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The "Stoned" Hand-drum By Benjamin Franklin Jacoby [email protected] (Copyright March, 2003) Rev. 1

description

box notation

Transcript of various congarhythms

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The "Stoned"Hand-drum

ByBenjamin Franklin Jacoby

[email protected](Copyright March, 2003)

Rev. 1

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A labor of love!

The following book has been a labor of love. Its purpose is to help hand-drummersimprove their playing skills (chops) rather than to make money by sales of this book. Therefore, fair use is permitted for interested persons who may download a free copy forstudent or research uses. However, commercial use requires permission of author. Commercial applications ARE encouraged! The author can be contacted at the emailaddress listed on the cover page or at the snail-mail address below.

While the purpose of this little work was not as a money making project, this bookcan be considered as "shareware". If you find this work to be of some value, a donation ofa few bucks stuffed in an envelope and mailed to :

B. Jacoby88 W. Frankfort St.

Columbus OH, 43206

will insure my continued interest in these projects and will help provide motivation tocontinue the series. A number of projects have already been started. I hope that not onlystudent hand-drummers, but also teachers and players at all levels might find something ofvalue within this little book.

Additional copies of this book in the form of a .pdf file can be downloaded from my so-called website: www.Iwaynet.net/~bjacoby. To download simply click on theappropriate topic found under the titles on the first page and proceed as usual.

Enjoy!

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Contents

A labor of Love Page 2

Contents Page 3

Stone's "Stick Control" Applied to Hand-Drums Page 4

Preface Page 4

Why These Exercises Work Page 4

Tone Separation Page 4

How to Practice These Exercises Page 5

Tablature Box Notation Key Page 7

Exercises in 4/4 Time Page 8

Exercises in 6/8 Time Page 13

Exercises in "other sounds" Page 18

The Muff Tone Page 18

The Touch Note Page 19

"Bent" Tones Page 19

Rim Shots Page 20

Flams Page 21

"Heel-Toe" Exercises in 4/4 Time for the Conga Drum Page 22

"Heel-Toe" Exercises in 6/8 Time for the Conga Drum Page 27

Blank "Tab" Page in 4/4 Time Page 30

Blank "Tab" Page in 6/8 Time Page 31

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Stone's "Stick Control " applied to Hand - Drums

Preface

Chances are that if you are just starting on conga drums you may have already readmy companion book "A Newbie's Introduction to Conga Drums". While that book wasdesigned for rank beginners, this book is intended for the player who has mastered thebasics, but now wishes to build techniques and mastery of the instrument.

In that first book we strongly recommended obtaining a copy of the book "StickControl" by George Lawrence Stone1 and adapting those exercises to the conga drums.Here we do that work for you and adapt the Stone-like exercises to any hand-drums usingbass, open tone and slap as the primary sounds. This includes common hand-drums suchas congas, djembes and ashikos. However, we have also included an additional "bonus"exercise section using "heel-toe" just for conga players. Typically, "heel-toe" technique isnot used with other hand-drums.

Why These Exercises Work

The idea behind these exercises is quite old, but nevertheless very effective. Thisidea found in the classic piano exercises of Hanon as well as in the above mentioned snaredrum book by Stone revolves around separating musical knowledge from pure musclemotions. Musical knowledge is not covered here. You must obtain that in other ways. Thewhole purpose of these exercises is to simply build "muscle memory" and force newnervous pathways in your brain! And we are sorry to relate that the only way we know todo this is constant repetition. Yes these patterns are going to be boring! If you want to beamused we suggest you look elsewhere! But we also suggest that "elsewhere" is not aslikely to give you the killer hand-drum chops you seek!

While drummers often ask how one develops limb independence or how one makesthe left hand (weak hand) as strong and fast as the right (strong) hand, the answer is notusually appreciated. Practice! How do you make any muscle strong? You go to the gymand do horrible boring repetitive strokes that train and develop the muscle in question! It'sexactly the same for musicians be they piano players or drummers.

The hand-drum exercises in this book have been inspired by the earlier works ofHanon and Stone, but have been specifically designed to develop the techniques neededby hand-drummers. They consist of various permutations of drum patterns using bothhands for the bass, open, and slap sounds.

