What is the Pocket?!?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 3 พ.ย. 2019
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Beatmakers and aspiring pocket drummers alike can benefit from this Reason tutorial. Another part of Samuel Prather's "A Reason to Create" series; in this installment Sam tries to demystify what it means to play in the pocket and how to mimic that in your tracks. There are also some tips for drumming that apply to digital and real drummers alike.
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![He told me how to Find the Pocket with ANY Band [ft. Tim Pierce]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/walos4a-6Yw/mqdefault.jpg)
You just explained really what can’t be explained. It’s one of those things in life that if you got it, you got it. And most don’t know but they should now thanks to you
You nailed it 👍
You'll know when you're in the pocket when you start makin stank face or sayin "Ooo damn"
Most definitely 😂
The pocket is your ability to transition from lyric to lyric and be in sync with the beat simultaneously.
Being in the pocket with other musicians is like ecstasy - All musicians are playing a different part of a song but it fits perfectly well together and they all know it. It's a beautiful high. The heavenly state of being in harmony with each other as musicians. I suspect that a surfer has a similar experience when she or he knows that they have perfect control of the wave they are riding
EVERYTHING you just said!!!
@@blackpranther Thanks! - All the best.
Felt like ecstasy reading this description of what the pocket is,beautiful explanation 👌
Body grooving / head nodding is a great visual way to explain. Any robotic music does not gain that result. Thank you
Absolutely. People respond to those human nuances big time
Hope we can ALL be in the pocket someday as human beings. Pocket is that human element, swinging off of the grid but not so much to feel off beat overall.
I like the triangle explanation 🧐
Solid ✊🏾 I try to find different ways to approach explaining things
I appreciate your attempt to describe such an abstract idea with a concrete description! It’s not an easy task, but you did it well.
Thank you! I didn’t realize how hard it was to describe until I had to explain it lol
It's really not all that abstract.
@@atthecore4560 mmmmmkj
For real, it's a very simple concept@@atthecore4560
The Pocket to me means a locked in groove. Usually between a drummer and a bassist. The whole thing moves as one.
….When the bassist thinks like a drummer
@@Tuliomurillo 100%. People would be surprised to know a lot of people can’t get to a pocket because they don’t listen to the drummer
Wow.... some people have DISLIKED this video?? Really?
Bro this is a fantastic explanation of what people were asking. I think a musical layman would even understand. Extremely well done! Thank you!
I know right?! You can’t please everybody but I’m glad you liked it ✊🏾 Please don’t hesitate to drop any topics you want me to cover in the comments
Relax, they're just Australian viewers, everything is upside down
They don't like it because its not a scientific answer
Yosua Mokalu 😂👍🏾
People who can’t get pockets haha
Today's a first for listening to your channel, and I MUST say, this is one of the BEST explanations of "the pocket" I've heard described in a video!
I was looking for something to share with a bass player at my church. He often seems to drag behind the piano, but drags only a little less when our drummer is present. I'm sharing it with him to help him hear and see what a gospel, spirit- filled, rthym section lives for (pocket).
I think pocket starts with an appreciation of the various waves emitting from others helping to form the "pocket."
It's a comfortable, musical search for that conjoined sonic wave that you "feel" when you arrive there!!!
It's a beautiful ride when you feel everybody pushing it in the same direction.
As a jazz vocalist, I count on the pocket to help me groove with it during solos.
Many gospel melodies are specifically written to ride on and around the pocket, with emphasis often expressed during various vamps as the song builds.
This is so eloquently accurate. I am teaching students that haven’t had the opportunity to be exposed to American culture about the pocket. The way you described it with both technical precision and emotion is awesome . I shared this with them and I know they will benefit.
Awesome! Let me know if there’s any topic I haven’t covered that your students might benefit from 🙏🏾
Best explanation for non (especially feel) listeners or musicians. His describing that music moment that you strive to lock in for. Perfect imperfection of dirty groove!
I think you perfectly nailed what playing in the pocket means. From time to time, while playing with some bands, them and i we reached this result...apart from what i can hear, i notice it when i see every other musician smiling and dancing. Hard to achieve but sooo cool!
This is the actual best description I've ever heard of the pocket. Amazing work man!
Karlheins Sohl Thank you!
