Warm-Up Patterns, Foundation Patterns and
Exercises for Djembe (and Other Hand Drums)
by Lindsay Rowlands [14/7/97 ]
This following aims to provide a realistic set of practice drills
for beginning and intermediate players.
How to Use These Exercises
Advice
Key
Warm-ups/Foundations
Patterns in 3, 4, 5, 6...
Triples
Triplets
Flams in 4
Flams in 3
Rolls
Exercises Grooves/Accompaniments
In 4
In '3' (12/8)
Adventures in Unusual Meters
10/8
7/4
15/16
Adventures in Polymeter
4 against 6 against 4...
4 against 5 against 4...
4 over 3 over 4...
Lead Phrases
How to Use These Exercises:
- Allow yourself about 30-45 mins per practice session.
- Schedule your time so that you can practice undisturbed by non-drumming
guff
- Use a metronome if you wish
- Decide before-hand which patterns you will concentrate on in each session
- The first thing you must do is warm up gradually. Begin by playing strictly
alternating tone strokes slowly - balance the hands to make the strokes evenly
spaced and sounding the same; maintain an even tempo for an honest five minutes
before increasing speed in discrete steps (spending shorter times at each
faster speed). After about ten minutes, stop and shake
your hands, arms, shoulders, neck, etc, to release any further tension. Then
go back to do another few minutes of the same.
- Begin work on the patterns, remembering that these are foundation rhythms
and the better you know and execute them the more solid a player you will
become.
- Start patterns slowly - this is where the real learning takes place - and
increase speed only when you are comfortable with the rhythm.
- Relax!!!
- Play each pattern as written in terms of handing and, for balance and challenge,
try playing the same rhythm leading/beginning with your weaker hand.
- Progress to the other patterns with the aim of assimilating the rhythms and
techniques using the principal of playing slowly to learn, then shifting up
a gear to test yourself and to further reinforce the patterns
- Focus, listen to yourself, focus
Advice
- To sustain interest vary the subset of patterns you are
working on
- Spend some time, but not too much, on 'getting' harder
patterns
- Avoid damage to your hands or other parts of your body
- Practice with a drum buddy or with a group. Under pressure you
can go the extra distance
- Make practice disciplined playing
- Make playing an extension of your discipline
- Real improvement only comes with discipline - make a personal
schedule of patterns that will improve your playing and include
any that you come across in your other playing
- There are no shortcuts, but you can speed your progress by
regular practice
- We tend to learn more when we are enjoying what we do, so
please make practice an opportunity for fun
- Don't overdo it! Everyone has a limit to what they can learn in any given
session, though this will improve as you progress and some learning/processing
seems to occur even when you don't practice
- Set yourself some realistic goals while realising the skill of
drumming can consume you for a lifetime - and there will always be
someone who can play faster, louder and more skillfully
- Aim to realise your musical potential (which is inherent in
all of us) - rather than to be the best
- Learning seems to happen when you try to do new things, rather than when
you hash over things you can already do.
Key:
T t
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Right and left tone; Fingers together, extending onto the
drum no further than the palm joint
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B b
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r and l bass; As tone, but in the centre of the drum
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S s
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r and l slap; Fingers relaxed, loose and in the same
place as the tone
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Tt Ss Bb
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Flam; The two indicated strokes played very close
together, as one
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t
B
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together; The two indicated strokes are played
simultaneously. Note that neither stroke will sound clearly
on a drum - though fine on a desk or dashboard, etc.
Patterns using these are merely exercises to experience
polymeter
|
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rest (no sound)
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Warm-ups/Foundations:
Patterns in 3, 4, 5, 6...
1 T t T t T t T t T t T t T t T t
2 B t T t T t T t B t T t T t T t
3 B t T t T t B t T t T t
4 B t T t B t T t B t T t B t T t
5 B b T t T t T t B b T t T t T t
6 B b T t T t B b T t T t
7 B b B b T t B b B b T t
8 B b T t B b T t B b T t B b T t
9 T t T t T t S s T t T t T t S s
10 T t T t S s T t T t S s
11 T t S s T t S s T t S s T t S s
12 S s S s S s T t S s S s S s T t
13 S s S s S s S s S s S s S s S s
14 B b T t S s B b T t S s
15 B t S s B t S s B t S s B t S s
16 B b T t B b S s B b T t B b S s
17 T T t t T T t t T T t t T T t t
18 t T T t T T t T T t T T
19 t T T T t T T T t T T T t T T T
20 t t T T T t t T T T t t T T T
21 T t T T t T t t T t T T t T t t
Triples
1 . . 2 . . 3 . . 4 . .