Tone Separation

Hand-drums, unlike drums played with sticks, produce a number of different soundsor "notes" depending upon how you strike the drumhead with your hands. We assume that

1 "Stick Control for the Snare Drummer" by George Lawrence Stone; Copyright 1935, 1963 by GeorgeB. Stone & Son, Inc.; P.O. Box 324, Randolph, MA 02368-2437

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the student already knows how to produce these basic sounds correctly. However, whenplaying rhythmic patterns each of these different sounds, or notes, must be clear anddistinct. The ability to do this is called "Tone Separation". If the student is sloppy andnotes like slaps and open tones start to sound alike, you will actually be playing a differentrhythm than the correct one! Clear distinct notes are part of each rhythmic pattern! If youplay a given rhythm and then through lack of tone separation you exchange the slaps andopen notes in your sound, you will then be playing some other rhythmic pattern!

Thus as you play these exercises care must be taken to keep each hand-soundclear and distinct. Slaps must not sound like opens and bass notes must not muffle afollowing open tone or slap. Tone separation is one key to what makes a master drummer!Never play these exercises so rapidly that you begin to loose tone separation. This pointwill occur at different speeds for different exercises. Play slowly and clearly and speed willcome with time.

How to practice these exercises

When you start to play a new instrument, at first you tend to be rather spastic andhave limited control over your hands/feet/fingers or whatever is required to play theinstrument. The reason is that you have never done this before and the nervous pathwaysin your brain needed to effect this control have not formed yet so every motion is forced.But the human brain is a wondrous organ. It is also a lazy organ. It doesn't like to think if itdoesn't have to. Therefore, if a given operation is repeated often enough, the brain growsnew pathways that essentially wire it for performing those operations without thinking. THISis what practicing a musical instrument is all about! Studies with dancers have shown that ittakes about 180 repetitions for the brain to "hardwire" any given set of moves. This givesyou an indication of the amount of work necessary to master this little book!

These exercises use these facts to hone your technical skills. The way they areused is to obtain a metronome, set the metronome at a slow speed and practice theexercises by repeating each one at least 20 times before going on to the next one. As yourepeat these exercises increase the tempo of the metronome, but it is absolutely essentialthat you not try to practice the exercises faster than a tempo at which they can be doneperfectly! Speed comes automatically with practice. If you try to force speed and playsloppily, you will be training your hands to play the wrong things! Always keep yourmetronome at a speed at which you can play the patterns perfectly. Also remember that 20minutes of practice every day is far more effective than 8 hours of practice one day anddoing nothing for the rest of the week.

Studies have also shown that after a practice session, the brain continues to thinkabout the rhythms and continue perfecting pathways for up to 5 hours after you quit! Thisexplains why daily short practice sessions are much more effective than one weeklymonster session. Furthermore if you practice too many different rhythms at one sittingrather than concentrating on simply repeating a single pattern or two over and over, yourbrain can become confused and you loose a great deal of the effect of the "afterglow". Thebottom line, therefore is to practice daily with short sessions and stick to emphasizing oneor two new patterns in each session.

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The use of a metronome is essential as it provides a reference point to tell thestudent where the "1" is. Without the "1" many of these exercises are identical handmotions whether they start on the left hand or right hand. Giving a slight accent to the "1" orto each metronome beat will help ingrain this relationship of hands to the "1". Be aware ofthe "1".

As you start to develop some drum chops, and your speed and strength increase,you can also extend the time you practice the patterns. Long periods at high (but perfect!)speeds are great for developing the stamina you need to play hand-drums. Remember torelax and drop those shoulders! You need to relax your mind as well, which is why theboring repetitive nature of these exercises is good. When you can play these patternsperfectly at high speed for 5 minutes (a long time in drumming!) without faltering orstraining, you will be well on the way to master drummer as far as your technique goes. Toreally be a master drummer, of course also requires the musical knowledge that theseexercises cannot and are not intended to give you.

This book is divided into two parts consisting of 4/4 patterns (based on 4 beats tothe measure) and 6/8 patterns based on 3 or 6 beats to the measure. Observe that in allpatterns with an odd number of beats (such as 3) your hands reverse after each measure.Hence the first pattern may start on your right hand, but when you repeat the rhythm in thenext measure it will start with the left hand. It takes some practice to get used to this. Allnote values in these patterns are equal. The patterns are all even strokes with no notesever being omitted. Tempo is always relative to the metronome setting you choose. Thepatterns start with simple alternating hand stokes and develop into more complex movesas the numbers get higher. You do not have to practice the patterns in any particular order,although the lower numbers may be easier for beginners than the more complex patterns.In any case, if a given pattern is too complex or difficult to perform perfectly, then slowdown the metronome until you can do it smoothly and correctly.