This was super-helpful! I'm trying to explain "in the pocket" to a bunch of tech nerds, and gave me a bunch of ideas to use. Thanks.
Easily one of the most informative music vids I've seen in the past year! thanks!
Totally agree that you can't explain pocket, but you know it when you feel it. I've always thought of pocket as the space between the drums
That triangle metaphor/visual is awesome. Going to be keeping that one in mind - cheers!
Great explanation. As someone who’s still new at playing in a group, this was really helpful and verbalized in a way that I could really understand. Thanks. Cant wait to apply some of this next weekend.
I really like how you explained this concept. The analogy with the triangle and the ball in the center is a great way to express the interplay between musicians. Thankyou.
Your welcome! I’m glad it’s useful
This description is absolutely brilliant.
Samuel, this is fantastic. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and thank you for your time and effort in producing this video - truly enlightening. Well done!
Sweet! Thanks again
Great explanation, especially the part about knowing you’re in the pocket when the sisters really start moving. When a rhythm section locks in like that you can feel it. As a drummer, your whole body just grooves and vibrates and the drums almost play themselves. It’s magic.
Really hard to do in a programmed MIDI environment. I’ve done it, but it’s a ton of work. When you have a couple live players who are good, it’s a TON easier.
💯
It's the push and pull. That's a great way to explain it too. I like to that sir.
Yes! Man... Thank you for this. My understanding was essentially the same, but I never could figure out how to articulate it.
Thanks, brother!
I'm not a drummer but a bassist. I've heard of the pocket but never really bothered to get further (which I intend on fixing) but I go by what James Brown or Bootsy Collins say and I always return to the 1. Fit anything I want in between but ALWAYS must return to that 1. I should add I'm also not a professional and just jam with friends. Thank you for the explanation, I hear so many people toss the word around but never properly explain it to me when I ask.
Roderic Bass That’s definitely a way I’ve heard it described too. Keep laying it down 🎶✊🏾
2 years late but you should look up billy Jean live drummer- his pocket is really good and the first thing that comes to mind when I think pocket. Most of Michael Jackson stuff got good pockets.
You are very well spoken. Thank you for the education on this. I hadn't heard of the pocket before, but the concept does make sense to me and I see its value as a producer.
Thanks, admittedly some of that is the edit LOL my less well spoken moments will stay forever on my hard drive 😂 I'm glad it makes sense to you, feel free to drop any ideas for future shows in the comments!
This was perfectly explained! Love it! ❤️👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Intuative and helpful for the producer who is starting on their path
As amateur that's long wondered what "in the pocket" and "push and pull" meant, your triangle analogy makes great sense! And why a computerized static tringle with a dot inside is missing the life that comes with really talented people trying to keep it together. If I ever feel that pocket, I'll know what's going on. Cheers!
Make sure you practise with a metronome.
That's one of the biggest differences I've experienced between Pro and amateur musicians.
Many years ago I stopped auditioning players if they said they didn't use a click.
It saved me a great deal of time, money and energy
You're one of few people out there that can properly explain what 'being in the pocket' means. This phrase is thrown around so much in the Dance Scene yet barely anyone can articulate it as well as you just did, kudos to you sir 💯🙏
Thank you
That definition 🔥🔥🔥 among the best I've heard. It's almost like temporal summetry/silence between beats.
Loved the explanation 🎉
This is awesome. I couldn’t have explained the pocket better. You nailed everything 🤙🏽
Thank you bro!
Well stated! The triangle analogy was GREAT! I had the pleasure of doing a gig with you with Jasmine & Company and I never knew you had this TH-cam channel. Great stuff!
What's up man!!!? Thank you man. You were killin on that gig!
That's explanation I've been looking for. Thanks
It’s a feel good feeling
This made a LOT of sense. Thank you.
I can unmistakably hear when a drummer or groove is inside the pocket, and even know how to creat that feel when making music but when I try to rationalize how it works it escapes me.
This was a great explanation, man. Have tried to explain it to people before especially when pushing back against over-quantizing.
Yeah tracks don't have any energy without that push and pull of the human touch
You Have done in, i salute you Samuel. I always tell The guys i play with, If we play music And the Audience(kids Playing in the Area) don't dont Dance to our Groove, Than we are messing up...
Thank you for your good explanation for “pocket”
That is better than the most of big artist.
