What are you currently working on?

[Todd Knapp]

I'm learning about soundproofing and acoustics and making plans for a DIY conversion of our garage.

Preparing lessons for new students.

Marketing my playing and my teaching in my new area.

Working on finger strength/dexterity in my left hand.

Continuing work on interlacing Moeller-style multiple strokes and my single-stroke roll. 

[Paicey]

For about a week now ive been trying to crash on time and smooothly coming out of a fast double stroke roll to a metrenome or song on the radio. I need a Beatnik thing.

[MonteChristo]

Well being the resident newbie My workouts may seem a bit elementary.

Rudiments on a pad
"Stick Control" excersises on a pad
I also recently bought Jojo Mayer's DVD "Secret Weapons"

Stick control and just a moderately fluid left hand are my goals for right now... They seem quite elusive.

On the weekends I get a little time on the kit. This is my play time, when I get to try new/different stuff. I usually just put on the cd player and jam along trying to keep time more than anything... but definately playing not working. Just trying to get the feel, not even trying to duplicate the drum parts on the CD. That will come later... I told you I was a beginner.

[Todd Knapp]

Well being the resident newbie My workouts may seem a bit elementary.

Rudiments on a pad
"Stick Control" excersises on a pad
I also recently bought Jojo Mayer's DVD "Secret Weapons"

Stick control and just a moderately fluid left hand are my goals for right now... They seem quite elusive.

Hey, don't get down on yourself. No need to apologise for just starting out. The above looks a lot like my workout and the workout of many other pros. Even after many years,  some of the material stays the same, and even some of the goals. It's all in the operative words, like "fluid". ;) I'm working on the fluidity of my left hand, too. I'm also finding the fluidity I would like elusive. It's a matter of degrees. Keep at it and avoid the pitfall of measuring your progress in hours and days, rather than in weeks and months.

[Brett Sheaffer]

I'm working on trying to sound as good recorded (i.e. when I listen back to my playing) as I sound in my head while I'm playing.

Like MonteChristo talked about degrees, I'm better now than I was 20 years ago... but I know I could do better.

One specific area in which I suffer is what I like to call "Tourette's timekeeping" (no offense to any of you who may suffer from the actual syndrome).  What happens is I'll be just playing along, minding my own business, when <HICCUP>... Suddenly a muscle will forget what it's supposed to be doing, and it will rebel against what my brain is telling it to do, causing a fraction-of-a-beat shift in audible time.  Usually, my inner metronome gets me back to where I should be without much fanfare.  But it's still a frustration and embarrassment for someone who's been playing this long.

[Todd Knapp]

I'm working on trying to sound as good recorded (i.e. when I listen back to my playing) as I sound in my head while I'm playing.

Good luck! I think you'll find a lot of people are after the same thing...  ;D

[MonteChristo]

Thanks for the kind words Boomka. Not down on myself at all I just believe in candor. I can see that I'm in the presence of some accomplished drummers.

[felix]

I can see that I'm in the presence of some accomplished drummers.

You got that right  ;D

[NY Frank]

I'm working on trying to sound as good recorded (i.e. when I listen back to my playing) as I sound in my head while I'm playing.

Like MonteChristo talked about degrees, I'm better now than I was 20 years ago... but I know I could do better.

One specific area in which I suffer is what I like to call "Tourette's timekeeping" (no offense to any of you who may suffer from the actual syndrome).  What happens is I'll be just playing along, minding my own business, when <HICCUP>... Suddenly a muscle will forget what it's supposed to be doing, and it will rebel against what my brain is telling it to do, causing a fraction-of-a-beat shift in audible time.  Usually, my inner metronome gets me back to where I should be without much fanfare.  But it's still a frustration and embarrassment for someone who's been playing this long.

I'm in the same place.  I occasionally suffer from the same thing.  I also have a couple of other things that occasionally slightly mess with the time:
- Listening to what I just did.  [No time for that]
- Occasional imperfections in the timing of my bass notes, from a weak foot that was inactive for too many years.

I'm working on it.  I insist on improving.  :)
Recording myself really smacked me in the face.  Hard.  Painfully.

[Brett Sheaffer]

I'm in the same place.  I occasionally suffer from the same thing.  I also have a couple of other things that occasionally slightly mess with the time:
- Listening to what I just did.  [No time for that]
- Occasional imperfections in the timing of my bass notes, from a weak foot that was inactive for too many years.

I'm working on it.  I insist on improving.  :)
Recording myself really smacked me in the face.  Hard.  Painfully.

I think we must have been separated at birth.  The bass drum thing is like deja vu for me.  If only I had worked as hard with my feet as my hands... but they're not as good as I want either!

[felix]

Lots and lots O' recording thank God.  I just try and zen out while just playing the tune- it falls into place.  Watching the snare drum and having consistent targets are very helpful.  The cymbal crashing is more forgiving, pretty tough to miss if you hang enough of them.  Very happy, didn't miss my splash either  ;D.

