Drummer

Latin music encompasses a large number of styles from Central and South America, including salsa, merengue, samba, bossa nova, and many more. Today, we’re looking at what defines Latin music. Join us on a rhythmic journey that starts in Mexico and ends in Argentina!

Whether they’re paid pros or passionate dabblers, every musician wants to make the most of their skill and talent, which involves getting rid of limitations and problems. Makes sense, but there’s no point in any of it if you’re not doing it correctly, so let’s look at what it takes to be a good musician.

While the human body is ideal for making music, it hasn’t much evolved for sitting down. Drummers and pianists will no doubt be painfully aware of just how difficult it is to make music while you’re sitting. Thankfully, proper posture can help you play better and for longer. In this article, we’ll focus on just that, using drummers and pianists to set the example and talk about tailbones and hollow backs. And yes, chances are you’re going to have to learn to sit all over again.

While recording percussion instruments isn’t exactly rocket science, there are a few small pitfalls you need to be aware of if you want to end up with perfectly mixed sound instead of an ear-splitting racket. Read on to learn some tips and tricks!

Playing percussion is an art, just like playing any other musical instrument and, if you’re the percussionist in a band, then you also need to learn how to work seamlessly with the drummer and other musicians. In this blog, you’ll find out what’s involved in being a percussionist, including the kind of attitude you need to have, and who the masters of the percussion craft are. Right here, the ultra-experienced, all-round percussionist Martin Verdonk tells all!

Maybe you’ve just joined a new band, spent a lot of hard hours learning the setlist and finally, it’s time for the first rehearsal… or maybe even the first gig. However, on arrival, you quickly realise that the drum kit provided is not just less than optimal, but sounds like pounding on a pile of protesting margarine tubs. Everything has been set up badly and there’s a list of other small, potentially frustrating issues that’ll need fixing before anything will sound good. Luckily, you’ve come prepared, because you remembered to stash just seven magic tools and accessories away in your drumstick bag!

A lot of drummers suffer from back and wrist injuries, and often unnecessarily since a lot of afflictions can be quite easily prevented. There are just a handful of things you have to pay attention to in order to get through long practice sessions and physically demanding gigs without trouble. Read on to learn five simple tips.

One of the oldest instruments in the world, the frame drum comes in various shapes and sizes these days. Just about every region of every country seems to be home to its own unique frame drum. Some are equipped with loads of jingles, while other types only have a few jingles or none at all. One thing that all frames have in common however, is a drumhead. Let’s take a quick trip around the world and look at a number of well-known frame drums.

Practising any instrument can be a tedious process, especially when trying to find the extra time to do so. Many people believe that practice has to be hours a day to achieve any tangible results. That couldn’t be further from the truth! Guest blogger Evan Chapman shows how we can utilise 20 minutes a day to effectively practise drums.

Sometimes, you come across instruments that have a pretty special origin-story, a unique design or even a weird sound. Companies that develop and produce percussion instruments often bring out some weird and wonderful sound-making tools designed to create a specific sound effect. In this blog, we take a closer look at some of the more remarkable percussive instruments out there and see how they can be deployed to mimic the sounds of nature, so you can build your own organic soundscapes.

Acoustic drum kits are often configured to match a specific style, which is why rock-based drummers usually opt for a rock-configured kit, while jazz drummers are more likely to go for a little bebop kit. That said, there’s no reason why you can’t lay down jazz patterns with a rock kit or vice versa. Besides, a good drummer will always make sure that the sound of their kit matches the style of music, no matter how the kit is configured. Want to pull a more jazzy sound out of your kit? Read on for a few tips and tricks.

The venerable experts of Bax Music could offer up a thousand-and-one fascinating facts about the drum kit, but since no one has time for that, we’ve hand-picked just five!