Thank you!
Well explained,Samuel.ITs def a feel thing.I was playing so much music at one period that was pocket,and then I did a Musical Theatre tour and I had to learn to play most of the tunes on top of the click (well,half of the band told me that!) and I practised my arse off doing that too.
Thanks! Yup, feel is a huge part of it. Managing those micro adjustments in timing and and tempo are key 👍🏾
Thanks so much! I am a dancer and teach dance and have been thinking about how to dance and teach in the pocket as a concept to embrace. Most dancer teachers dont say “dance in the pocket” but we are also an instrument in the music as movers... I realize that the most brilliant dancers are in the pocket. I’m gonna start talkin about this to my students! Thank u for explaining this!
DancewithDiana Glad you dig it. I make my drum students dance so I think we’re in agreement that the two are connected😉
This was beautifully explained!
You make great videos man! Thank you !
Thank you for explaining this with your examples! The pocket is one of those “I know it when I feel it” things as opposed to “hearing” it. The first chorus to intro-riff in “Man in the box” by AIC is a lesser known one; the beat slows down in such a natural way because it feels like it should.
I’m not hip to AIC but you’re right, it’s all about feel. Thanks for watching
@@blackpranther it’s like.. don’t think- feel it really is hard to explain but you know when you’re in it
I loved your triangle example. It made everything clear.
Fantastic, I'm glad it helped 👍🏾
3:42 This isn't an opinion, this is the truth!
Based on this I'd say you have a gift for describing the ineffable. Nice!
Spot on. Thanks for doing this.
Thanks Nick!
That centered triangle reference is spot on. Great vid, bud.
Thank you bro✊🏾
Your explanation is 'excellent'!! :)
Thank you🙏🏾
Thank you I needed this
Nice explanation. Thanks!
One thing I found interesting in the age of digital music and quantized electronic tracks is that the more perfectly timed a song is, the more sterile it sounds. Take for example James Brown. If you play his songs over a click track the timing doesn't line up to the computer. In some places the beat lags and in other places it's ahead, but it sounds so much better.
Absolutely. There is a lot to be said for the "human touch" on time
Great explanation! Thanks!
very well explained video thanks man! you could make a video on all the terms like that that are mysterious when you start! all the terms that are thrown around in music tutorials that we kinda see what it means when we start. a basic overview of the common terms. Keep up the good work my man!!
ARTiSTAR Thanks bro! Let me know if there’s a term or terms in particular you’re thinking about.
this is a great explanation. 2:18 🎯🎯🎯 ***the pocket is NOT the grid***
(sometimes it can be, but don’t assume that shifting notes or LFOs onto the grid will get the best groove out of the track)
This is an awesome explanation.
David Bruce Thanks!
Well said!
Thank you! 🙌🙏
That was an excellent explanation!
George Mason Thanks! Let me know if there are any topics you’d like me to cover in the future✊🏾
I did a spit take with my vape when you said you just hit 700 subscribers, I really thought this was from a 2M+ subscriber pro musician account. Great video
Kaden Moss 🤣🤣🤣🙏🏾
Really great stuff, thanks.
Thanks Russ!
If you play mtg, one way to look at it is like when you get your combo online. Alternatively, I often compare it to the flow state like feeling that is specific to music. If the “stars align” while you are playing you just get in the pocket man. Same way you sometimes enter flow state in an athletic event and sometimes you don’t.
Yeah, I know it can be hit and miss, but these days I definitely aim to spend as much time in the pocket as I can :)
@@blackpranther definitely. Pocket is the best feeling lol.
Spot on excellent explanation. This is always something I’ve ‘felt’ and pursued / pursue with top priority but I have never been able to articulate in words to myself or to someone else. So thank you. You’ve definitely earned a like/subscribe from me. I will check out all of your other content and am looking forward to future posts and engaging with you in the future. Much Love - Eric
I’m working on the new stuff as we finish up a move. Thanks for the sub!
The relation definition part helped alot. I’ve been producing music by myself trying to get better, but how am I to know the pocket if I don’t play with anyone else? Video helped on more than one perspective! Thanks.
Bro I would highly recommend playing with other people even if it’s just jamming at the house. You might also be able to get some real feedback that helps your production👍🏾
Great explanation!