A simple "tablature" box notation is used for the exercise patterns so that thestudent is not required to be able to read normal music notation in order to use this book.Each "box" represents a sixteenth note of standard music notation and the letter inside thebox tells which hand stroke should be used to play the given note. B means a bass note, Omeans and open tone, and S means a slap sound should be played for that box. Forplaying patterns at a slower tempo it can help if you assign a click to every other stroke oreven to each stroke. We have included blank 4/4 and 6/8 tablature pages in the back ofthis book which will allow you to add your own rhythms or patterns.

We noted above that patterns with odd numbers of strokes are naturally self-reversing. This means that first the pattern starts with one hand and the next time it startswith the other hand. But for patterns which do not self-reverse we have printed out twoversions one starting with your strong hand and the other starting with your weak hand.Some or the patterns lead with the right hand in one part and lead with the left in anotherportion. These patterns are not printed reversed as both leads are used within the exercise. The great hand-drumming goal is to be able to play any pattern starting with either hand.

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Another great goal is to have perfect tone separation. Bass, open tones, and slaps shouldbe clearly distinguishable and should not sound alike. Furthermore, a bass note, an opennote, or a slap note should sound the same with either hand. A person listening to you withtheir eyes closed should not be able to tell which hand you used to play a given note!Practice these things and good luck!

Tablature Box Notation Key

B = Bass NoteP = Palm Note (Conga Bass Note plus "fingers" added)O = Open Toneo = Bent Tone (Open tone with pitch raised by elbow)M = Muff Note (Open tone muffled by keeping fingers pressed on drumhead after strike)C = "Cah" on a Djembe (Lion's Claw)S = Closed Conga Slap Note or Open Djembe Slap Note$ = Muted Slap (Open or closed slap with other hand on drumhead)p = Conga "Pop"K = Bass FlamL = Slap FlamN = Tone FlamR = Rim ShotH = "Heel" of a conga heel-toe-moveT = "Toe" of a heel-toe move or a "Touch" when the note is alone

(Some people use "F" for "T", calling our "Touch" a "Fingers" stroke)X = Stick on the side of the drum shellG = Ghost Note

Some box notations make a distinction between a conga "touch" [T] where thefingers do not force the heel of the hand up off the drum and a "fingers" which we havecalled "toe" [T] where the heel of the hand is forced up. We have simply lumped thesetogether allowing the player to determine the height of the heel in any given move. Touchis also a djembe note, though in that case it is usually not combined with heel-toe moves. Also, when more emphasis is desired for a given conga "touch" [T] note, a "palm" note canbe used. Normally we indicate this as [P]. The player must determine the amount of"fingers" sound to incorporate into the given note in context. Some of the sounds in thetable are not used in these exercises. Usually heel-toe as well as the "palm" sounds areonly used for conga playing and are typically not used with other hand-drums. Thus wehave only used these sounds in the Heel-toe section of this book which is specificallydesigned for conga players.

Some of the sounds, such as muff and touch are used on all hand-drums, thoughperformed differently on the various drums. Some sounds like a "Cah" are specific to thedejmbe. Except for the "other sounds" section and the heel-toe conga section, we havenot employed any of these more advanced sounds in the exercises, and use only Bass,Tone and Open. However, the "other sounds" section has included a few exercises topractice these less common hand-drum notes, but these few exercises should not beconsidered definitive practice on these sounds.

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The "Stoned" Hand-DrumExercises in 4/4 time

^ ^ ^ ^ (metronome clicks)B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B

1. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B

2. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

3. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

4. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S

5. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S

6. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

B B O O B B O O B B O O B B O O

7. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B O O B B O O B B O O B B O O

8. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

O O B B O O B B O O B B O O B B

9. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

O O B B O O B B O O B B O O B B

10. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

B B S S B B S S B B S S B B S S

11. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B S S B B S S B B S S B B S S

12. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

S S B B S S B B S S B B S S B B

13. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

S S B B S S B B S S B B S S B B

14. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

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S S O O S S O O S S O O S S O O

15. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

S S O O S S O O S S O O S S O O

16. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

O O S S O O S S O O S S O O S S

17. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

O O S S O O S S O O S S O O S S

18. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

B B O O S S O O B B O O S S O O

19. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B O O S S O O B B O O S S O O

20. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

B B O O S S O O B B O O S S O O

21. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

B B O O S S O O B B O O S S O O

22. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

B B O O S S B B B B O O S S B B

23. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B O O S S B B B B O O S S B B

24. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

B B O O S S B B B B O O S S B B

25. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

B B O O S S B B B B O O S S B B

26. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

S S O O B B B B S S O O B B B B

27. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

S S O O B B B B B B O O B B B B

28. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

S S O O B B B B S S O O B B B B

29. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

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S S O O B B B B S S O O B B B B

30. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

S S O O B B S S S S O O B B S S

31. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

S S O O B B S S S S O O B B S S

32. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

S S O O B B S S S S O O B B S S

33. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

S S O O B B S S S S O O B B S S

34. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

B B O O B B O O B B O O B B O O

35. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L L

O O B B O O B B O O B B O O B B

36. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L L

B B S S B B S S B B S S B B S S

37. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L L

S S B B S S B B S S B B S S B B

38. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L L

O O S S O O S S O O S S O O S S

39. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L L

S S O O S S O O S S O O S S O O

40. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L L

B S O O B S O O B S O O B S O O

41. R L R R L R L L R L R L R L R L

B S O O B S O O B S O O B S O O

42. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L L

O O S S S S O O O O S S S S O O

43. R R R R L L L L R R R R L L L L

B O S O B O S O B O S O B O S O

44. R L L L R L L L R L L L R L L L

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B O S O B O S O B O S O B O S O

45. L R R R L R R R L R R R L R R R

B O S O B O S O B O S O B O S O

46. R R R R L L L L R R R R L L L L

S S O B S S O B S S O B S S O B

47. R R R R L L L L R R R R L L L L

S O B O S O B O S O B O S O B O

48. R R R R L L L L R R R R L L L L

O B S S O B S S O B S S O B S S

49. R R R R L L L L R R R R L L L L

O O S S O O S S O O S S O O S S

50. L L L L R R R R L L L L R R R R

B O O B B O O B B O O B B O O B

51. R L L R L R R L R L L R L R R L

O S S O O S S O O S S O O S S O

52. R L L R L R R L R L L R L R R L

S O O S S O O S S O O S S O O S

53. R L L R L R R L R L L R L R R L

O O B B O O B B O O B B O O B B

54. R R L R L L R L R R L R L L R L

O O S S O O S S O O S S O O S S

55. R R L R L L R L R R L R L L R L

S S B B S S B B S S B B S S B B

56. L L R L R R L R L L R L R R L R

S S O B O O S B B O O O S S S S

57. R R R L L L R R R L L L R R R L

S S O B O O S B B O O O S S S S

58. L L L R R R L L L R R R L L L R

O O B S S B O O B B S O O O S S

59. R R L R R L R R L R R L R L R L

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O O B S S B O O B B S O O O S S

60. L L R L L R L L R L L R L R L R

B O O B S S O O O S O O B O B S

61. R L L R L L R L L R L L R L R L

B O O B S S O O O S O O B O B S

62. L R R L R R L R R L R R L R L R

B S O O O O S S S S O O B S O O

63. R L R R L L L L R R R R L R L L

B B O O S S O O O O S S S S O O

64. R R L L R L R R L L L L R R R R

B B O O S S O O O O S S S S O O

65. L L R R L R L L R R R R L L L L

S S S S O O S S B B S O S O S O

66. R R R R L L R R L R R L R L R L

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

67. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L R

S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S S

68. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L R

B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B

69. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L R

B B O O B B S S B B O O B B S S

70. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L R

B B S S B B O O B B S S B B O O

71. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L R

B O S S B O S S B O S S B O S S

72. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L R

73. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

74. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

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The "Stoned" Hand-DrumExercises in 6/8 time

(Exercises 1-27 represent all permutations of triplets using B, O, S)(Metronome Clicks)

