5 Latin Grooves Every Drummer Should Know (Juan Carlito Mendoza)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ก.พ. 2025
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Are you a working drummer who doesn’t often play latin but wants to make sure you can get through the gig if you get the call? Juan Mendoza is here to save the day with five cool latin grooves every drummer should know - even if the style isn’t your bread and butter.
1. Cha-cha
Don’t have a cowbell? You can play the 8th notes on the hi-hat, but make sure you keep it “delicate”, especially in the song’s verses! Add the bass drum on the 2+ and the 4+.
One variation is to sub the 1 and 3 with a long quarter note buzz (to emulate the sound of a güiro).
2. Mambo
Your left hand moves from a cross-stick on the snare to the high tom, then back again. Your right hand plays a ride pattern over top. Add the bass drum on 2+ and add your left foot on the hi-hat on 2 and 4. (Juan moves the hi hat to the 1 & 3 to make it easier to hear the downbeat when breaking down the rhythms.)
3. Nanigo
In this 6/8 groove, notice where the right hand accents are. Fill in with ghost notes on your left hand. You’re essentially playing a double paradiddle with a variation at the end. The pattern is RLRLRR LRLRLR RLRLRR LRLRLR. No cowbell? Put your right hand on the ride cymbal.
Add a kick on the downbeat and again on the last note of the second bar as a pick-up. Your left foot keeps time on the hi-hat.
4. Mozambique
Your right hand keeps the pattern going on the cowbell (or ride), with your left hand moving from the snare to the toms. The key to the Mozambique is the funky bass groove. And always keep your left foot going on the hi-hat.
5. Songo
With your right hand playing the pattern on the cowbell or ride, make sure you’re getting two distinct sounds: the accent from the mouth of the cowbell (or bell of the ride) and the other notes from the top of the cowbell (or bow of the ride). Your left hand alternates between ghost notes and accents while a few bass drum punches anchor the groove. Keep your left foot going on the hi-hat, or add a clave for an additional challenge!
While there are many other important latin grooves you should learn, these five will give you a good foundation as a working drummer. You can build from there!
Notation:
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What can I say, but thanks Drumeo for having me out! Definitely had a lot of fun recording this for you all and just wanted to mention that all these grooves are AFRO CUBAN grooves. Samba, Partido Alto, Afoxe, etc. Are Brazilian rhythms and not part of Afro Cuban genre so that’s why they are not mentioned here. Either way hope you guys dug it and if you get a chance swing over to my TH-cam channel to continue the conversation....cheers!
oh man, I will certainly swing over there
Juan Carlito Mendoza you are an inspiration!!! Love from Australia my bro
thank you brother...there are so many grooves...but i guess in the long long run its all black and beautiful--but thank you for the distinction...i love these grooves and want to incorporate them in my playing...
Thanks dude! First of all I super appreciate how you just get right to business, I can tell u enjoy teaching and this was really helpful for me. Secondly, now I know the name of the famous Carter Beauford breakdown in Drive In Drive Out - the half time Nanigo!
THANK YOU AGAIN...SO COOL..I;LL COME BACK TO THIS ALWAYS
This is by far one of my favorite lessons snippets from drumeo! Drumeo should most definitely add much more Latin and Afro Cuban lessons to the site! Thank you guys for this one!
🙏 Glad you enjoyed this Juan's lesson!
Yes more Afro Cuban and Latin please! Thanks from me also
thank you guys 🙌 listening
YES THiS
@@DrumeoOfficial I am waiting for the other Jaun's lesson, this Juan set him up for win
One of my biggest pieces of advice for all musicians (drummers especially) is to learn world music. Even if you don't think you'll ever perform those styles explicitly, learning them will help teach you groove, time, and independence, and it will give you ideas that you can carry over into other styles of music. Thanks for this great primer on some of the more common Latin and Afro-Cuban styles!
Agree! I also study reggae and these latin grooves even though there's little chance to perform them in a band. Just the fulfillment and something significant to add to my drumming vocabulary..😊
Truth
Thats the way to go.
