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spacerx img BASIC-BASICS: Parts of the Drum Set

This web page has been setup especially for the very young students who may never have seen, or sat behind a real drumset . . .

spacerx imgdrum set parts image spacerx img
spacerx img DRUM SET DESCRIPTIONS:

  1. BASS DRUM:  This is the BIG drum on the floor, in the middle.  It has a pedal attached.  You will place your right foot on that pedal.  It has the deepest tone of all the drums in the kit. (BD)

  2. SNARE DRUM:  This is the small drum on a stand by itself.  It has wires underneath it called 'snares'.  Those wires may be made of wire, or they may be made of nylon.  The 'snares' (or wires) give the Snare drum its snappy sound.  The Snare is the central most drum in the kit and it will sit between your legs.  You will play on top of it with either hand or sometimes both hands . . . depending on the rhythm you are executing. (S)

  3. HI-HAT:   The hi-hat normally sits to the left of the Snare drum.  It looks sorta like a hat.  You will see two smaller cymbals that clap together by means of a foot pedal on a high stand.  Your left foot would go on the footboard.  You will see that you can work the pedal and make the top cymbal 'clap' or 'connect' with the lower cymbal.  It makes sort of a 'chic' or 'clang' sound when you clap the two cymbals together.

    4. We normally play on top of the hi-hat with our right hand . . .  while the two cymbals are closed together.   Most (many) of the beats in my course will have you playing on top of a closed hi-hat with your right hand. Drummers tend to play on top of a closed hi-hat . . . when the singer of the band is singing.  It helps us to play quieter!  Singers usually don't like too much noise coming from  the drummer during the softer parts of a song . . .(HH)

  4. RIDE CYMBAL:  This is usually the biggest and thickest cymbal in the drum set.  It may be from 18" to 24" (inches) in diameter.  We sometimes move our right hand over to this cymbal when we want to play louder . . . like when the singer has stopped singing and as the louder (guitar & other) instruments are playing.  We play our beats pretty much the same as if we were on the hi-hat . . . but  by moving the right hand over to the 'Ride Cymbal', we will discover a variety of tonal changes that tend to fill up the music and create a little more excitement as the band plays. (Ride, or C)

  5. TOM TOMS: Toms may range in size from 6" to 18" (inches) in diameter and the may also come in many depths, ranging from 3" to 16" (inches) or more.  Usually, the larger the tom tom, the deeper its tone will be.  So, we arrange our toms in a clockwise (circle) fashion around the kit, from smallest (and highest pitched) to the largest (and lowest pitched).  The smallest tom (T1, 2, 3, etc.). Some of the more expensive sets may have extra toms on special sturdy stands, surrounding the kit (clockwise) smallest to largest.

  6. FLOOR TOM:  The Floor Tom is an abnormally large Tom Tom and it usually has legs on it.  It stands (or sits) on its own legs.  It usually isn't attached to the bass drum as some of the smaller tom toms may be. (FT)

  7. CRASH CYMBALS:   Crash Cymbals may range  in size from 4" or 5" inches up to 18" in diameter.  They come in all sorts of weights and thicknesses.  We use them as punctuation in the music, crashing them occasionally to 'emphasize' certain parts of the music that may need special accents or kicks.

    Crash cymbals are usually placed on adjustable stands by themselves but every drum set manufacturer may try to come up with many, many different types of stands to make their drum sets seem better than drum sets made by the competition. (Crash)

There is no specific size or number of drums that make up a complete drum set.  You may have as many tom toms or cymbals as you wish.  Some drummers may use two bass drums.  We all like to try to be different.  The more drums we have, the more tonal variations we have to choose from as we play.  More is better . . . if you have the money . . .

BUT;
For learning purposes . . . we can get by with just a Bass, Snare and maybe one cymbal.  This would be the absolute MOST BASIC drum set.  Usually it is best if we can start out on a set with two or three Tom-toms, a Hi-hat, Ride Cymbal, a Crash and (of course) a Bass Drum.

Now . . . go to the following Web Page . . . (lessons.)

The following lessons will get more into detail about when and what you should buy, plus how to assemble and tune your drums, once you have them at home.

BEFORE you get all crazy, buying drums and spending unnecessary money . . . LISTEN UP!

Do you have an aptitude for drumming?
Can and will you study?

Then prove it right now! I'll have you playing and jamming along with approximately 50 million songs in as little as 30 minutes, IF you have the aptitude, and if you have what it takes. I'LL TEACH YOU RIGHT NOW, AT NO COST!

No drums or sticks necessary! Start playing RIGHT NOW! I'll explain how to overcome the dilemma of having NO DRUMS, as we go! Start learning to play . . . right now! THEN BUY DRUMS!

So . . . Do it! Prove to yourself that you have what it takes, right this minute. Start here and don't stop until you are jamming with half the songs on the radio! (It will only take approximately 30 minutes or less and you will become hooked on drumming . . . FOR LIFE.)

You can begin without dropping a penny! I won't even ask for your name or e-mail address. When I say "Free", I really do mean, "FREE".

MANY STUDENTS HAVE BEEN ASKING THIS NEXT QUESTION:

Can the inexpensive drum pads for X-BOX, Wii, DRUM HERO, etc., be used for turning your gaming skills into real talent? The answer is absolutely, YES! So, feel free to hook them up and use them.

Also; you can build your own Practice Drum Set rig. at minimal cost. I started on a practice rig that was very much like this one. To e-mail me Click here. (See) 'About'. Get my e-mail address; drop me a note and ask any question. I'll always try to help you!

  1. DISCOVER YOUR TALENT FOR DRUMS, NOW! Buy drums an hour from now, . . . once you KNOW you have talent!

  2. DRUMS: WHEN TO BUY.

  3. DRUMS: HOW & WHAT TO BUY . . .

  4. HOW TO ASSEMBLE A DRUM SET . . .

  5. HOW TO TUNE YOUR DRUMS . . .

By the time you have completed the above four lessons, you will know exactly what all the drums look like, where they should be placed and what they should sound like.

spacerx img "The teacher, of indeed wise, does not bid you to enter their
spacerx img house of wisdom, but leads you through the threshold of your own mind"-Kahil Gibran.

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spacerx img Copyright Bill Powelson 1965-1994-2008-2014 @ all rights reserved.