Thanks! Glad you dig it!
My man! Thanks! ✌😎👍
Glad to help👍🏾
My man always
Thank you!
Well explained!
Thank you!
E aê cara!
Muito boa explicação. Comecei a pesquisar sobre o pocket por recomendação de um outro baterista. Aqui no Brasil 🇧🇷, não se ouve muito sobre!
That was beautifully explained-masterful! Thanks. Subscribed immediately. Would love to HEAR examples of what you think is really in the pocket, and also what it LOOKS LIKE with the wave forms of audio tracks up on the screen.
Chris Alexander Because of copyright issues, I would need to figure out how to play examples of tunes without the video being flagged but I would really love to do that also. I’m working on a format that might be a happy medium to do that
OK, I get it.I'm sure you'll come up with something. Looking forward to it.
Lol people confuse playing pocket with playing simple 😂 thank you for this
Yeah, if it was so simple, anybody could do it 😎
Hi Samuel - Thank you so much for the pocket explanation. If you have time, it would be great to see a video(s) demonstrating it with one or two musicians or a DAW. Or example from your live shows. I don't know about Reason yet. But I'm guessing the concepts still fit. Thanks again.
Great suggestion! The tricky part is getting bad examples to use without putting somebody on blast, but I'll think about some ways to do it 👍🏾
Great! Wow well explained. Suggestion for next episode: what’s swinging? Maybe from the perspective of jazz of the past 30 or so years. Subscribed and liked!
That is a very interesting idea! I suppose especially in today’s musical climate it might be a good idea to clear up that it’s not just a knob in your DAW 😂
+1 I'd like to see and hear your no nonsense approach on swing also.
Turn up that Swing knob to 11! 😉
I hear pocket as the imperfect usage of triple time in a linear 4/4 tempo. A lot of the swing comes from using triple time quadrants in a linear 4/4 tempo.The cool thing about this is that even if you’re late on one note, you can come back on beat and it gives you that little extra head snap or that body groove. I love doing this with hi hats by making them slightly off-beat but an on beat kick drum/snare. Gives you so extra swing while staying in that linear tempo.
I hear you, but I think the pocket can have a much wider definition. It's possible to be deep in the pocket with no swing anywhere
I agree but even when things are pin straight there's usually still a tension between in front side and backside of the beat. I'd also question what you mean by "no swing" because there is almost always SOME even if it's not enough to sound register as being swing. th-cam.com/video/JXyIA3Jx8fg/w-d-xo.html
I am a street amateur drummer, for me pocket is when I can stop people on the street, let them float away for a moment using just my drum(s) :)
Bro you give to much away
We still don’t learn👏🏾😡👏🏾💯
Thanks! I love the explanation but also the background music: what's the name of the song?
Thanks! The background song is a track from my record with the solos muted lol music.apple.com/us/album/miss-timbo-pt-i/1457146974?i=1457147141
Pocket seems to take on a life of it’s on when you reach it. It’s just as good as getting paid for the gig.
The pocket indeed! Great explanation Sam!
Thanks Elsa!
thank you
Can you explain the pocket for a rapper
What’s crazy is.. when you’re so on beat - it’s not pocket.. it sounds mechanical.. but then if it’s slightly off but still in time.. suddenly there is a flavor.. and it’s something i think machine cannot do at all. It feels like the essence of humanity itself haha - true peace on earth.
And 100% you end up on repeating.. it’s eh[horia.. I think some people I used play didn’t understand this. Majority were punk rock.. which I don’t think really got what pockets were.
And other musicians I played with wanted complex fills every second.but that’s not how you get to that pocket.. when rock gets that pocket, it’s starts to feel like droning and flying…but you can’t get to that feel if you’re just playing solos and crap non-stop.
Good explanation :)
Yes, absolutely! Being too busy can get in the way of the pocket settling in. I really feel bad for musicians that have not actually experienced this feeling, often they don't even really understand why it's what they should be aiming for.
Listen to AC/DCs Gone Shootin'. Perfect example of a band in the pocket!
