Musicians blending elements of Soul, Jazz, and Rhythm and Blues in the early to mid-1960s developed a danceable music genre soon to be named Funk. Funk de-emphasized melody and harmony lines while bringing a strong rhythmic groove supplied by the bass and drums to the foreground of the musical composition. Funk songs are often based on a repeating musical figure of rhythm known as a vamp on a single chord or rhythmic pattern. An early example of a drum vamp is James Brown’s Funky Drummer.

Funk music is an African-American inspired rhythm consisting of complex inter-locking sections of groove consisting of electric guitar, bass, keyboards and drums. Many funk bands further employed horn sections to provide short bursts of notes or staccato elements to drive listening appeal. Funk fueled a developing disco-era (1970s) Pop (1980s), and additionally spawned several sub-genres of music including hip-hop and afro-beat (1990s).

Patterns played by a Funk drummer range anywhere from simple Rock grooves to more intricate patterns matching the vamp of other instruments played by the band. Additionally the ‘feel’ of Funk varies from a relaxed ‘laid back’ feel behind the beat to an intense driving feel on top of or slightly ahead of the beat.

The Meters were an American Funk band from New Orleans whose musical style like James Brown was a major influence on later musicians. The early James Brown sound with tight melodic groove and highly syncopated rhythms produced musical classics such as Cissy Strut. The first eight bars demonstrate a style of Funk called New Orleans Funk.

The genre of Funk music provided several additional sub-genres of Funk music in addition to New Orleans Funk. Displaced Funk, Linear Funk, Ghost Note Funk, and Funk Rock being primary examples of sub-genres of Funk music and each unique rhythm can be combined into create grooves characteristic of Funk. One of the most accomplished drummers to achieve this is David Garibaldi (Tower of Power). A great example from Tower of Power is Soul Vaccination.

The Bolero

From Spanish folk dances and songs of love and romance comes The Bolero. Associated with dance and song The Bolero originates during the 1800’s with the term ‘Bolero’ from the Spanish verb ‘Volar’ meaning to ‘fly’ which is exemplified in the moves of the dancers (either solo or as a couple) from this period.

The Bolero is played with a slow tempo and is considered a ballad style of music with the quarter note pulse between 74-110 bpm on average. The actual signature Bolero rhythm was played on a pair of castanets, can be played equally as well on maracas. The drum set player duplicates the original sounds of The Bolero easily enough either on a tightly closed hi-hat or by playing the rhythm on the drum rim.

Example 1 – Basic Bolero rhythm

Example 2 – Adding a bass drum to the basic Bolero rhythm

The Songo drum rhythm combines elements of Funk and Soul much the same way that Jazz influenced the Mambo and Cha Cha. Combining Cuban rhythms with Funk, Rock, Jazz, Fusion and the musical styles of from the Caribbean and Brazil, the Songo can be described as a very soulful type of music. With modern origins, the Songo is the first Afro-Cuban style conceived from a drum set rhythm and basic foot pattern called the Tumbao. In addition to the Tumbao, the ride hand plays a steady pulse, while the snare hand plays a syncopated rhythm to help create the Songo’s linear patterns. The accents in the Song drum rhythm help establish the overall feel of the Songo help establish the unique sound of each beat or rhythm. Improvisation is common when playing the Songo, and even though the Songo has a unique beat, Songo styles may be used with other Afro-Cuban rhythms when the drummer is accompanied by other percussionists.

The primary Songo example presented is based on a 2-3 Rumba Clave rhythm – in more advanced playing a hi-hat Rumba Clave can be played. The Songo groove is a two-measure, up-tempo pattern with an average quarter note pulse of 200bpm.

Example 1 is a standard Songo pattern for the drum set. The snare hand creates a ‘linear‘ effect round the bass Tumbao pattern and the ride pattern (ride bell or rim). The accented and ghost notes help create the over all Songo Rhythm in this two bar phrase.

Example 1

Example 2 is a slight variation of Example 1. Here the bass drum Tumbao pattern plays only on the 2 + of each measure.

Example 2

Example 3 Returning to the original bass drum Tumbao pattern, the ride hand now plays a ‘Bongo‘ bell pattern between the edge of the ride and the bell on this more traditional Songo rhythm. Note: The accented notes are on 1 and 3 of each measure.

Example 3

Example 4 Moving away from the traditional bass drum pattern of the Tumbao, and the ride hand Bongo pattern is this simplified two bar Songo pattern played with the hi-hat, still maintaining the steady pulse important to maintain the Songo rhythm.

Example 4

The Boogaloo can refer to several off-shoots of American popular music and dance from mid-1960 to approximately 1970. Also loosely known as the Latin-Boogaloo, or Latin Rhythm and Blues, The Boogaloo was a style of music combining Salsa with Rhythm and Blues. Current Boogaloo patterns are often interpreted as Funk or Rhythm and Blues with a moderate tempo range between 88-120 bpm.