Also, playing a nice Latin groove like this is a great way to start a drum solo. People love it
I wish you gave me that advice when I was 10 and started playing drums...which was....er...I think Carter was pres.
Love how the buzz on the hi hat emulates the guiro!
Yeah i tot so too! 😊thats what percussion is all abt! Innovation!
Scary how a 10 minute video can lead to years of hard work 😵
👍
Why did I click on this? Now I have to regroove everything I've learned!
Its amazing how years of hard work led to a 10 minute video.
You are not really what we could call a fast learner lol.
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
When I think of a truly complete drummer, this is what comes to mind. Continues to master his craft every day, in addition to a having a real talent for educating. I’m fortunate to have had the opportunity to take lessons from him in my youth. Even as a college kid this guy was on another level, great to see him find success in the industry. Well deserved!
Juan i was skyping this morning with my dear friend percussionist from amarillo texas . He said Ron, great video and presenation of this drummer 5 latin grooves you should know. I laughed and said you mean juan mendoza. Yes yes thats it. Reason why i’m posting this to you is that coming from him is a big huge thumbs up having a phd in music, retired professor, professional timpanist and concert snare player ( and last few years focused on drumset). Thumbs up from me too 👏🏻
Finally, someone who just goes straight to the point!! Kudos to you Señor Mendoza!!
yeah, but i bet that you dont learning rigth, i barely get it 3 years later, what i say its that nobody learn that faster, take years, so dont be riduculous
Cha-cha 0:25
Manbo 2:24
Nanigo 4:17
Mozambique 7:22
Songo 8:45
MAMBO
It's mambo bruv
Can someone list a Latin popular music example of each?
hero
Love the way your drums are tuned, Juan 🥁
Holy shit, things escalated quickly after cha cha.
Haha same i was alr lost after cha cha... but seeing those notes helped a bit...👍👍👍
"Escalated quickly"! Ha ha! I know exactly what you mean! I was thinking, "Oh, never mind, I'll stick to Jazz Rock!".
th-cam.com/video/Lc_0KRiIkic/w-d-xo.html
Técnica gospel chops !!! ⬆️
Yeah, it's like one second you're learning, "¡Hola amigo!" and the next you're reciting "A Hundred Years of Solitude."
Lol 😂 so funny but true
This guy talks less, is pretty straight forward and explains super clearly! 👍
th-cam.com/video/Lc_0KRiIkic/w-d-xo.html
Técnica gospel chops !!! ⬆️
What an absolute beast of a drummer. I love this guy's playing !!!
that's awesome cool job support people love ❣️❣️🔥💯💯💥🤟
Who knew Chumlee could play
Useful stuff and I like this guy’s teaching vibe
Juan Carlito is reaaally cool to watch, follow and learn from.
he is a music director at a school so he has some experience
👍
He's got a youtube channel, you should check it out
stikkman61 thanks man! Glad you dug it!
That snare sound touched my soul. Perfectly tuned and equed with the most controled and dynamic drummer, what a fucking combination.
I am here as a bass player learning latin styles, and man that high hat buzz was freaking awesome.
Great video.
I'm a metal blast beats drummer, but this style of drumming really keep me excited and impress at the same time...maybe i can apply this pattern in my metal drumming and please do more video like this...we want more...
I know im late but you should check out the song Sickness Unto You by Trivium, the bridge after the solo has a really great Songo beat on it. Alex Bent the drummer is really really good!
You sure can . Im a metal drummer as well . I immediately got an idea of doing the Mozambique straight for a couple measures than switching the feet only to 16th note triplet double kicks .
Eloy Casagrande (who used to drum for Sepultura, and now Slipknot) is a phenomenal metal drummer, who had a background in Brazilian music. He incorporates it into metal in a real cool way.
I love these short lessons. I don't play gigs anymore, but these lessons give me a little something challenging to work on. These are really a lot more fun than the grinding practices I use to do for hours at a time.
I wish I had you tube for drum lessons when I was a kid, boy what a resource. You young whippersnapper drummers don't know how good you got it.