^ ^ ^ ^ B B B B B B B B B B B B

1. R L R L R L R L R L R L

O O O O O O O O O O O O

2. L R L R L R L R L R L R

S S S S S S S S S S S S

3. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B O O B O O B O O B O O

4. L R L R L R L R L R L R

S O O S O O S O O S O O

5. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B S S B S S B S S B S S

6. L R L R L R L R L R L R

S B B S B B S B B S B B

7. R L R L R L R L R L R L

O S S O S S O S S O S S

8. L R L R L R L R L R L R

O O B O O B O O B O O B

9. R L R L R L R L R L R L

O O S O O S O O S O O S

10. L R L R L R L R L R L R

O B B O B B O B B O B B

11. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B O B B O B B O B B O

12. L R L R L R L R L R L R

B B S B B S B B S B B S

13. R L R L R L R L R L R L

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S S O S S O S S O S S O

14. L R L R L R L R L R L R

S S B S S B S S B S S B

15. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B O B B O B B O B B O B

16. L R L R L R L R L R L R

B O S B O S B O S B O S

17. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B S B B S B B S B B S B

18. L R L R L R L R L R L R

B S O B S O B S O B S O

19. R L R L R L R L R L R L

O B O O B O O B O O B O

20. L R L R L R L R L R L R

O B S O B S O B S O B S

21. R L R L R L R L R L R L

O S B O S B O S B O S B

22. L R L R L R L R L R L R

O S O O S O O S O O S O

23. R L R L R L R L R L R L

S B O S B O S B O S B O

24. L R L R L R L R L R L R

S B S S B S S B S S B S

25. R L R L R L R L R L R L

S O B S O B S O B S O B

26. L R L R L R L R L R L R

S O S S O S S O S S O S

27. R L R L R L R L R L R L

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B B B O O O S S S O O O

28. L R L R L R L R L R L R

B B B O O O S S S O O O

29. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B B O O O B B B S S S

30. L R L R L R L R L R L R

B B B O O O B B B S S S

31. R L R L R L R L R L R L

S S S O O O S S S B B B

32. L R L R L R L R L R L R

S S S O O O S S S B B B

33. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B S O O O B B S O O O

34. L R L R L R L R L R L R

B B S O O O B B S O O O

35. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B O O S O O B O O S O O

36. L R L R L R L R L R L R

B O O S O O B O O S O O

37. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B O O B S S B O O B S S

38. L R L R L R L R L R L R

B O O B S S B O O B S S

39. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B S B B O O B S B B O O

40. L R L R L R L R L R L R

B S B B O O B S B B O O

41 R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B O O S S B B O O S S

42. L R L R L R L R L R L R

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B B O O S S B B O O S S

43. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B O O S S B B O O S S

44. L L R L R R L L R L R R

B B O O S S B B O O S S

45. R R L R L L R R L R L L

S S O O B B S S O O B B

46. L R L R L R L R L R L R

S S O O B B S S O O B B

47. R L R L R L R L R L R L

S S O O B B S S O O B B

48. L L R L R R L L R L R R

S S O O B B S S O O B B

49. R R L R L L R R L R L L

B O O O S O B O O O S O

50. L R L R L R L R L R L R

B O O O S O B O O O S O

51. R L R L R L R L R L R L

S O O O B O S O O O B O

52. L R L R L R L R L R L R

S O O O B O S O O O B O

53. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B S O S S S B S O S S S

54. L R L R L R L R L R L R

B S O S S S B S O S S S

55. R L R L R L R L R L R L

S S O S B S S S O S B S

56. L R L R L R L R L R L R

S S O S B S S S O S B S

57. R L R L R L R L R L R L

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B B O B S B B B O B S B

58. L R L R L R L R L R L R

B B O B S B B B O B S B

59. R L R L R L R L R L R L

S B O B B B S B O B B B

60. L R L R L R L R L R L R

S B O B B B S B O B B B

61. R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B B O O O S S S O O O B B B S S S

62. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

B B B O O O S S S O O O B B B S S S

63. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

S S S O O O B B B O O O S S S B B B

64. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

S S S O O O B B B O O O S S S B B B

65. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

66. L R L R L R L R L R L R

67. R L R L R L R L R L R L

68. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

69. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

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The "Stoned" Hand-DrumExercises in "other sounds" in 4/4 time

The Muff ToneThe Muff tone is the usual open tone only the hand is pressed into the drumhead to

partially muffle the tone. Careful practice is needed to train the hands to lift the oppositehand before striking the next muff tone. If the opposite hand is not lifted soon enough it willcompletely muffle the stroke and your muff note will turn into a "touch". Hence a rhythmMuff-Muff will begin to sound like Muff-Touch. It if very important to develop proper toneseparation so that Muff notes, Open notes, and Touch notes are distinctly different and donot sound alike.

