This lesson is short and sweet. It is also the first of several articles that I will write on rolls, so stay tuned for more!
For as long as there have been drums, there have been rudiments. For as long as there have been rudiments, there have been rolls. The five stroke is one of the most common.
When drummers learn rudiments, they typically learn to practice them from slow to fast and then back to slow with no regard for pulse. I practiced a lot of my rudiments that way. Many students today still do the same, and I understand why. Practicing slow to fast allows you to really grasp the essence of what you are playing. It also absolutely kills any groove that may be inherent in what you are playing. I don’t know of many, if any, pieces of music that call for the drummer to keep dialing the speed up faster and faster and then bring the tempo back down again.
BELOW IS HOW YOU PRACTICE ROLLS! You practice rolls in terms of SUBDIVISION. While practicing, ask yourself some key questions:
1. What does this roll feel like if I play it as eighth notes?
2. What does this roll feel like if I play it as sixteenth notes?
3. What does this roll feel like if I play a sixteenth note base with doublings?
Wrap your brain and hands around the subdivisions. Practicing this way may not be as glamorous, but trust me, it is INFINITELY more practical.
Look at the exercise below. The first four measures have a five stroke roll played as eighth notes. Play that! You should always keep a bass drum or hi hat going to establish pulse and groove (even though I didn’t write it in). Now, WITHOUT CHANGING THE PULSE, switch to playing the roll as sixteenth notes. Does that feel different? A little more hip? Once again, WITHOUT CHANGING THE PULSE, switch to playing sixteenth notes as your base and simply double beat 1 and the “e” of 1. How does that sound to your ears. Now bring it back down to sixteenth notes and finally eighth notes again WITHOUT CHANGING THE PULSE!
Want some extra fun? Try swinging the eighth notes. When you get done with that, try swinging the sixteenth notes, including the last section of rolls.
Some key tips:
1. Practice this exercise without changing the pulse. Simply change the subdivision. Focus on what each subdivision feels like as you play.
2. When you master playing this exercise, which shouldn’t take you long, try to invent your own grooves and fills based on these three subdivisions. This step works especially well if you can play all these both straight and swung.
Your friendly neighborhood drum teacher,
Joey Scale
Joey Scale 
Posted on July 23, 2012
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