A drum corps is composed of three types of drummers, none more important than the others. The bass drum provides the rhythmic and harmonic foundation for the band as a whole, the snare drummers provide the drive and dynamics and…

The Three RRRs are the elements every drummer needs to fully understand pipe band drumming: Reading, Rolls and Rudiments. To help drummers with these three elements I've created three books:

The Bare Bones introduces applicable music…

There are two mysterious words used over and over by experienced pipers and drummers: pointed and round. Each of the five styles we play are either pointed or round--some are really pointed, others are more round depending on the…

Extended roll sequences can add a bunch of musical possibilities to any drum score. When composing a new score, it is always important to include some extended rolls to add dynamics, texture and some interesting syncopation to your pipe band's…

When you go to see a rock band play, a common conversation after the show involves how "tight" the band played. If you see a "tight" band it's a good bet that all their count ins, stops, shots, endings and…

Welcome to the final blog post of "Roll Call"! This week we'll be looking at the execution and use of rhythm syllables for rolls in a strathspey. As I've discussed in previous blog posts the strathspey is the least understood…

In part IX of "Roll Call" we will be learning to identify rolls within the most musically complex style we play: the strathspey. A typical strathspey contains the following rolls types:

• Four stroke rolls
• Five stroke rolls
• Six stroke…

The rolls in a 6/8 march are the most complex you'll find in any style. Whereas the rolls of a 2/4 march contain mostly triplet sixteenth subdivisions, rolls in the 6/8 march contain three distinct subdivisions:

• Triplet eighth notes…

As discussed in Part V, jigs are written in 6/8, a compound time signature based on groups of three. Today we will discuss the rhythmic breakdown of rolls found in the jig style and the use of rhythm syllables…

Welcome to Part V of Roll Call! In this ten part series I'll be focusing on the identification and execution of rolls in the five styles of music we play. Today we'll be concentrating on the jig style. The jig…

In "Roll Call" Part IV I'll be discussing the breakdown and use of rhythm syllables for rolls commonly found in the round reel. This has been a very challenging section to write and has been very "eye-opening" as the exact…

This week, in part three of "Roll Call", we'll be discussing how rolls appear in the round reel. In the pipe band drumming idiom there are two types of reels: those that are played with swing (using dot and…

To add to last week's post, it is possible to use rhythm syllables (as found in The Bare Bones Reading System) to help you figure out the timing of your buzz strokes. In an effort to streamline the post I…

Last week we learned how to identify every type of roll used in a march or reel. Now that we know what the different rolls look like it's time to move on to how they are played. Before we begin…

In an earlier blog post (Know Your Roll), I attempted to help drummers identify a five stroke roll across the five styles of music we play. After some reflection, I realized a change in approach was needed. Instead…

Hmmm... it doesn't look very intimidating... but there is sits, the DREADED RATAMACUE: one of the most maligned and complaint inducing rudiments we play. It is a simple rudiment to understand yet one of the toughest to execute consistently. Starting…

For a snare section, the ability to play in perfect unison with each other is the toughest goal to achieve. Pipe band snare drums are notoriously unforgiving due to their extreme volume level making every tiny mistake or rough patch…

"What kind of roll is this??" Every pipe band drummer has uttered these words at least once during their education. Anyone who has ever taught pipe band drumming hears this question multiple times every lesson. The reason it is so…

Pipe band drumming music is almost impossible to read. In fact, it is not only hard to read but, to anyone unfamiliar with the style, it is completely inaccessible. I have been trying to figure it out for the last…