10 Beats To Break You Out of Your Beginner - S Rut

11/02/23, 11:11 10 Beats To Break You Out Of Your Beginner's Rut
The 10 Best Intermediate Drum

Beats
AARON EDGAR / AUG 31, 2017
SHARE THIS:
Here are 10 drum beats to help break you into the intermediate aspects of drumming. These will use the basic
concepts that you might be familiar with in grooves you’ve played before, but they’ll each have their own little
twist that you might’ve never encountered.
(Not sure if you’re ready to move from beginner to intermediate drumming? Check out the beginner’s test
here.)
While you’re learning and practicing these beats, remember to start slow, stay relaxed, and know that
repetition is key. Let’s jump right into it!
This first drum beat takes a basic rock beat and replaces the snare hits with flams. Since flams require both
sticks to play, we’ll be coming off the hi-hat for each one. We’ll be playing right hand flams, so keep your left
hand nice and close to the snare drum throughout the whole groove!
The biggest twist for this beat is we’ll be playing NO kick on count one. This might feel weird at first since the
kick drum helps you find your spot and keeps you anchored.
https://www.drumeo.com/beat/intermediate-drum-beats/ 1/4
The first thing to tackle with this beat is the kick drum pattern. We’ll be playing the kick drum on all four
quarter notes with a fifth on the “and” of count four. Once you have that down, focus on adding the hi-hats
next, and finally the snare hits. Work on each part individually before you add it all together.
You’ve most likely experimented with two-handed sixteenth note beats, but today we’re going to try playing
the hi-hat notes with one hand only. Start super slow with this! The biggest challenge is lining up the kick and
snare hits evenly with your hi-hats. You don’t want any flams here.
Here’s your very first latin beat! This specific pattern is called the “3-2 Clave”, meaning there are three notes
in the first bar and two notes in the second bar. Your feet will be playing a repeated pattern (also called
an ostinato) consisting of a hi-hat and two kick drums. Your right hand will be playing eighth notes on your ride
cymbal, and your left hand will be playing a cross-stick on the snare drum. This is a tricky one, so watch the
video above to get a demonstration.
(Click here if you’ve never played a Bossa Nova before)
This is the first groove we’ll be covering that features ghost notes. Start by isolating the two hands and ignore
the kick drum. Once you’re okay with that, slowly add in each kick drum.
“Linear” means that no two limbs are playing at the same time. This drum beat is similar to the previous one
with a few minor changes. This pattern also makes a great intermediate drum fill.
This is the only triplet-based groove we’ll be learning today. This one might look super complicated at first
glance, but once you have the feel down, it’s not nearly as bad as you might think. If you’re confused by the
sheet music, watch the video to get a good audible example of what it sounds like. Watch legends
like Bernard Purdie play a shuffle to really nail the feel.
Note that count four is played on the floor tom opposed to the snare drum. The biggest challenge in this beat
is closing the hi-hat, hitting the floor tom, and hitting the ride cymbal all at the exact same time. This pattern
has a Carter Beauford (Dave Matthews Band) vibe – hence the name!
Everything we’ve played up until this point has been in 4/4 time, meaning four quarter notes per bar. This one
is in 7/8, meaning there are seven eighth notes per bar. Confused? Start with 4/4 and take away one eighth
note! If you’re new to odd time, check out this 8 minute lesson.
Lesson Index:
0:49 – 1. Flams
7:27 – 2. No kick on “1”
13:13 – 3. Up-beat
18:32 – 4. One-handed sixteenths
25:06 – 5. Bossa nova
36:20 – 6. The “kindadiddle”
41:33 – 7. Linear
46:25 – 8. 16-note shuffle
51:32 – 9. The Carter Beauford
59:30 – 10. Odd time – 7/8

10 Beats To Break You Out of Your Beginner - S Rut

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

10 Beats To Break You Out of Your Beginner - S Rut

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

10 Beats To Break You Out of Your Beginner - S Rut

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

What are some of the drum beats covered in the article and their descriptions?

What is one technique featured in the drum beats that may be new for intermediate drummers?

11/02/23, 11:11 10 Beats To Break You Out Of Your Beginner's Rut

The 10 Best Intermediate Drum

SHARE THIS:

(Click here if you’ve never played a Bossa Nova before)

You might also like