ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 8 ส.ค. 2020
- I have received several questions recently about finger technique and the strokes that I use when I play. This little review video addresses some topics I have covered in my other hand technique videos but here I spend more time on finger technique and I try to answer some of the questions I have recieved.
I also talk about the basic strokes I use and teach, (legato and staccato) as well as demonstrate a few exercises I use to develop my fingers.
The books I use to teach this subject are
Wrist and Finger Control by Charles Wilcoxon, my book Lets go Camping and
Master Studies by Joe Morello
You can view my other hand Technique videos here
• Rick Dior's Hand Techn... - เพลง
I can't believe you're giving all these gems of information for free on TH-cam. Lots of online courses will leave the minute details behind a paywall. It just speaks of your love for teaching others. You have my respect, sir! :)
No need to go anywhere else for drum lessons. Ricks videos are the best on TH-cam. My brother in Law watched Ricks video on latin/hand drumming and sounds 10 times better. Thanks Rick!!!!
Thanks Lawrence. I appreciate that.
Rick
The knowledge you have is so vast and it's really shown by how easily you teach. I'm a new drummer and I found these videos soooo useful. Thank you Mr. Rick. you the man!
Man these videos are so good! I love the way you teach, so clear and simply put. Good stuff!
I second that.
Too wonderful, thank you.
You're the man, man. Thanks for the tips
Wow great video. Very succinctly explained!
I knew you were a Joe Morello student s soon as I saw you play.
He was the goat.
Thank, I'm gonna start watching all your videos and try to improve my technique and playing.
Rick, you are the man and i hope you are doing very well and staying healthy. The drum community needs you for as long as you’ll have us! I’m new here, but I just got my e drums a couple weeks ago and I’m super excited with how fun it is and how much progression I am making thanks to people like you
That's so great, Daniel.
I wish you much joy in your drumming journey.
Fabulous! Thank you...
thanks Rick I think I'm going to start here.I started with doubles and closed rolls but then I saw this.
You really make thoughtful videos I've learned so much. I'm working on my snare chops again to start learning the timbales. One of these days ones I've done my due diligence im going to beg you to set me straight with lessons.
I learned a lot. Thank you!
Thank you for this great lesson!
Hi Derek
Thanks for watching
Great, thank you.
I do that corkscrew thing, I’ve never noticed my hand move up the stick but it does turn. Thanks for letting me know that it’s a bad habit.
Hey Rick. Thanks for the lesson. Wish I could have as great teacher as you are here in Finland.
Thankyou again Mr. Rick! Meat and potatoes for the ages!
It really makes sense. I' ve been studing technique with a great teacher, but to be honest, sometimes I feel confused, many concepts and "you must do it or don't do that", I near to give up. I really appreciate your approach. Thank you.
Hi Artur
Don't give up! Just like in all aspects of life things have different names that mean the same thing. There is no one right way to do anything but there are ways that will get you results faster and keep you playing longer.
Listen to your teacher if he/she is a professional and never close your mind off to other ideas. Try to enjoy the learning process.
Greatness sir !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
"You're not going to play drums with hammers ... hopefully" 😂. Excellent lesson on fundamental techniques. Thanks for yet another great video Rick!
Rick: Can you elaborate a bit on how the left hand's 1st 2 finger placement seems to modify when transitioning from regular strokes at a moderate speed to a faster speed using just fingers? On regular strokes, the 2 fingers each drape over the stick without acting as primary levers-- while in the faster finger speeds your 2nd finger falls away, leaving just the thumb and 1st finger almost ringed together, as if they are only doing the work. No one ever seems to discuss those specifics on the left hand.
I've noticed Joe M. did that, Buddy Rich did that at higher speed playing.
[When I first tried to study Tommy Igor's Hands for a Lifetime, I immediately was frustrated by the fact that while showing his students in a circle with him playing on their pads, all the students were gripping the left stick w/the 2 fingers draped over, while TI was different- he was only using the thumb and 1st finger (2nd finger in the up- FU position!), but he NEVER mentioned that distinction at all. That was such an obvious difference and he never pointed it out, that I stopped watching his videos].
That technique is never mentioned in detail by anyone I've watched- but it seems like a modification that switches the power from 2 fingers to just 1 finger + thumb, and it deserves some explanation if it works and how it works.
