Drummer Cafe Community Forum

Hey DC,

When I practice, I usually go in with specific goals in mind (brush work and independence exercises lately), and after warming up for ten minutes or so I focus my practice time on those specific goals. I will sometimes create a routine to deal with specific goals, but there isn't any part of my practice that I have done every day for a long time (warming up is the exception).

Some drummers I know have a strict routine that they will follow with each practice session. They manage their time into blocks allotting a set amount of time for specific drills that they do every day, or at least every practice session. 20 minutes of leg work followed by 20 minutes of rudiments etc.

So the question is, DC, how do you practice? Not to be confused with what do you practice, as that is covered in the "What are you working on?" thread. I don't think the two have to be mutually exclusive, but I do think most people gravitate toward one or the other. Opinions?

I don't practice anymore  8)

But I would really like to again someday

I did only practice long enough to make something really grooving.  I can read pretty well so I get the jist of what I want to practice before hand; usually goal oriented as well. I don't do every single exercise usually either.

Now I just play or practice songs- again goal oriented.  There might be a fill or two that I go back to and work on and there are patterns that I have to keep "the rust off" as well.

But usually in the winter I will go after some ideas!

It would depend on what do you want to concentrate your practice on. Snare drum rudiments? Entire drum set? Bass drum? Cymbal rides, high hat, crash cymbal, etc....First you need to practice on any lessons you have been instructed to learn. Drums are a big item to learn. There are many variables involved. Including reading drum music. Take lessons and listen to your instructor.... Rudiments and holding your sticks right should be 1st.   ;)

Let me rephrase that, hehe - how do you practice? I know how I personally practice.  ;)

Well, I have been practicing with my band pretty regularly; trying to make things sound good.  It's not really technique practice though.

I'm thinking seriously about working on some new chops again.  I like dbl bass patterns and groupings- rock, heavier stuff so I will gravitate towards that.

If I can get 3 hours a day in for 4 to 5 days a week... well that would be tremendous.

My piano playing will have to stop if that happens though.  I have previously been balancing the two instruments okay

I read Bart's "How to Practice" article a few months ago and changed my practicing from a loose goal oriented practice to a fairly rigid routine, making sure I am practicing 5-6 times a week. 

I've gone into my routine in more depth in the "What You Are Working On" thread, but to summarize, I warm and do sticking exercises and rudiments to the metronome for the first quarter of practice.  Than I do coordination exercises using Morgenstein's Drum Set Warm-Ups and some of 4-Way Coordination. Then do groove studies using Art of Bop and whatever elses fancies me, and then play to recordings or jam for awhile.  I'm joining a new band so a lot of the groove studies and playing to recordings has been tightening up their grooves and practicing their songs. 

I really have found it beneficial.  I try to push myself in every area, and I've found that this routine has allowed me to slowly advance many goals in my drumming instead of trying to rapidly advance only one area (which I've never been great at anyway). The last two weeks have been crunch time for the new band so I've had to abandon the routine so I can focus solely on knowing their songs inside and out, and I miss the heck out of it.  It really focused both my muscles and my mind. I can't wait to get back to it, because I've become a complete technique dork.  If only this had happened when I was 12.....

My practice is probably 75% routine.  I don't know why, but if I think too much about actual song parts or grooves, I play them stiff.

So...I try to practice (on my own) to get my limbs "smarter" so I have to think less when I'm grooving with the band.  There are many grooves and styles I can do now that I used to have trouble pulling off.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I try to let my practice become apparent in my playing, but not by inserting anything specific (I think I would do that more if it worked, but it often doesn't). 

Different strokes for different folks  ;)

It takes "goal-orientated practice" then it becomes a "Routine" that works....
It's all related, but you need a routine of practice to show that your goal is orientated towards your future. Without both you're wasting your time.   ;)

check out this new unfinished site: www.practicethis.info............one of my friends knows this teacher and he has some of the most interesting things to say about how jazz and blues drummers should practice.  I'm looking into it................goodears9           

Hummmmmmmmmm......

I'll second that, I looked at that sight....Hummmmmmmmmm    ;D

I usually make my practice 1/3hrd legs, 1/3hrd arms, and 1/3hrd goal practice. Like I hear a nice fill in some song and I want to learn it, I then after the first 2 thirds of practice listen to it and work in it until I learn it. Then the next day after first two third of practice I perfect that particular fill and maybe develop something else out of it and try to incorporate it somewhere in a groove. As for practicing arms and legs, I just do warm up, some rudiments, I usually try to do everything I do with arms with legs too, so its not strictly like first hour just for legs, second just for arms, but I combine the two, like I do a rudiment with hands first couple of times, then I do it with legs and so on... I try to use metronome with first two parts of practice if I remember :) And oh yeah the most important part of my practice is the last part I haven't mentioned and thats jamming with my fav songs. :)

my practice is ALWAYS focused on my goals for the week, as per my drum teacher. its a method that actually works really well for me. right after my lesson, I take the goals i have to accomplish and plan out my practice for each day.

I like to think of myself as a more goal-oriented practicer. I think strict routines squelch creativity and sufficate expansion on topics. I've tried routine practicing and found that spending 20 minutes on one thing is either too much or not enough. However I do think that there should be a framework for how one practices which keeps the practice moving at a good pace, but at the same time allows for changed to be made in the routine. So I guess I'm more of a disciplined goal-oriented practicer. My list of options (Not in any specific order):
1. Warm-ups
2. Rudiment Review
3. Important song or solo that is needed to be practiced
4. Improv
5. Scales
6. world percussion
7. sight-reading
8. technique training
9. doubles training
10. Rudimental practice
11. more of the same

What did you say?  ;D

Yeah, it was a startling revelation.  I was playing but not practicing, big difference I think.

So I've actually been practicing quite a bit the past couple of weeks since this thread started up.  It feels really good.

After being inspired by bongo I might even start practicing soloing over the clave ostinatos again- that stuff sounds great when played well.

do you have one of those pedals setup for clave?  I've thought about getting one but not sure if I'd use it much.

I'll third that motion (lolz "third") that looks like a hummmm site to me. plus the person posting only has one post...... hummmm.....

My practice is mainly play. I will incorporate some technique routines into what I am playing with, mostly drumless playalongs garnered from various instructional cds. I'm a late age beginner, and have no time to learn stuff I don't need. I am working on groove, feel and time. That's what the muso's I play with demand I provide. They do not want flash stuff.
As they say, different folks, different strokes.

http://www.practicethis.info/phil.htm

Yes. I agree. This is pretty much how I work, discovered it all on my own! Well, almost :D

Just about everything you do during practice is goal-oriented to some degree.  Even playing to a CD usually has the simple goal of playing along at the same tempo.  Routines are just a means to an end......a tool to help reach your goal.

I think what needs to be distinguished here is whether you have poorly defined goals or clearly defined goals.  To determine your goals you need to first determine your needs.  Once you have the goals defined, how do you achieve them?  Well, a good drum teacher can usually provide knowledge of the tools that will allow you to achieve your goals most efficiently.  My observation is that drummers with well defined goals, knowledge on how to achieve the goals and who invest the time and effort, tend to be the drummers who progress much more quickly, all else being equal.