and better until their life changes...................

peace
chuck

[ded548]

Originally Posted by chuck

But one thing I don't hear from most of those little wailers is a GROOVE,
for more than a few measures. And they usually have wobbly time.
But they be better and better until their life changes...................

peace
chuck

That's good of you to mention. They might be able to go ballistic all around the kit, but can they keep time??? I'd rather be able to do some basics the right way and in a good groove, than to thrash the set and not be consistent.

We all need to keep our heads up, but IMO the key is to keep together and not stand apart from the people that we see in these local shops whackin' away. If we can strengthen our skills as a community by making some friends at the same time we can gain better personal morale by teaching eachother what we know.

We're not goin' "every man for himself" ya' know. There's no problem with asking a drummer what he was just doing, or introducing yourself and asking if someone wants to get together and come up with some new sounds. Hell, throw in a bass guitar and a lead guitarist and you've got yourself a nice new practice band. Practice makes perfection, and unless you're "gung-ho" about playing you're not gonna' be very good.

[the_duggler]

I agree, i think that the groove or a pulse is a very important side of drumming, which a lot of people dont focus on a lot. but then again, theres also tons of people that do.

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