I get those fingers out of the way when I am playing faster so the thumb can do most of the work. Changing the width of the space between my bottom two fingers and my top two fingers allows more distance so therefore I am able to play faster and louder with those bounce strokes which are mostly done with the thumb. All of the fingers are still regulating the movement of the stick so those top 2 fingers remain active.
Great stuff Rick! How can I order some practice sticks from you?
Thanks Rick for another fantastic video. Your lessons are gold. When you demonstrated how you practice these strokes for the left hand traditional grip, are these strokes fundamentally being bounced and controlled with the soft padding under the thumb? Is there any bone involved? I gather it takes quite some time to have control of the appropriate spot without hurting oneself. I'm assuming that this is where your primary fulcrum for the left hand is? Thank you for your time.
Hi John
I am using the middle and bottom part of my thumb just below the first joint. Not the top of it.
If you allow the stick to bounce and you are not tight you won't hurt your hand.
You will develop some calluses over time in that spot.
Just thought I'd mention: At 3:15 you mention the "squirrel eating the stick" grip. Steve Smith (a technical wizard) plays like that sometimes. If I remember correctly he mentioned in one of his videos that he uses it to gain some natural leverage/power as the grip allows the whole arm to participate in the motion. It does look a bit funny though and he's the only one I've seen using it!
Great great videos! I was wondering what overhead mic you use to record all your drums? Yoi have a great sounds on all the videos! Thanks a lot!
Hi
Thats an old AKG C24 stereo microphone.
Thanks
Rick
Hello Rick, first of all thanks a lot for sharing your wisdom and experience as a teacher and musician. Watching your videos, and in particular, those dedicated to left hand finger control, I practiced a lot with the exercise in which you bounce the stick on the pad with the index and the middle fingers, with the back of the hand facing up (the third step, after only wrist and only thumb). Now I’m trying to rotate my wrist so that my thumb is up and the back of my hand to the left, but I cannot obtain satisfactory control of the bounces using the index and middle finger. In any of your videos do you talk exactly of the process that occurs when, after the third step, you rotate your wrist to reach the correct position of the traditional grip? Thanks again for your videos, any advice will be precious. Fabio, Italy.
Hi Fabio
This is complicated so you might want to consider taking a lesson so that we can make sure everything is working properly. You can contact me at rickdior@gmail.com
Thanks
Couldn't help but notice that at 8:50 in the video when you demo matched grip with your left hand that your thumb is on the side of the stick not the top like you teach with your right hand. I just mentioned it because I tend to play with my thumbs toward the sides of the sticks yet, as you say, when I play the ride cymbal my thumb moves to the top of the stick as you play it.
Hi Rick, I agree totally with your analysis of stroke types. How do you teach the up stroke or down stroke with students since a common problem is downstroking on timpani (just an example)? Do you teach upstrokes for timp/mallets and downstrokes for snare ?
Hi Kenneth
Thanks for the question.
Hopefully I am being clear here.
I do not teach up and down strokes. I teach bounce and wrist (with finger) strokes. Up and down strokes are the source of bad technique. That is the wrong way to think about it.
I teach all strokes on all percussion instruments that use sticks the same way so that there is no cross platform confusion. I teach a bounce legato stroke and a quicker clinch (wrist/finger) staccato stroke. Within these strokes there is a bit of variation between a marimba mallet grip and a timpani grip ( I teach a variation on the German grip) but the concept is the same. There are also the obvious stick techniques such as finger, Moeller, Push-Pull etc.
On Timpani the first thing I teach students is to bounce the stick off the head and to follow that bounce up with the wrist. That way the wrist is not getting in the way of the stick movement. Next I teach a quicker wrist staccato stroke that my timpani teacher Fred Hinger used. This is for articulation. The grip is never tight. Both Hinger and Morello (who were friends, by they way) used to attempt to knock the sticks out of my hands while I was playing. If they could that was good in their view since it meant my grip was not tight.
Any sign of wrist/arm/shoulder tightness is a bad thing and will manifest into bad sound and limited technical ability.
