This is the fun stuff! Tambourine, Triangle, Castanets and more make up this category of the percussion family. While each of these instruments is a percussion instrument they each have their own unique playing technique. Percussionists need to know several different techniques on every instrument in the section and these techniques have to be practiced […]
Snare Drum Lessons
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Every percussionist needs to know how to play the snare drum. It’s usually the first instrument we learn how to play and the techniques that we need to know on the snare drum help us with many of the techniques we’ll need when play on all of the other percussion instruments. In this series of […]
Hand Drumming Lessons (Djembe, Bodhran)
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Hand drumming is possibly the most ancient form of percussion. Here you’ll find lessons where the only thing you need is two hands and a surface to drum on. We also cover the basics of some of the more classic hand drumming instruments like the djembe and the bodhran. Follow along with these lessons and […]
Sheet Music: Reading, Writing, and Samples
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Find downloadable exercises for all of the instruments taught on Free Percussion Lessons and even get some music to play! If you’d like our full list of percussion lessons, see our Percussion Lessons Index page. Classical Music Downloads This is a great site where you can download classical sheet music for free. The Music Library […]
Bass Drum Lessons
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Playing the concert bass drum involves some specialized techniques and you can learn about those techniques here. What mallets should I use? How do I tune a Concert Bass Drum? How do I dampen the bass drum? How do I get the best sound from the drum that I can? What types of concert bass […]
How to Avoid Tension in Your Snare Drum Playing
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Tension is the great killer of many things and when we’re speaking of drumming, tension can really cause problems with your tendons. Getting tendonitis is not fun at all. I’ve had it but not from playing drums fortunately (be careful when you clean your swimming pool). Anyway, if you are experiencing any tension while you […]
How to Play a Snare Drum Roll
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The snare drum roll is created by playing alternating strokes R L R L etc, and letting the stick buzz on the drum head while you do this. In order to play a buzz you have to control the stick so that it stays on the drum head with just enough pressure. If there is […]
