FAQ
Here are some Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about taking drum lessons.
Q. Do I need to own a drum set to start taking private drum lessons?
A. No. Not at first. To begin developing your technique, what you need are two lightweight drum sticks, a rubber practice pad, a metronome and a drum book. I teach the classic book Buddy Rich’s Modern Interpretation of Snare Drum Rudiments, written in collaboration with Henry Adler.
Depending on the type of practice pad you purchase, you may need a snare drum stand (or cymbal stand) to hold your pad, as well as a music stand to hold your book open. You can purchase all of these items at your local music store or on the Internet. Nowadays, you can also download good metronome apps for smartphones. Some are free.
Think of a drum as a speaker that amplifies your technique at loud volumes. It’s not necessary to amplify yourself when you are developing your technique. Because of the volume and expense of a drum set, we recommend starting with sticks and a pad until you develop a basic technique.
Q. What levels do you teach?
A. I teach all levels, from beginners to advanced students. Advanced players can choose to excel at particular musical styles or drum set “grooves” such as jazz, afro-Cuban or afro-Brazilian rhythms. These rhythms include songo, bossa nova, samba and timba. Some teachers are better at certain styles and grooves than others. At Drum Lessons Miami, we can recommend specialized teachers for particular styles.
A. Developing mastery of the Buddy Rich-Henry Adler technique requires daily practice and weekly mentoring by an accomplished instructor. Depending on your level of mastery and practice schedule, the lessons can be less frequent. For beginners and intermediate students, I recommend at minimum, 50 minutes of practice per day, preferably early in the morning.
Q. What is the best age to begin learning the drums?
We recommend starting with lightweight sticks such as the Vic Firth “Steve Gadd” model.
A. That depends on the student. Everyone is different and has a different learning style and capacity. I have taught some bright 7-year-olds with immense talent, lightning-fast learning capacity and long attention spans. I’ve also taught 7-year-olds who had great talent but shorter attention spans or had some type of special learning need, such as ADHD. The common denominator is talent. I love helping students of any age harness their natural drumming talent. I find that the early teens are wonderful years to learn and absorb the Adler technique. This technique prepares them well for professional playing as they grow into adulthood. I began playing drums at 16 and was self-taught until I was 25, when I began taking formal lessons on the Adler technique with Daniel Perez.
Q. Is it ever too late to take drum lessons?
Whether you’re a young adult, adult, middle-aged or even a senior, if you have always wanted to play drums, I invite you to follow your passion and explore this amazing instrument. You’ll know when the time is right. I love the phrase “when the student is ready, the teacher appears.” I have also found the opposite to be true: “when the teacher is ready, the student appears.”
Q. How long are the lessons?
A. I generally recommend 30-minute lessons for children under 10 and one-hour lessons for students 11 and up. My first lesson with you is roughly 90 minutes, as I provide an overview of the Alder technique and teach the first critical lesson: how to properly hold the sticks.
Q. Are drums better suited for boys than girls?
A. That is nonsense. Drums have certainly been a male-dominated instrument for decades. I’m not sure why. This may have created a false perception that drums are better suited to males.
Q. For how many years will I need to take lessons?
That depends on your goals, talent, learning style, practice time and self-discipline as a drummer. On average, I would say it can take between four and five years to develop a mastery of most of the exercises in the Adler technique book. In addition to basic musical principles, the Adler book contains 83 lessons of exercises and rudiments, 21 reading exercises, 10 rudimental exercises, 46 advanced rhythmic studies and a list of the most frequently used musical terms. That’s over 160 lessons.
We supplement the Adler book with additional books such as Ted Reed’s classic Syncopation and America’s Drum Solos from the National Association of Rudimental Drummers (N.A.R.D) for additional reading exercises. We also review the Adler book several times with different approaches.
Food for thought: In his 2008 book Outliers: The Story of Success, journalist Malcolm Gladwell theorizes that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to achieve greatness at anything. This has become known as the “10,000 Hour Rule.” Gladwell cites The Beatles’ years in Hamburg between 1960 and 1964 as an example of musicians that paid their 10,000 hour dues before attaining recognition for their mastery.
While that amount of dedication may sound intimidating, remember that it is only a theory and may not be accurate. However, I don’t want to sugarcoat the reality that learning any instrument will require commitment, dedication and practice. If you commit to learning and if you are passionate about your instrument, you will excel quickly.
Q. Do I really need drum lessons? Can I just learn from instructional videos? Weren’t some great drummers self-taught?
A. Again, I would say it depends on the student, their learning style, level of discipline, natural talent and learning capacity. My favorite drummer, John Bonham, supposedly never took a formal lesson. While that may be true, he certainly had awe-inspiring technique and speed. He has said in interviews that he learned drums by playing along to the records that he loved. I would call that a “modeling” approach to learning. I believe the advantage of taking drum lessons is speed. An accomplished instructor can help you develop your technique faster than you can on your own.
In terms of instructional videos, I love them. The problem is that they show you what to do, but they don’t show you what not to do. Only a live coach can help with that. By relying solely on videos, you can run the risk of developing bad technical habits or even hurt yourself.
If you have additional questions, feel free to reach Bill Gato directly at 305-815-4567 or send him your questions to [email protected].