^ ^ ^ ^ (metronome clicks)M M M M M M M M M M M M M M M M

1. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

M M M M M M M M M M M M M M M M

2. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

M M M M M M M M M M M M M M M M

3. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

M M M M M M M M M M M M M M M M

4. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

M M O O M M O O M M O O M M O O

5. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

M M O O M M O O M M O O M M O O

6. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

M M O O M M O O M M O O M M O O

7. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L: L

M M O O M M O O M M O O M M O O

8. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

M M O O S S M M O O S S M M O O

9. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B M M S S O O B B M M S S O O

10. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

B B O O M M T T B B O O M M T T

11. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

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The Touch NoteThe "touch" tone is performed by simply bringing the finger tips (or tip on some

drums) down and touching the head. The finger(s) are held against the head rather thanbounced off so the note is more like a dull thud than a singing open note. With the djembe,often just a single finger tip is used in the touch, while with congas the finger tips areusually bunched together to perform a touch. In the exercises that follow care should betaken to get the tone separation between the dull touches and the singing open notes.

O T O T O T O T O T O T O T O T

1. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

O T O T O T O T O T O T O T O T

2. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

O O T T O O T T O O T T O O T T

3. R L R R L R L L R L R R L R L L

O O T T O O T T O O T T O O T T

5. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

O O T T O O T T O O T T O O T T

4. R R L L R L R R L L R R L R L L

T T T O T T T O T T T O T T T O

6. R R R L R R R L R R R L R R R L

T T T O T T T O T T T O T T T O

7. L L L R L L L R L L L R L L L R

Bent TonesBent notes are simply open notes played with the elbow of the other arm pressing

into the drumhead to raise the pitch of the note. Here we use a lower case "o" to designatethe open note with the higher pitch. On conga drums the elbow is usually placed just insidethe drum rim, with other drums you may have to press closer to the center of the head toget good results. Experiment with elbow placement on your drum to find the best tone.

O o O o O o O o O O O o O o O o

1. R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R

O o O o O o O o O O O o O o O o

2. L L L L L L L L L L L L L L L L

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B B O O o O B B B B O O o O B B

3. R L R R R R R L R L R R R R R L

B B O O o O B B B B O O o O B B

4. L R L L L L L R L R L L L L L R

S S O o S S O o S S O o S S O o

5. R L R R R L R R R L R R R L R R

S S O o S S O o S S O o S S O O

6. L R L L L R L L L R L L L R L L

Rim ShotsRim shots are high pitched notes obtained by striking the drum head with just

The finger tip or tips projecting over the rim of the drum. For those familiar with bongos. Arim shot on a larger drum is very much the same as a bongo rim shot though the othernotes are not played with just fingers as are many bongo tones. As with all the specialnotes in this section, care must be taken to generate complete tone separation so that thespecial notes stand out from the usual bass, open tone, and slap notes. Practice slowlyand carefully!

B R B O B R B O B R B O B R B O

1. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

B R B O B R B O B R B O B R B O

2. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

B O R O B O R O B O R O B O R O

3. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

B O R O B O R O B O R O B O R O

4. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

B B O O R R O O B B O O R R O O

5. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

O R O R O R O R O R O R O R O R

6. L L L L L L L L L L L L L L L L

O R O R O R O R O R O R O R O R

7. R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R RFlams

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A "flam" in drumming means that one hits the drum with both hands at once.Usually one hand is slightly delayed behind the other. It is the delayed hand that is on thebeat, the hand that arrives first is ahead of the beat so that the first hit is a grace noteslightly ahead of the main beat. The purpose of a flam is to "fatten" up the duration of agiven drum sound by spreading it over two hits. While any stroke can be turned into a flam,usually in hand-drumming only Bass, Open tone and Slap Flams are common. One wantsto practice until the timing of the two hits can be precisely controlled at will. This includesstriking both hands exactly together to give increase loudness to a given note.That stroke is called a "flat flam".