Spot on! Yes exactly. Or some of Stones older live shows, Charlie Watts killing it in "Live with me", "Mixed emotions" . So much pocket there
Couldn't agree more, the whole Powerage album is tight as hell !
you could also address how relaxed playing (never rushing notes slightly ahead of the beat/metronome, and instead instead falling slightly behind if not dead on with the click), makes engineers’ jobs WAY easier if a recording needs to be edited to improve the groove. that in addition to be much groovier than rushing notes, of course.
to fixed rushed playing, the engineer has to add time to the track (or group of tracks), which can cause displeasurable audio stretching artifacts, or distracting duplicated “air”, or ugly, artificially extended sustains.
but removing time is much simpler for the engineer (ie ableton’s cut time function and pro tools’ shuffle mode), and does not create the hurdles and artifacts of adding time/air
Interesting! I’d agree except I think most folks that rush aren’t attuned enough to micro timing to make those type of adjustments. It is much easier to cut than add time though
The pocket happens in a rap verse when the rhyme words and stressed syllables all coincide with the beat
I’m not a rapper but I don’t think you’re right. If that was the case all flows and cadences would sound the same. What you’re describing is simply rapping on beat
hey man loved the music you used in the video hahaha, very nice to solo to, can you say the name or where you got it?
Thanks for the video, the triangle metaphor was very cool, never thought of it like that
Thanks bro! The tune is actually an unreleased instrumental version of Ms. Timbo Part I & II from my last record. I might release it as part of a shed pack. th-cam.com/video/kG4Ir82IEjo/w-d-xo.html
I have taken a close look at a lot of music, and one thing I have done with existing pro songs that are out there in the ecosystem is to check how precise the tempo is, using a DAW that can precisely measure this, quarter note to quarter note.
What I guess I should not find surprising, is that regardless how tight the group is, regardless how perfect the timing sounds, regardless how consistent it sounds, and regardless that a click track was used, I have yet to find anything that was a flat line on the tempo readout. Virtually everything resulted in a graph with constant changes in tempo, quarter note to quarter note. For a song with an average tempo of 90, it could easily have moments where the tempo dropped to 80 or shot to 100, and even so, upon purely listening, it sounded super tight.
I'd think 'that drummer is a effing ma-CHINE!', but the evidence shows every single tune has this sort of variance in it. But even tempo shifts of this magnitude are virtually invisible, which I found surprising. It is only when group members stray from the pocket the group is in, that it might stick out.
Yes!!!!! I agree completely. It's only a problem when one corner of the triangle gets too far too fast for everybody else to respond to. Some of the greatest tunes have a huge variance in tempo metronomically
Love the video dude. I'd recommend anyone who wants a great example of studio 'pocket', listen to Superstition by Stevie Wonder. Everything is played by Stevie except the horns but the pocket is amazing!!
Rickerby Music You’re right bro! I love that record
I thought the pocket was being really into whatever theme one is playing. Like knowing all the parts inside out and play with assertiveness.
That’s definitely one interpretation, but the assertiveness, knowing the parts, commitment to a theme etc. all need to be done with a consistent accuracy in relationship to the other players IMO
Yeah, you got it????!
Do you know Yoyoka? I always wonder why ppl comment "she's in the pocket" in her videos. I have to rewatch this..I still couldnt understand ..
astigmatik I’m not familiar with Yoyoka, but I can check them out. Please rewatch and let me know if it still doesn’t make sense 👍🏾
As a drummer, I feel it's when you've developed past the point of being overwhelmed by all the elements being thrown at you, after which you can be comfortable enough to place a note ahead, on, or behind the beat with confidence, knowing how it will affect the overall feel and lead the band. [additional]: I think the "pocket" is that space between spaces, where you can sit inside time and think, almost like it's the slow-mo bullet-time parts of the Matrix.
Pockets to me are just grooves n where u accentuate the kicks or down/upbeats of melodies
from the 46 Yup! To me it’s really about being locked in✊🏾
@@blackpranther facts
I like how you explained it but can you add examples
David Oh I hadn’t thought about audio examples but I gave a few in my video about playing behind the beat. Programming Behind the Beat
th-cam.com/video/9L-O3lWptUE/w-d-xo.html
I was taught pocket means the beat is not 4 pin points per measure... it's for hollow dots. The bass may be a little ahead of center and guitar behind, but we are all landing in the circle each beat.
I think that’s a cool way to represent it. The placement of the upbeats is important to be a little smaller circle though, those really define the groove