Boogaloo patterns first originated in New York City among teenage Cubans, Puerto Ricans, African Americans, and other ethnic groups all striving for a common ground in musical communication, fusing styles of African American Rhythm and Blues, Soul, with Puerto Rican Mambo, Chachacha and early American Syncopated Funk, Soul and Rhythm and Blues.

Mainstreamed through American television and American Bandstand, The Boogaloo achieved short-lived popularity with the biggest known hits to be Bang! Bang! by Joe Cuba on the album El Alcade del Barrio, 1967, selling over 1 million copies.

Pete Rodriguez also produced a hit song during this short Boogaloo period with I Like It Like That from the album of the same name, A Mi Me Gusta Asi, 1967.

The Boogaloo, like many rhythms incorporated for the acoustic drum set, relies on accents, and a strong layering of Conga drums which helps propel the rhythm for the dancing audience. The Boogaloo is one of the few Latin-derived rhythms which also incorporated catchy English spoken lyrics which helped broaden the Boogaloo’s initial appeal with teenagers.

Punk Rock requires a lot of energy, speed and endurance. The drumming technique required for Punk Rock is often fast paced and intense. The Ramones, often cited as the first Punk Rock band despite limited commercial success, was a major influence on the Punk Rock movement. Drummer Tommy Ramone (1974-1977) kept the beat driving for three albums: Ramones, Leave Home, Rockets To Russia as well as a live album: It’s Alive.

The basic Punk Rock groove may be technically easy to learn; however there is much more to learn to be a Punk Rock drummer than basic punk beats and rhythms. Punk Rock drumming is upbeat, dynamic and very fast – requiring a drummer to remain vigilant throughout the entire set.

Before delving into the world of Punk Rock, it is helpful to be proficient with a few of the basic rudiments and to develop overall drum speed. For drum rudiments The Single and Double Stroke Rolls are paramount to any proficiency as a Punk Rock drummer. When thinking about speed also remember to be well prepared by warming up first through drum exercises and speed development.

To develop the Punk Rock feel, try listening to several successful bands, beginning with the Godfathers of Punk Rock The Ramones. The Clash and Sex Pistols were also the highly successful Punk Rock bands of their time, and arguably are the inspiration for more neo-punk groups like Blink 182 and Green Day. Remember Punk Rock is about attitude, showmanship, and above all impeccable speed and timing. A Punk Rock drummer drives the band forward, seemingly giving the feeling that the music is rushing quickly past all with a sense of purpose – to keep the audience tuned in and heads a boppin’.

A few basic punk beats.

Start each beat with slow precise practice, gradually building up speed. Use a metronome to ensure that timing does not become a problem. If the speed seems difficult cut the hi-hat playing from eighth notes to quarter notes – this won’t change the speed of the song, but will decrease the amount of hits necessary and may help with timing. Played slower, Punk Rock is very similar to Rock and Classic Rock rhythms.

The first beat is essentially ‘a Basic Rock Groove.’

Adding additional bass drum hits is what essentially drives Punk Rock giving forward momentum to the music. Punk Rock Beat 2 and 3 incorporate 16th note bass hits, while Punk Rock Beats 4-7 return to eighth note bass drum rhythms.

Combining different drum rudiments is a great way to make fills, discover new beats, and importantly make playing the rudiments more interesting for the player (and listener). Rudiments, the basic building blocks of the drum set, are great ways to improve drumming skills and are necessary to build the ‘drum vocabulary’ necessary to play effectively and efficiently when behind the kit.

The Paradiddle or Single Paradiddle is a standard drum rudiment, and is primarily an alternate stroke (single Left Right or Right Left) followed by a ‘diddle‘ or double stroke. The Paradiddle is the easiest to remember of all the diddle rudiments and is perhaps the most popular of the diddle rudiments when it comes to creating drum fills.

The Paradiddle Diddle is another standard drum rudiment, and maintains the common characteristics of the other diddle rudiments. Primarily the Paradiddle Diddle uses an alternate right and left hand sticking for two hits followed by the addition of two ‘diddles’ or double strokes. The additional notes added to this rudiment creates a 12/8 or triplet feel lending the Paradiddle Diddle well to Latin, Jazz and other forms of World music.

When combining the Paradiddle and the Paradiddle-Diddle as sixteenth notes an additional two notes are needed to fill out the measure as solid sixteenth notes. To fill out the measure an additional Right Left single hit is needed. In this example the first note of each Single Paradiddle is accented as well as the single Right Left (Single Stroke Roll) at the end of the measure.

Tom pattern – Still maintaining the sticking of the Paradiddle combination the pattern is moved onto the tom-toms resulting in the example below:

Here is the same Tom Pattern with a crash on one and the bass drum on one and three.

There are literally hundreds of combinations and substitutions possible from the combination of just these two rudiments!

Play three measures of the ‘basic rock’ beat and then use a single measure of the combined rudiment. Now make several more changes to the toms, substitute for the bass drum and cymbals.

