Physical logic (Flams)

This, like many of my posts, was inspired by Dan Weiss….

Certain things we do on the drums have a certain "physical logic" to them. Flams are a great example. Creating a good flam usually requires having the sticks at 2 different heights, so it makes sense that we might accent the "main" note of the flam. But, because a flam is a thickening of a stroke , it already is emphasized without an accent. In this set of exercises, we're working on playing unaccented flams surrounded by accented strokes, like so…...

I have also made some videos utilizing this concept. NOTE: I am still working on this idea myself, so I don't have these perfect, by any stretch of the imagination. I decided, however, to leave them as is. There are a few reasons for this. I, like all practicing and growing musicians, am a work in progress, and I wanted to reflect that. I also think there's too many demonstrations of concepts that are more like ego trips that are designed to distance the person posting from the people reading. This isn't the case. I am just like you and am continuing to learn new things and challenge myself. :) 

So, have fun with this, and don'y worry if it's slow and awkward at first. Anytime you challenge yourself, you are improving the musician you will be in the future. :) 

PDF here