[K= Bass Flam; N = Open Flam; L = Slap Flam]For Flams R or L denotes the hand striking first

K N S O K N S O K N S O K N S O

1. R R R L R R R L R R R L R R R L

B B N N B B N N B B N N B B N N

2. L R L L L R L L R L R R R L R R

K K N N L L N N B B O O S S O O

3. R R R R R R R R R L R L R L R L

K K N N L L N N B B O O S S O O

4. L L L L L L L L R L R L R L R L

K K B B N N O O L L S S S O S O

5. R R R L R R R L R R R L R L R L

K K B B N N O O L L S S S O S O

6. L L L R L L L R L L L R L R L R

K K N N L L N N B B O O S S O O

7. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

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The "Stoned" Hand-Drum"Heel-Toe" Exercises in 4/4 time for the Conga Drum

^ ^ ^ ^ (metronome clicks)H T H T H T H T H T H T H T H T

1. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

H T H T H T H T H T H T H T H T

2. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

H H T T H H T T H H T T H H T T

3. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

H H T T H H T T H H T T H H T T

4. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

H T T H H T T H H T T H H T T H

5. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

H T T H H T T H H T T H H T T H

6. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

H T H T H T H T H T H T H T H T

7. L L L L R R R R L L L L R R R R

H T H T H T H T H T H T H T H T

8. R R R R L L L L R R R R L L L L

T H T H T H T H T H T H T H T H

9. L L L L R R R R L L L L R R R R

T H T H T H T H T H T H T H T H

10. R R R R L L L L R R R R L L L L

H T H T T H T H H T H T T H T H

11. L L L L R R R R L L L L R R R R

H T H T T H T H H T H T T H T H

12. R R R R L L L L R R R R L L L L

H T B B H T B B H T B B H T B B

13. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

H T B B H T B B H T B B H T B B

14. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

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H T O O H T O O H T O O H T O O

15. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

H T O O H T O O H T O O H T O O

16. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

H T S S H T S S H T S S H T S S

17. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

H T S S H T S S H T S S H T S S

18. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

H T O O H T S S H T O O H T S S

19. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

H T O O H T S S H T O O H T S S

20. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

H T O O H T B B H T O O H T B B

21. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

H T O O H T B B H T O O H T B B

22. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

H T B O H T B O H T B O H T B O

23. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

H T B O H T B O H T B O H T B O

24. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

H T O B H T O B H T O B H T O B

25. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

H T O B H T O B H T O B H T O B

26. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

H T S O H T S O H T S O H T S O

27. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

H T S O H T S O H T S O H T S O

28. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

H T O S H T O S H T O S H T O S

29. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

Page 24: various congarhythms

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H T O S H T O S H T O S H T O S

30. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

H T B S H T B S H T B S H T B S

31. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

H T B S H T B S H T B S H T B S

32. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

H T H O H T H O H T H O H T H O

33. L L L R L L L R L L L R L L L R

H T H O H T H O H T H O H T H O

34. R R R L R R R L R R R L R R R L

H O H O H O H O H O H O H O H O

35. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

H O H O H O H O H O H O H O H O

36. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

H T S S T H B B H T S S T H B S

37. L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R

H T S S T H B B H T B O T H B O

38. R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L

H T S T H T S T H T S T H T S T

39. L L R L L L R L L L R L L L R L

H T S T H T S T H T S T H T S T

40. R R L R R R L R R R L R R R L R

H T S T H T O O H T S T H T O O

41. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

H T S T H T O O H T S T H T O O

42. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

H T S T H T B O H T S T H T B O

43. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

H T S T H T B O H T S T H T B O

44. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

Page 25: various congarhythms

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H T S T B O B O H T S T B O B O

45. L L R L L R L R L L R L L R L R

H T S T B O B O H T S T B O B O

46. R R L R R L R L R R L R R L R L

O T S T O T S T O T S T O T S T

47. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

O T S T O T S T O T S T O T S T

48. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

O P S T O P S T O P S T O P S T

49. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

O P S T O P S T O P S T O P S T

50. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

B H T S S T H T B B H T S O O O

51. R L L R R L L L R R L L R L R L

B H T S S T H T B B H T S O O O

52. L R R L L R R R L L R R L R L R

H T O T H T O O H T S T H T O O

53. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

H T O T H T O O H T S T H T O O

54. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

H T S T H T S O H T S T H T S O

55. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

H T S T H T S O H T S T H T S O

56. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

H T S T H T O S H T S T H T O S

57. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

H T S T H T O S H T S T H T O S

58. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

H T B T H T B O H T S T H T B O

59. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

Page 26: various congarhythms

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H T B T H T B O H T S T H T B O

60. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

H T S T H T H O H T S T H T H O

61. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

H T S T H T H O H T S T H T H O

62. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

H T S T H O H O H T S T H O H O

63. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

H T S T H O H O H T S T H O H O

64. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

H T S T B O B O H T S T B O B O

65. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

H T S T B O B O H T S T B O B O

66. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

H T S S H T O O H T S S H T O O

67. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

H T S S H T O O H T S S H T O O

68. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

H T S B B T O O H T S B B T O O

69. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

H T S B B T O O H T S B B T O O

70. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

O P S T H T O O H T S T H T O O

71. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

O P S T H T O O H T S T H T O O

72. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

O P S S H T O O H T S T H T O O

73. L L R L L L R R L L R L L L R R

O P S T H T O O H T S T H T O O

74. R R L R R R L L R R L R R R L L

Page 27: various congarhythms

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Page 28: various congarhythms

28

The "Stoned" Hand-Drum"Heel-Toe" Exercises in 6/8 time for the Conga Drum

[Emphasize beats to give triplet feel] (Metronome Clicks)

^ ^ ^ ^B H T B H T B H T B H T

1. R L L R L L R L L R L L

B H T B H T B H T B H T

2. L R R L R R L R R L R R

O H T O H T O H T O H T

3. R L L R L L R L L R L L

O H T O H T O H T O H T

4. L R R L R R L R R L R R

S H T S H T S H T S H T

5. R L L R L L R L L R L L

S H T S H T S H T S H T

6. L R R L R R L R R L R R

H T B H T B H T B H T B

7. L L R L L R L L R L L R

H T B H T B H T B H T B

8. R R L R R L R R L R R L

H T O H T O H T O H T O

9. L L R L L R L L R L L R

H T O H T O H T O H T O

10. R R L R R L R R L R R L

H T S H T S H T S H T S

11. L L R L L R L L R L L R

H T S H T S H T S H T S

12. R R L R R L R R L R R L

Page 29: various congarhythms

29

H T B B S S H T B B S S

13. L L R L R R L L R L R R

H T B B S S H T B B S S

14. R R L R L L R R L R L: L

H T H T O O H T H T O O

15. L L R R L R L L R R L R

H T H T O O H T H T O O

16. R R L L R L R R L L R L

H T S T O O H T S T O O

17. L L R L R R L L R L R R

H T S T O O H T S T O O

18. R R L R L L R R L R L L

H T B T S O H T B T S O

19. L L R L R R L L R L R R

H T B T S O H T B T S O

20. R R L R L L R R L R L L

B H T O H T S H T B H T O H T S H T

21. R L L R L L R L L R L L R L L R L L

B H T O H T S H T B H T O H T S H T

22. L R R L R R L R R L R R L R R L R R

H T S H T O H T B H T S H T O H T B

23. L L R L L R L L R L L R L L R L L R

H T S H T O H T B H T S H T O H T B

24. R R L R R L R R L R R L R R L R R L

B B B H T S H T S B B B H T S H T S

25. R L R L L R L L R R L R L L R L L R

B B B H T S H T S B B B H T S H T S

26. L R L R R L R R L L R L R R L R R L

Page 30: various congarhythms

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O O O H T S H T S O O O H T S H T S

27. R L R L L R L L R R L R L L R L L R

O O O H T S H T S O O O H T S H T S

28. L R L R R L R R L L R L R R L R R L

H T H B B B H T H B B B H T H B B B

29. L L L R L R L L L R L R L L L R L R

H T H B B B H T H B B B H T H B B B

30. R R R L R L R R R L R L R R R L R L

H T H O O O H T H O O O H T H O O O

31. L L L R L R L L L R L R L L L R L R

H T H O O O H T H O O O H T H O O O

32. R R R L R L R R R L R L R R R L R L

H T H S S S H T H S S S H T H S S S

33. L L L R L R L L L R L R L L L R L R

H T H S S S H T H S S S H T H S S S

34. R R R L R L R R R L R L R R R L R L

35. L R L R L R L R L R L R

36. R L R L R L R L R L R L

37. L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R

38. R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

Page 31: various congarhythms

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Blank "Tab" Diagrams in 4/4 Time(Make Copies to save your own patterns)

Page 32: various congarhythms

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Blank "Tab" Diagrams in 6/8 Time(Make Copies to save your own patterns)