Break Through the Drumming Wall & Play Faster

Many of my students hit a wall with their drumming speed. They learn a bunch of grooves and drum fills, but there are many points in their journey where they struggle to play faster. If you are reading this article, I’m going to assume that you too have encountered what I like to refer to as the drumming wall. More importantly, I’m going to show you how to break through to play faster and stronger. 

The Wall

No matter who you are, there is a limit to your speed. You could be Buddy Rich (one of the greatest drummers ever) or a newbie, but in all cases there is a limit to how fast you can go. This is the drumming wall. To test this, play single strokes (RLRL) as fast as you can for 10 seconds. To test it further, play it for 30 seconds, then for 60 seconds. Now, try to go faster. 

In all cases above, there will be a limit. Likewise, you will probably notice that the longer you play the slower you go, just like running long distances. Before we try to break through the wall, you will need to identify where your wall is. A good way to do this is with a metronome, which will help you track your progress as you get stronger. Set the metronome to the tempo you think you can play it at. Then, add a few clicks until you cannot go faster. That is your wall, which will serve as your starting point. 

Breaking Through The Wall

Now that you know how fast you can and cannot go, back the metronome off by 5 to 10 bpm (beats per minute). Now, play at this speed for a while. Then add a few clicks. Keep increasing the tempo until you hit our exceed the wall tempo. This will take time, as the more you play the better your chops will be. If you cannot increase the speed, do not be discouraged, just keep playing the slightly slower tempo. Then, speed it up (you may fail, but no worries), back it off, and try again, and again, and again, until you can go a little faster.

This approach should be repeated every time you establish a new personal best. Then, try to go faster. Of course, to push through some barriers you will need to make sure your technique is spot on or it might need to be changed. 

Master & Change Your Technique

When I teach double strokes, I tell my students that there are three fundamental techniques based on speed. More importantly, they have to master each technique in order to break through the drumming wall. Here is a breakdown of the three technique stages. 

Stage 1: Wrist

This stage is pretty easy. Basically, you play each stroke of RRLL with your wrist. Most students get this down quickly and can hit a good speed, but do not get very fast. This is also sounds strong, as each stroke is clearly attacked and defined.

Stage 2: Finger Support

This is the first wall that is tough for many of my students to master and takes patience and attention to detail. The finger support stage uses one wrist movement, but the fingers support the stick to create two bounces. The fingers must support the stick to create a strong quality diddle. 

Stage 3: Arm (let it go)

Once you have mastered the finger supported diddle, those rules go out the window to break through the next drumming wall. In the arm stage of playing diddles, the stick is dropped, but two strokes remain isolated. The wrist locks (minimal to no wrist movement), as the larger movements come from the elbow. This allows control over the dropped stick, which is creating clearly articulated diddles. 

Here is a video that breaks down each of the concepts listed above. Check it out.

Putting It Around the Drums

Just like the different techniques mentioned in the previous section, you will also need to break the wall as you try to apply these concepts on the drum set. This will add another element, as you have to move from drum to drum, drum to cymbal, or cymbal to cymbal, which will engage different muscle groups.

Here is a video on moving single strokes around the drums, which provides some exercises to strengthen your skills.

Likewise, here is a video that shows you how to strengthen your doubles on the drum kit. This can be be tricky, as playing doubles on the toms requires very specific technique, which is discussed in this video.

You can also work on adding speed on specific instruments (hi-hat, bass drum, ride cymbal, etc.) and incorporating quick singles and doubles into your grooves. Here is a video that shows you how to add these into your favorite beats on the hi-hat.

In the end, you will apply the same techniques you would practice on drum pad to the full kit, but there are some additional challenges once you start moving around the kit. On last thing. I recommend trying these concepts around the drums as much as possible because the more you do it the stronger you will get.

How Long Does it Take

Getting chops does not happen overnight. In fact, it is all about consistency. If you work on these exercises every day, you will build the muscle, skill, independence, and muscle memory required to play faster and stronger. When you hit a drumming wall, and you will hit many, take a moment think about the fundamental skills are needed to break through. Good luck and keep drumming! 

GET MORE

For more drum grooves, check out Tactical Drumming: Groove Survival Guide, which will show you a number of shuffle variations and other grooves. This can be found at https://tacticaldrumming.com or on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3Qr56pN

By John Owens, Ph.D (Author, Drummer Educator). For John's bio go to https://tacticaldrumming.com.