1 t . T t . T t . T t . T
2 b . T t . B b . T t . B
3 b . T t . B b . S s . B
4 b . T t . S s . B
Triplets
5 B t T b T t B t T b T t
6 B b T b B t B b T b B t
7 B t T b S s B t T b S s
8 B s T b S t B s T b S t
9 B b T b B s B b T b B s
10 T t B t T b T t B t T b
11 B b T t B b T t B b T t
12 T t S s T t S s T t S s
Flams in 4
1 . . . 2 . . . 3 . . . 4 . . .
1 Tt T t T Tt T t T Tt T t T Tt T t T
2 Tt t T t Tt t T t Tt t T t Tt t T t
3 Tt T Tt T Tt T Tt T Tt T Tt T Tt T Tt T
4 Tt t Tt t Tt t Tt t Tt t Tt t Tt t Tt t
5 tT T t T tT T t T tT T t T tT T t T
6 tT t T t tT t T t tT t T t tT t T t
7 tT T tT T tT T tT T tT T tT T tT T tT T
8 tT t tT t tT t tT t tT t tT t tT t tT t
9 Tt Tt tT tT Tt Tt tT tT Tt Tt tT tT Tt Tt tT tT
10 Tt tT Tt tT Tt tT Tt tT Tt tT Tt tT Tt tT Tt tT
11 Tt Tt Bb Bb Tt Tt Bb Bb Tt Tt Bb Bb Tt Tt Bb Bb
12 Tt Bb Tt Bb Tt Bb Tt Bb Tt Bb Tt Bb Tt Bb Tt Bb
13 Tt Bb Tt Ss Tt Bb Tt Ss Tt Bb Tt Ss Tt Bb Tt Ss
Flams in 3
1 . . 2 . . 3 . . 4 . .
1 Tt T t Tt T t Tt T t Tt T t
2 Tt t T Tt t T Tt t T Tt t T
3 Tt B t Tt B t Tt B t Tt B t
4 Bt T t Bt T t Bt T t Bt T t
5 Tb T b Tb T b Tb T b Tb T b
6 Ss T t Ss T t Ss T t Ss T t
7 St T t St T t St T t St T t
8 Ts T t Ts T t Ts T t Ts T t
9 S s Tt S s Tt S s Tt S s Tt
10 S b Tt S b Tt S b Tt S b Tt
Rolls
1 TtT (3)
2 TtTt (4)
3 TtTtT (5)
4 TtTtTt (6)
5 TtTtTtT (7)
6 StT
7 TtS
8 StS etc. for each (S/s: begin; end; begin and end)
Exercises
Grooves/Accompaniments
In 4 (played with slight swing)
1 . . . 2 . . . 3 . . . 4 . . .
1 T . T t T . T t T . T t T . T t
2 T . T t . T t . T . T t . T t .
3 T . S s . . T t T . S s . . T t
4 B b T b T t B t B b T b T . T t
5 B . . t T . B . . t T . B t T .
6 T t T s T t T s T t T s T t T s
In '3' (12/8)
1 . . 2 . . 3 . . 4 . .
1 T.TtT.T.TtT.T.TtT.T.TtT.
2 S . b S . . S . b S . .
3 t . T b . T t . B t . T
4 B b T b B t B t T b T t
5 B . B . T t . t . t T t
Adventures in Unusual Meters
10/8
1 S . . t S . t . T . s . . T s . T . t .
7/4
1 B . t . T b . T . t B . t .
2 S . . t S . S . s . T t . t
15/16
1 S t S t S S b S b S t t S t t
Adventures in Polymeter
4 against 6 against 4...
1 t . . t . . t . . t . .
B . B . B . B . B . B .
4 against 5 against 4...
2 t . . . . t . . . . t . . . . t . . . .
T . . . T . . . T . . . T . . . T . . .
4 over 3 over 4...
3 T . T t T . T t T . T t T . T t
T t T t T t T t T t T t
Lead Phrases
1 s T t S t S s T t S
2 T t S t T t S t S
3 t T t T t S t T t S
4 T t T t S s T t S
5 T t T t S t S s T
6 Tt S s T t S s
7 S s S s S s S s Ss
8 t T T . T . T . T . T . Ss
9 B b S t T t Ss T t T t T Ss
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