Sweeping is a fairly straight forward concept. Introduction to Sweeps can be found here: Drum Sweeps.

Sweeping is the ability to move from one surface to another in the same down stroke, a technique that lends well to being able to play clean double strokes. Visualize that sweeping is like a broom, moving across a floor surface from point A to point B. On the drum set, sweeping will involve the movement across the drum set from one playing surface (drum head, cymbal, and percussion) to another playable surface.

From the introduction of Drum Sweeps, an example was shown (below):

The left hand played a double stroke on the snare drum, while the right hand played a double stroke between the floor tom and the snare drum.

Now to advance the skill and improve coordination, we’re going to replace the left hand double hit on the snare drum and move it to the bass drum.

Develop a slow-steady rhythm when practicing the sweep technique. Keep all of the double strokes clean and even. When first learning this technique, exaggerate the sweep hits on the surfaces by keeping the up-stroke high, once progressing in the sweep technique and picking up tempo the up stroke of the sweeping hand will become less dramatic and naturally become lower towards the playing surface.

Take the time to really get this technique perfected, don’t sweep across the drum surface have a clean, even double stroke between surfaces. The trick is to develop the muscle-memory necessary to feel the sweeping motion. Most drummers will find it is easier to play from the floor tom to the snare (toward the body) as away from the snare to the floor tom.

Using the Sweep as a fill. Introduction to fills can be found here: Creating A Believable Drum Fill.

Here is an example of using the Sweep just learned with the same fill written as 32^nd notes. Slow down the tempo, it’s not about speed here – rather performance.

This is a great exercise for developing speed between the hands and feet as explained here: Develop Speed Between Hands and Feet.

Sweeping is a fairly simple concept. Sweeping is to move from one surface to another in the same down stroke. Sweeping will involve using a double stroke technique.

Visualize that sweeping is like a broom, moving across a floor surface from point A to point B. On the drum set, sweeping will involve using a double stroke to move across the drum set from one playing surface (drum head, cymbal, and percussion) to another playable surface.

Example 1

The left hand and right hand are both playing double strokes. The left hand plays doubles on the snare, and the right hand will play double strokes split between the floor tom and the snare drum.

Develop a slow-steady rhythm when practicing the sweep technique. Keep all of the double strokes clean and even. When first learning this technique, exaggerate the sweep hits on the surfaces by keeping the up-stroke high, once progressing in the sweep technique and picking up tempo the up stroke of the sweeping hand will become less dramatic and naturally become lower towards the playing surface.

Tip: Be careful not to just sweep in a sideways motion, it is important to get a complete down stroke hit on each playing surface. Once comfortable with the motion of the sweep, increase the tempo.

Once comfortable with the Sweep technique, incorporate the pattern into a fill from a basic rock beat.

Continue on: Drum Sweeps 2

The Agogo Beat is a fun swinging beat. Its name derives from the playing of the agogo bells, which originated in Yoruba and Samba music commonly found in Africa. The agogo bells may be the single oldest instrument used in Samba music – they are certainly one of the highest pitched found in percussion. Examples of the agogo bell sound can be found in the music of David Byrne of The Talking Heads and Neil Peart of Rush.  Like all agogo beats, the drum set is adapted for the basic rhythm – the high pitched rack tom and lower pitched floor tom make up the two agogo bells.

The first part of the agogo beat is composed of the high tom and the snare drum. In learning this groove, it is helpful to count out the quarter notes and play them on the hi-hat using the left foot.

Adding the floor tom to simulate the lower pitched agogo bell, a fuller rhythm emerges.

Before adding the bass into the mix, add a slight swing on the groove. The bass drum will play on the one and 3 + of the rhythm.

Finally, add the left hand on the following sub-divisions: 1e, 2a, 3e, 4a.

In playing the Agogo Beat, there is a definite ‘sweet spot’ for the tempo. And fills (See: Creating A Believable Drum Fill) for the Agogo Beat, are best comprised of 16^th notes and triplets.

This is a very simple drum pattern that plays well in various musical situations and types of music (Country, Folk), and can be a lot of fun to just play. The train beat is also a great drum pattern to add to your drumming repertoire.  Beginning with the initial structure of the Train Beat the hands are playing steady pattern of 8^th notes on the snare at a moderate tempo.

To continue creating the illusion of a train, add the feet into the snare pattern rhythm with the bass drum playing on beats 1 and 3, and the hi-hat playing on beats 2 and 4.

The driving energy of the Train Beat sound begins to emerge when the foot and hand rhythm is played using dynamics. Place an accent on beats 2 and 4 of the snare drum, while ghosting the other snare drum hits.

To really add spice to the Train Beat, on every other measure accent the snare on 3+, this leads into the already accented beat on 4.

Now add a Ride bell hit on one, in place of the snare. The final example presented is an eight bar phrase. This example will also create the illusion of a train. The Train Beat is also a very simple exercise to use for warm-up before a performance.