Maybe I just don't 'get it', but a lot of stick control experts make a big deal of utilizing bounce.

There seems to two lines of thought;
1. Practice to perfect and capitalize on the natural rebound motion of the stick. The stick is taking you for a ride.
2. Or practice on a pillow where there is no rebound and the hands must do all the work. Cobham, Chambers swear by this, and so do I.

It is my experience that people who have trouble playing fast double stroke may try to bounce the stick, dribble it if you will. They release the stick, let fall and bounce, retrieve it and repeat, then wonder way it won't go fast. You've got to inject energy into the stick to get it going! A falling object only falls so fast.

But I think I am missing something, otherwise Dom Lombardi of DW would not have written the following in the May 2006 issue of Modern Drummer.

MD Reader's Platform letter regarding the January '06 article 'Get a Grip';
"I'm speaking of Freddie Grubber's comment, 'The grip is the housing for the stick. You are supporting a stick in motion. You're not doing anything; you're going for the ride.' I studied with Freddie some thirty years ago, when he was teaching at a very intense level. There were a lot of exercises involved in breaking down what he is saying. I know that John Hernandez and other students of that era would agree with me that it takes months or years to try to understand those principles.
The great drummer and teacher Ed Shaughnessy told me that he once asked Buddy Rich to show him one thing that most drummers didn't know. Buddy picked up a stick, reached over to a snare drum, and played one single stroke. He let the stick bounce back by itself, and then stopped it. Ed commented, 'So, what you're showing me is it's a matter of allowing the natural rebound of the stick to do most of the work,' and Buddy said 'Yeah'.
I am sure Freddie's 'You're going for a ride' and Buddy's 'Yeah' are not a coincidence. It should not be overlooked that 'The grip is the housing of the stick,' and that it's as important to study the motion of the stick and how to motivate it as it is to study the grip. The combination could truely be a lifetime's study."

Maybe pillow work addresses 'motivating' the stick, where rebound work addresses controlling the stick's reaction. I think there are nuances here that I have yet to grasp.

Any enlightenment from my fellow Drummer Cafe dwellers?

Yes, I agree.  To me, the secret in effective stick control is mastering the use "back pressure" with the 4th and 5th digits.  I didn't read the article but I think there are many valid grip variants.

Yes Rick, I understand that's the idea.
What I do naturally (from a LOT of pillow and pad work) is strike with a wrist and finger action that hits returns poised to strike again. It feels like one action, whips and returns in a fraction. It doesn't matter if there is a rebounding surface or not, I can do it in the air. As a matter of fact I can make the snap of the stick into my palm make a noise, even when 'air drumming'.

I've aways felt this stroke gives an advantage when rolling around the tom toms, with the bigger floor toms having less bounce cause they are looser. When a bounce is there, I use it, I think. It helps outs, of course.

But that's all just me. I know it isn't the only way.


Drum4JC
Thanks for this... I've been trying it this afternoon and find it challenging. I'm not much of a bouncer but I'll work on it.
bongo

Yeah, I forgot about that.  That's a great way to work on the bounce.  In fact, I may just have to add that to my practice routine...

Also see Bart's 5 minute lesson called the Endurance Method.   I'm taking video lessons with Bart and he has me working on that.  IT WORKS!  Oh, and I've noticed a huge improvement by adding the body warm-up stretching thing too.  

Give it a month or two and you'll notice huge improvement.  Keep us posted!

I agree with the point about different situations call for more bounce or control depending on what you are doing.

For example playing a super fast single stroke really relies on bounce to get it blindingly fast (of course wrists are important too!).. but if you try to do the same thing by controling on both the up and down stroke, well then you might as well take up the yo-yo!

I also find the bounce really works well on fast 16th note (shuffle or accented) hi-hat or cymbal patterns - helps endurance immensely.

What you have to watch out for is that you don't lose control of the precision and accuracy of the sticking .. like a basketball player that dribbles the ball into the stands!

Some situations call for fine control (like buzz rolls) and to me its a different technique - its more tight and controlled.

Playing on pillows, practice pads, legs etc.. are all good as it strengthens wrists, fingers arms etc.. which you still need. I don't think anyone really believes that the sticks will do all the drumming for you, but letting them bounce (and controlling the bounce accurately) is in my opinion the best way to play - for both endurance, speed and ergonomics.

Danny Britt has some cool Moeller stroke videos on his site
Very informative about the Moeller Stroke
I think he studied with Jim Chapin