How to Play a Full Drum Beat

A drum set is a complex instrument to a newcomer. For any musician first sitting down to the drums, it takes time and practice to develop the limb independence to keep a steady beat. However, once you get a simple drum beat down, you're well on your way to becoming a full-fledged drummer.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Minimal components of the drum set: Bass drum, snare drum, and high-hat
• Drum sticks or brushes

1. Assign a job to each of your limbs. For a right-handed player this means the right foot sits on the bass drum pedal, the left foot sits on the high-hat pedal, the right hand plays the high-hat, and the left hand plays the snare drum.

2. Break down the components of the full drum beat into measures of four beats. Using the high-hat to keep the beat, hit the high-hat each of the four beats with your right hand.

3. Depress the foot pedal with your right foot for the bass drum on the first beat. This is known as the down-beat.

4. Strike the snare drum on the third beat with your left hand. This is known as the up-beat.

5. Repeat this pattern until you can keep a steady beat. Speed up as your hands and feet are comfortable at a faster tempo.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep the left foot pressed firmly down on the high-hat pedal for now. As you improve, you can play around with lifting the high-hat for a different sound.
• Position your right foot on the bass pedal with your heel on the ground. Be sure to keep the heel on the ground as you're starting out on the drums.
• Feel free to vary the number of bass drum and snare drum hits. Just be sure that you still can hear the up and down beats.