It took a few sessions but I'm hitting my stride (for me) again.

The groove and meter are good.  I'm playing measured and not too much but allowing for some expression.  No stick clicks, nuthin' dropping, no freaking out (too much), but it takes me time to work it out.  It's werk fer sure.

I don't beat myself up but I substituted some sextuplets for trips and was much happier with the outcome.  I'd rather record easy stuff that I'm comfortable with than practicing backwards patterns anymore.  I get a lot of satisfaction out of smooth good sounding playing.

I came out of a really nice fill at the end of a tune and was so excited I about put my foot thru the kick drum on the "1".  The level meters didn't really change but boy one can sure hear it.

I think I'll leave it alone.  :D

It's good Practice!

[Hank Gagnon]

i have been practicing rudiments and double strokes, plus whatever pops into my head.  been doing this 5 days a week. it has improved my drumming dramaticaly. in fact just fooling around doing double strokes and mixing in singles does wonders.

[Paicey]

Good luck! I think you'll find a lot of people are after the same thing...  ;D

Dont you just hate when your recording and your thinking dam! im happening, then you listen back and ask someone for a kleenex to wipe the tears away or have the overwhelming urge to throw yourself in traffic!.

[Mark Counts]

Dont you just hate when your recording and your thinking dam! im happening, then you listen back and ask someone for a kleenex to wipe the tears away or have the overwhelming urge to throw yourself in traffic!.

No not really.  Man, I hate to say this but I don't feel that way.  I have almost recorded every band live for so long that I am used to it.  Recording a song in it's early stages, any mistakes are so noted and fixed and should be better next time. Almost everything I put on my web site is recorded live. What I sent to Blues Radio UK  a few years ago was live. The song that FAT JANE did called Make Believe on my web sight was done in a studio and I did the drums in two takes with no click track. I did the vocal track in 3 takes. It is not a pro studio but it is not bad. I love to record all the time, it forces you to try to always do your best. It is a great way for me to fix what is broke and then make it better. If I give the band a copy of themselves they come back next time playing it better too. If you just rehearse then the moment is gone.  If you record it, you can go back and see what you really did.
                             Nutty

[Johnny Matlack]

I've been working on just trying to generally improve technique... I've been working rudiments with the bare hands, Mike Mangini style (but not QUITE as fast!), and then for grip/motion mechanics following Murray Spivack's stuff. And then for my feet working on patterns using the "heel/toe" motion.

I haven't really had my head in any books for awhile... I'm really just transcribing my own ideas lately and trying to "assign" myself coordination challenges that I'll actually use in my playing repertoire.

[Todd Knapp]

Dont you just hate when your recording and your thinking dam! im happening, then you listen back and ask someone for a kleenex to wipe the tears away or have the overwhelming urge to throw yourself in traffic!.

I can barely listen to a recording I've done with any objectivity for several months.

[Bob Dias]

three things most recently...

1) continuing to work on double bass patterns in a effort to add that to my arsenal

2) I play enough guitar to be dangerous...I picked up two Chris Smither songbooks for studying three-finger picking blues techniques (ala lightening hopkins)

3) I picked up an Alesis io/14 firewire interface and am now learning how to laydown my own tracks and songs

those should keep me off the streets this holiday season...Bob

[bolweevil]

I can barely listen to a recording I've done with any objectivity for several months.

I have the exact sort of neurosis: upon listening the next day, with my memory fresh of exactly what I wanted to play, I am unhappy with the recording.  Weeks or months later I give it another listen and think that was actually pretty good, but I don't play exactly like that anymore!!!  It's a circle of high expectations and the self-bashing belief that I'm never my best in the present moment (until later, of course).

But as to what I've been working on: the Mozambique and applying it various ways to the kit (that pattern even sounds good on a chair!), getting back to basics with paraddidles and their permutations, and working the sticking out on the kit for interesting sounds.  And I'm attempting to apply Stanton Moore's RRLRRLRL in a non-stiff sounding way (which has been a challenge for me).

And I've been working on ways to keep a nice groove during exceptionally slow songs, which is another thing I really need to work on.

[AutoCrat]

For the most part of 2008 I want to develop my drum blog. I want it to be able to help any drummers about areas that they are not comfortable with. (  http://drumpag.blogspot.com/]http://drumpag.blogspot.com/  <-- for the interested)

At the same time, develop my ability to give good explications of what I do to people who don't have a clue about drumming.   <-- That one's going to be hard lol

[dannydrumperc]

I got a call for salsa gig where the band leader wants a drummer instead of a timbalero. So I've practicing the timbale parts from a drumset approach - adding kick and hi hat, left foot clave, etc - so I don't sound like a crappy timbalero imitator.