Jazz and Latin remind me how armature my skill set is lol. But the dream never dies one day I will swing like the best of em!
This 10 minute lesson is packed with good information!
th-cam.com/video/Lc_0KRiIkic/w-d-xo.html
Técnica gospel chops !!! ⬆️
Absolutely
GREAT LESSON
I USED THIS IN CLASS AND MY STUDENTS THOUGHT I WAS AMAZING!!!
THANKS FOR MAKING ME LOOK GOOD!
NOW IF I CAN JUST PLAY IT AS EASY AS YOU CAN
This beat improve most of my limbs coordination..from the basic independence of the drums to this beat,it may be hard at first but as you try harder to get it using the slowest of the slow..you definitely get it! Thanks for the lessons!
Nicely done! As an arranger, it's very helpful to SEE the notation as well as the demonstration. Thank you!!!
Oh man! this shows so much to us lay-mens who love latin beats, and drums! thank you so much!!
Great lesson it remind me when I was a child my my father taught me how to do all those beats brings back a lot of good memories those type of Beats were the first ones I ever learned back in the 50s and of course I dropped them off and played funk jazz I'm going to sit on my drums and try to remember all of those beats Thanks for the Memories
Makes me tear up thinking about the first stuff I learned playing bass in my mom’s Hispanic church!!!
çhuch pary everyone love ❣️ and u
This is one of e the best youtube lessons' I've ever seen! No fluff. Not wasted time on trivial sophomoric nonsense. Just real, useful music education.
This is beautiful, accurate, clean playing that makes you want to move your body! Mr. Mendoza is an excellent teacher, and the video is so well made.
This is great! I've played kit for decades and I've also played West African and Latin percussion. When I try to adapt Latin to kit, I wind up trying to play every part 😆
This shows me how these rhythms can be "simplified". Thank you for sharing.
I can understand how that can happen. It probably opened up your creativity though with that kind of musical vocabulary etched into your memory bank.
Cumbia, Salsa, Merengue, Bachata and Reggaeton are the most popular latin rhythms nowadays.
A video of those would be quite useful for the non initiated.
Yeah but most of those genres don't actually use the drums for their percussion. Salsa, Merengue and Bachata use afro Caribbean drum instruments like the bongos, congas, and timbales which is the most drummer like instrument, but it's not exactly the same thing. Reggaeton is almost purely digital and made by producers in a studio so it doesn't really use live drums either although you could play the reggaeton pattern on a drum set. I'm not too familiar with Cumbia, but I imagine they use similar instruments for percussion that they use in salsa, merengue and bachata. I could be completely wrong tho so feel free to correct me.
His ghost notes and snare accents are to die for, awesome grooves
Love the sound of the snare drum and cross stick!!
Thank you for your company!!!
Love the hi hat buzz proxying for the guiro. Played with more feeling than many guiro players!
Wow...
That guiro on the hi hat sounds amazing!!!!!!!
chri mar right doesn’t it give it a cool effect?
@@JuanCarlitoMendoza I have been playing drums for YEARS.... and I have never heard something like that before!!! FUERA DE LIGA!!! WOW.... QUE CREATIVIDAD BRO. DIOS TE GUARDE!
I've played for years never thought of buzzing on the hi hat , excellent thanx!
Juanito thank you for the video. I luv salsa n i luv rock drumset. I'm also a rock drummer by heart. I luv how you fuze both worlds to take the time n explain how each arm n leg independence works. People are scared if syncopation n working of the down beat. Ghost notes / inner beats are important n so are pick up notes. Thank you again
VERY. COOL BRO ....THAX"S 🥁 🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁 HEY ALSO LET US NOT FORGET ABOUT THE /// TAMBALES & CONGAS THAT CAN. GO. WITH THIS ...🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉😊 SALSA ...BABY . ! J.T.SAN JOSE. CAL .🎉🎉🎉
I appreciate this drum lesson as a guitarist who plays Brazilian and Cuban rhythms. We should all know what our drummers are playing.