Web, not wbf. Love the lessons
Hi Rick I've tried posting this a few times and it hasn't worked so hopefully it cooperates. Very informative video thank you. I was wondering if you could explain or demonstrate how to apply this approach to some rudiments? I'm looking to break down my playing from the beginning but I'm not exactly sure how to execute rhythms correctly. Do you apply the legato stroke to single notes and the finger control staccato to doubles strokes or more than one note on a hand? what about a quiet note followed by a loud note and vice versa. I think it could be really useful to see you approach rudiments with different stickings as if you had to relearn them, so we could see the deliberate strokes to practice. It would also serve as a guide on how to learn other patterns because the fundamental motions would be conceptualized. Knowing this channel maybe you already have a video on this you can refer me to lol. Thank you so much for the the amazing content you put out in these videos.. without a doubt the best resource for learning about drumming online!
Hi Alistair
If you look at my new hand technique video I posted a few days ago called Rick's chop builders this talks about several techniques you are asking about. You can also watch my 40 Standard PAS rudiments video.
That being said I will try to at some point do a simplified rudiments video where I talk about what you are asking. I am right in the middle of the college semester right now so it may be awhile.
Thanks
Rick
Not sure replying to an old post is going to get me a reply: but here goes: I can't see how you play the singles on the right hand without moving the wrist. When I pull the stick with my fingers, my wrist moves, as well. I can't seem to isolate my wrist from my finger movement. I can execute the strokes with fair speed and consistency, but I wish I could do the fingers solo thing as you do. Thanks.
Try to hold your wrist with the other hand while you use your fingers to move the stick.
If your fingers are not strong enough you will most likely use your wrist instead.
@@rickdior Thank you for the reply. I will try that.
Rick I have a question been looking through your videos, your left hand traditional wise I never played match grip but I was trying to see your method on singles with that hand. I tried close up, my singles are fast but like your methodology. By the way Happy Thanksgiving to you and family.
Hi Jim
I am not sure I understand your question. Would you mind restating it.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours as well.
Rick
@@rickdior sorry Rick i will try again with more clarity, your left hand had a sort of finger technique to your singles.I noticed the same thing with Joe Morello.
Hi Jim
Yes, I use lots of fingers when I play singles and you are correct in that Morello used the same technique. It really is the only way to play singles at different dynamic levels cleanly. Check out Tony Williams, the king of dynamic singles (along with Buddy Rich)
@@rickdior yes Ive checked out Buddy Rich alot but was wondering if you had any instructural demos on traditional grip finger technique. Its ok i appreciate the response Rick.
@@rickdior well my friend , I slow down your video till I saw your technique properly, and with practicing what I saw it seemed natural and with my previous yrs of experience I managed to get your left hand somewhat down ...hopefully I will get my singles even faster and much easier. i thank you Rick for your instructions and videos so i could see what I needed to get a new development on my playing. I will be watching your videos in the future. God willing. There is always something to learn in this instrument that I have loved since I was a child. Again thank you sincerely. Your friend. Jim
"The rest of the fingers, if you have 5 fingers, ..." Thanks for being inclusive :)
Hi Rick what practice pad are you using?
Thats an older Quiet Tone Drum Mute. They are no made by Sabian.
Thanks Rick
Is that hand exercise in your "Lets Go Camping" book? And, do you still teach out of Wilcoxon Wrist and Finger Control Book?
Hi Ed
Yes and Yes
@@rickdior So Rick given your staccato and legato strokes, I assume when you work out of "Wrist and Finger Control" book you teach your staccato stroke for "W", your legato for "B" and for "Arm" you use a Moeller or Moeller-esque arm level yea? Thank SO much -- really appreciate you!
Hi Ed
I have a whole different way of using that book. It's one of my favorites.
I will do a video on it in the future.
Several probably.
Wow! Yes!!! Can't wait...
How did you dampen that drum to make it essentially a practice pad?
Hi James
That is an old Quiet Tone Drum Mute on top of my snare drum.
Hello Rick, are you doing Skype lessons ?
Yes
You can contact me at rickdior@gmail.com
Hi Rick. That’s great. One question. With your finger technique, when you keep it going continuously with the right hand, are you actually moving the stick with the fingers on every tap, or just every two or three to keep the bounce going? I find it really difficult to get that kind of power and speed from the fingers. Thanks, Ashley
Hi Ashley
Once the initial bounce is used up it is fingers on every stroke. It takes a while to build the strength needed to do this so keep working on it and it will happen. I have taught this technique to hundreds of students and most all of them get it eventually.
Stay well
Rick
@@rickdior Thanks Rick! I’ll keep at it. Really appreciate your videos - a great service to the drumming community 👏