Take a look this video about legato rolls from drum to drum and give it a try. In this exercise above practice moving from drum to drum while rolling. You’ll have to switch your lead hand during the roll so that you can move to the next drum smoothly. Practice playing a slow tempo with […]
How to Play Grace Notes on Timpani
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Grace notes in timpani music aren’t overly common but they happen once in a while so you have to know what to do when you see them. The tendency might be to play them the same way that you’d play them on a snare drum, but that really wouldn’t sound the best. Basically, great notes […]
Where is the Best Playing Spot on Timpani?
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Let’s face it. Everyone knows that timpani sound incredible! They have a wonderful sound that supports the ensemble both with rhythm and with pitch. But, if the timpanist doesn’t play their drums in the right spot on the head timpani don’t sound good at all. If you play too near the center your drums will […]
How to Properly Perform a Timpani Roll
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Timpani rolls are hand to hand single stroke rolls and are unlike snare drum that are bounce or buzz rolls. To develop a good timpani roll you must: have a nice and relaxed grip play on the optimal playing spot on the drum let your mallets and hands and wrists rebound off of the timpani […]
How to Tune Timpani
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I am often surprised to learn that many people and not only non musicians do not know that the timpani are tuned instruments. The four drum set of timpani has a range of almost two octaves from low C on the big 32” up to a high A on the smallest (23”) drum of the […]
How to Develop a Consistent Sound with Both Hands On Timpani
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In this video I’ll show you a short and seemingly easy exercise meant to develop consistent sound between your two hands. It’s very important that both your right and left hand sound the same when you’re playing timpani, or you will sound like you’re playing on two different instruments. Timpani Exercise to Develop a Consistent […]
How to Hold the Timpani Mallets
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A firm relaxed grip that allows for the wrist to move freely is what makes a good timpani mallet grip. I play with what is generally referred to as the French Grip or really the American Grip. The profile of this grip is that the palms of your hands face each other and that your […]