I love this guy He makes me feel like I can play anything the way he breaks it down it really helpful thank Mr Mendoza Peace and Light 🙏🏽✌🏾🖐🏽👍🏾
Hot damn when he breaks down the left hand on the Mozambique the drums sound like magic.
you're a wonderful teacher & drummer Juan !!
My congrats first on your performance and win at the Guitar Centers, Drum Off. Incredible. I'll forever remember it. Peace. Drum Brother
Juan the super star 😁 it’s brings smile to my face listening to his drumming 💪🏽💪🏽🔥
Excellent..Pay attention young drummers who hope to get work.. Versatility is key...
I think METRONOME is key. None of them can hold a straight beat solid for 1 song.
One of the best instructional vids I've seen. That... and... those Pearl Masters are SINGING!!! I love Pearl Drums!
My dude! Pleasure knowing you early on and vibing with drumset and drum corps chops too.
Thanks for the Latin and Afro seasoning. Proud friend
Excellent teacher! Thanks for this!
That Mozambique groove is incredible!
VERY effective explanations, esp with overhead cam, foot cam, and music with scrolling cursor! Also, you totally delivered on the execution.
I got all these down and then took the suggestion of the clave left foot. Lots of fun. This is such a nice clear video with a charming dude and a great-sounding kit
Super enjoyable and engaging lesson! =) Him and Larnell Lewis are my favourite drummers right now on this channel. Humble and straight to the point without the bravado or pretentiousness.
Thanks for this, Juan and Drumeo!
that mozambique kick pattern is nasty 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Amazing bro ! Thanks !
amazing knowledge share here. thank you drumeo and thank you juan!
Beaut tutorial. You explanations are so clear and spot on with your playing. Thanks for sharing
Yay finally a drummer who knows how to teach and makes drumming fun no bs with this guy
JCM ~ you are fantastic! You’re bringing traditional Latin Grooves to the drum set in a fresh & funky way! Many thanks for sharing your talents! 👈🏽
Learning Latin from the guy in the most Rock shirt ever
That Witty Guy ironic but true 😂
Obviously pre-planned. It's cool though...
I'm.always curious about the "pre-aged shirts."
I was gifted a 78 Rush shirt. Every hole is real and it's a bit small. Looks cute on a girl, tho.
th-cam.com/video/Lc_0KRiIkic/w-d-xo.html
Técnica gospel chops !!! ⬆️
Find that quote from Mick Jagger laughing at Americans hating black music until it was played by white guys.
Mick Jagger was like wtf?
Great stuff, nice lesson!
Super chart line below the vid, very effective, thank you Juan Carlito.
Excellent, thanks. This’ll keep me busy for some time.
Great breakdown of really useful grooves. I've wondered what each of those names were! This helps me talk to my drummers in a way that should make sense to them.
Top notch chops. That cowbell is on point Juan Carlito! It has all the sauce!
Great vid dude. Educational AND FUN ! Bang on.
Awesome drummer. From another planet. I’m not going to try this. Just watch and enjoy 👍🏽👍🏽🤟🏼
Fantastic style of teaching! So informative in such a short amount of time
Great Latin Lesson grooves -fabbo !!!
Mendoza is a true master of atin grooves on a drum kit.
Exelente muchas gracias x tanto material entregado se el esfuerzo k hay detras
These lesson are great! It's teaching me how to multitask on the drums I guess you would say? It was hard for me, but am getting to have my arms and legs do the different things at once on command. Like my bass drum foot timing with my "cymbal hand" would always have to go down with it and throw me off. Thank you! Also fun beats to learn.
Great lesson Juan! I love how you break down each groove to make them manageable. Also your limb independence is off the chain! Great job. I really enjoy your lessons.
Groove With Passion Drum Lessons thanks brother!
Juan my name is John Odom. You’re welcome!
really appreciate you guys 🙌 listening looking forward seeing people
Where are the dancers ! This is the best 10 minutes lesson on Afro Cuban I have ever watched. Thank you.
