Drumming can be both a creative outlet and a career option. Regardless of the reason why you are interested in drumming, getting better should always be on your mind. Below, we will look at some steps you can take to get better at drumming
Nail the Fundamentals
As with everything else in life, start with the fundamentals. It may feel a bit silly, especially if you would like to play in front of a crowd in a few months’ time. Nailing the fundamentals ensures that you will never falter on stage, regardless of its size. Nailing the fundamentals will also make it very easy to master advanced drumming techniques.
Find Drummers You Like
Every drummer has their own style of playing. You will develop yours as time goes on but for now, if you are just starting out, it is always a good idea to find drumming giants in whose footsteps you can follow. They will teach you ways to play that you may not have thought of, and their cumulative experiences will undoubtedly make you a better drummer.
Assess Your Quality
Always analyze the quality of your training sessions. Plug in a good pair of headphones to a good amplifier and listen to your training sessions. Doing so will help you identify areas that need improvement. Work on what you do not like when you listen to your training sessions. Doing so will help you drastically improve.
Join a Local Drumming Community
As with finding a mentor to help you with your training, it is always a good idea to join a local drumming community. A group will sit down with you and point out what your weaknesses are. Also, joining a local band might open up some opportunities for gigs and performances, both of which will help improve your confidence and add to your experience.
Learn to Relax
Drumming should be done from the shoulders and not from the wrists. When your arms are tensed up, you will be forced to play from the wrists or using your fingers. This can seriously strain your hands. Learning to relax will help you play lighter and give you the liberty of increasing or lowering your volume as you play. Relaxing also gives you an opportunity to control the tempo and emotion of the beats you are playing, as you will not be forcing your beats but rather letting the notes flow from your drums and drumsticks.
Value Quality Over Quantity
You should always strive to play the best you can, even during your training sessions. When you have this mindset, you should try to make incremental changes whenever you play. It does not matter how many hours you train if you are not improving.
Be Humble
Being humble means that you understand there will always be something new to learn. New techniques will emerge and trends will change. Be humble enough to understand that you will need to keep learning so that you can stay up to date on everything going on in the drumming world.
Take Consistent Action
In addition to all of the above, you should try to train consistently. Doing so improves muscle memory so that you are able to play effortlessly. Taking consistent action also helps improve your quality and gives you more material to work with when analyzing your training sessions.
Conclusion
Becoming a drummer can be an exciting journey. To get better as a drummer, you have to train consistently, always be improving, take advice and lessons from those who came before you and be humble enough to know that there will always be something new to learn.