Juan you make these grooves sound and look so simple. Fantastic teacher you are
Great lesson. Super useful and inspiring. Thanks, Juan and Drumeo!
Esperando una clínica en español para nosotros los Latinos, tremendo baterista Juan Carlitos 👉🥁👈🎶👏👏, saludos desde San Felipe Chile.
Wow! Outstanding and sophisticated moves. Great coordination! Impressive! Semper Fi
Brilliantly explained! You’re a great drummer as well! You’re hits are nice and steady and they’re soft where they need to be
Love the Clave de Rumba at 10:34 ! See how it ties it all together so nicely! (I think most lessons should end with something a little tasty and inspiring like that!)
Also he gets the cha cha right as far as the way Cubans accent it as “123cha cha cha” (on the kick drum though that could be for the congas' tumbao). Westerners have long misplaced the accents as “12cha cha cha” in the dance world.
Ahhh yes THIS FELLOW is so fucking good at drums. Real master of his craft
What an amazing gem of a video! Well explained, well played - need to see more of him. Please do something like a part 2 or something for advanced players... That would be amazing!!!
Thank you Drumeo and Mr. Mendoza. This is the perfect instructional video.
Can't wait to practice these grooves! Killer stuff, sir!
Love it…! these grooves will keep me busy for a while…
Brilliant video man. Inspiring.
nice style and humbleness-you have a great vibe for teaching.....thank you for your sharing
Phenomenal!! Thanks so much, Juan! Happy drumming!
Hey Blake! Watching this while taking a break from practicing,! Ha!🥁
@LBD-2021 haha! Hey, what's up, Lindsay! Awesome! Juan is the real deal! I found him many years back when I was trying to figure out Latin rhythms as a western white boy! lol! He's great!
@@blakenunndrums Ha.. My drum teacher gonna have to share me how to do all that stuff in a way that works on the left side. It'll be cool!🥁
Some people might’ve noticed that at 9:22 he mentioned the bass drum on the “ah“ of one. This might be the source of some confusion because he’s counting that as if it was Cut-time in 16th notes. In other words seeing the 4/4 chart but counting it in cut time. That’s very normal, useful and common, (especially in Cuban feel because the last 16th note in each beat is often felt as fairly accented, so counting “one e an a” has much more feel then counting “one an two an three an four an”), and so you don’t end up beating your foot (if there’s a free one) on every quarter note but on every other in your head, so even you’re seeing eighth notes you can count them as 16ths, that also keeps you from counting “one and two and three and four and” which at tempo can be very awkward.
When reading for Latin in spades other than Bowlero and cha-cha almost always thinking and cut time as well as when reading for funk.
The kit sounds so gooood!!! Awesome player!!!
I do enjoy all the great content that Drumeo is creating and the following suggestion is intended to be constructive. In this case, every single one of these rhythms has its origins in Cuba. Even if the particular flavor given them here in their treatment is a bit more American contemporary in approach, it'd be nice if Drumeo could be culturally-specific in this regard; both to avoid the common mistake of homogenizing Cuban rhythms into a wider, more global "Latin" identity/conception, and; out of respect for the Cuban people, Cuban musicians and their culture. Thanks in advance for taking this into consideration.
These toms and snare sound amazing!
This is amazing and exactly what I’ve been searching for on TH-cam. Thank you Juan and Drumeo!!!
Likewise
That last bit had some Horacio Hernandez vibes to it. His playing really got me into Latin beats bc the limb independence is insane.
You forgot to break down the right hand pattern on the Mozambique. Fortunately I already know it. Great lesson!
I've looking everywhere.
But all i need are actually in here.
Awesome.. thanks 👍👍
I like how the half-time nanigo is used so much in heavy and power metal. I was actually wondering if that groove had a name, and it turned out to be a Latin groove!
10:36 And this is why you're a god. Amazing lesson!
What an awesome snare sound and lesson!
🙏 Glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks so much for these beautiful grooves . Latin music is a wonderful thing . Sooooo musical !!!!
You're a great man thank you I might be able to do those Latin beats now. Thank you!