Visit www.westlondon-drumtutor.com for excellent articles about drums and drummers

How to Tune a drum

To tune a drum you need to

1, loosen all the pins which are the screws that bring the drum skin, or head, close to the rim.

2, Hand tighten the pins and make them as tight as possible.

3, Use your drum pin key and make one revolution or turn.  Do this until all creases are gone.

4, Tap the edge of the rim near the pin, whilst touching the centre of the drum lightly.   Each pin area needs to sound the same.  Some drummers use a pitch tuner to do this effectively, but most drummers do this by ear.

From west london drum tutor, drum lessons in Harrow, Greater London, UK

Reggae drumming is an amazing drumming style.  From my website www.westlondon-drumtutor.com

Reggae Drumming

Reggae is a style of music developed in Jamaica and is generally considered to be  preceded by two other styles of music called ska and rock steady in the 1960′s.  Reggae came to fruition as a musical genre in the late 1960′s with musicians such as Larry Marshall’s Nanny Goat.  But it was Bob Marley who really catapulted reggae into the forefront of musical awareness, thus cementing it as a genuine musical genre.

The characteristics of reggae drumming are that the beat falls on the 2 and 4, which are bass drum accents accompanied by a snare played on the side.  With rock, the accented beats fall on 1, 2, 3, 4.  where the 1 and 3 are bass drum accents and the 2 and 4 are snare drum accents.

From West London Drum Tutor, drum lessons in Harrow, Greater London, UK

From my website www.westlondon-drumtutor.com this article explores why learning drums is a true boon to all aspects of your being

Learning drums is a great skill to have as it allows you to understand how percussion structures and gives energy to music.  It is my personal understanding that learning drums allows a privileged insight into musical practice and theory, whilst bringing about greater musical meaning and enjoyment.  Knowing how to read music and applying basic skills like how time signatures work, also serve to connect a person in the theory, performance and enjoyment of all music.

This article shows why music is great for yourmind:http://www.mind.org.uk/blog/4641_why_music_is_great_for_your_mental_health

This article shows how music can benefit your mind and mental health

http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/healthy-living/wellbeing/health-benefits-of-music.htm

Again, this article expounds the concept that drummers and musicians have highly developed minds: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110505083421.htm

There are numerous studies that point to evidence that playing drums is a powerful way to improve higher mind functions.

From west london drum tutor.  Drum lessons in Harrow, Greater London, UK

Rock drumming is deep and has many roots.  For more articles www.westlondon-drumtutor.com

Rock is a style of music developed in response to the rise of electric powered guitars and amplifiers, television, jukeboxes and the 45 vinyl record.  There was also an attendant cultural aspect that came with Rock ‘n Roll, namely that of the person out of step with regular society.  So Rock ‘n Roll was the expression of a whole new generation of post World War 2 young people who sought to break from the ‘old world’.

Rock drumming features accented beats fall on 1, 2, 3, 4.  where the 1 and 3 are bass drum accents and the 2 and 4 are snare drum accents.  The use of regular 8th and 16th note and triplet fills also became a feature of Rock drumming.  Though there are many splinters and fusions of Rock drumming we shall explore the most basic example and definition.

From west london drum tutor.  Drum Tuition in Harrow, Greater London, UK

Have a look at the article below from my website www.westlondon-drumtutor.com

R&B Drumming

 R&B is a style of music that incorporates and includes soul, funk, hip-hop and rap music.  The past masters of the broad genre include Luis Jordan in 1940′s, Ruth Brown in early 1950′s, Sam Cooke in mid 1950′s, Ray Charles in early 1960′s, James Brown and Aretha Franklin in the mid 1960′s, to Stevie Wonder to Michael Jackson in the late 1970′s to 1980′s.The characteristics of 

 R’nB drumming are heavy dance grooves, often fast tempos.  The drum beat was of greater importance and drummers would play louder, recordings had drummers uncharacteristically higher in the mix (the drum track was loud) and therefore giving the groove greater prominence.  With the song Superstition (1972), by Stevie Wonder, the track starts with a great drum groove and fill.  Hip-Hop turned to the other extreme and was all drum groove or at least dominated by the groove.

My CV as a drummer is printed below.  Do have a look.  www.westlondon-drumtutor.com.  From West London Drum Tutor - drum lessons in Harrow, Greater London, UK.  

        Teaching Qualification: Graduate Diploma of Education

Date Awarded: August 2009

Awarding Institute: Monash University, Melbourne Campus

Subject areas: English, Media, Music

Experience:                               K – 12

Qualification: Bachelor of Arts (Philosophy, English and Film Studies)

Date Awarded: December 2005

Awarding Institute: The University of Sydney

Camperdown Campus

Qualification:                           Masters in Media Arts and Production

Date Awarded:                         December 2010

Awarding Institute:                 University of Technology Sydney

As a drum teacher, Kasem routinely prepares students for Rock School and Trinity Guildhall exams as well as tutoring those students to gain and consolidate their musical and percussive skills.  As a performer he is currently part of King With No Throne (www.king-with-no-throne.com), a band that is best described as fusing elements of trance, rock, funk and trip-hop.  He records, composes and performs regularly in the UK and Europe.

2010, As a drum teacher Kasem continued to transcribe songs and develop his drum teaching resources and expertise.  His students continued to benefit from his development and dedication as a drum teacher.  As a performer, his band, King With No Throne played at Das Festival, sharing the stage with luminous figures such as Simple Minds and Super Tramp’s Roger Hodgson. Kasem performed and recorded with the band Jeeps whose sound was reminiscent of Nirvana, punk and folk.

2009 – 2008, Drum teaching highlight was King With No Throne produced, recorded and performed in the UK and continued to define their sound and presence as a band.  Kasem completed a Diploma in Secondary Education at Monash University, Australia.  Drum teaching continued where Kasem developed rudiment fills, and applying the rudiments in a variety of ways to develop what he calls ‘the grammar of drumming expression.’  His band performed in Leipzig, Germany and London, where they played some solid gigs to the delight of their fans and those who were present.

2007, Drum teaching continued in London and he developed his lessons incorporating jazz and afro-Cuban grooves within a contemporary context.  His students continued to flourish and pass exams with excellent results.  King With No Throne continued to grow and record, playing gigs in Camden and other venues in London.

2006, Drum teaching was in full swing and during this time Kasem started a Masters.  The drum lessons grew and he updated his teaching resources and included a whole list of songs from Led Zeppelin, Hendrix and other classic artists.  King With No Throne was born and the important move from Sydney to London came in July where they first played at The Dublin Castle.  They recorded, and engineered a new sound and approach from their previous efforts with Topenkin.

2005 – 2002, Drum teaching high lights was the consolidation of drum teaching manual, written and compiled since 1997.  Formation of the band Topenkin that played gigs in Sydney.  Their sound was described as a hybrid of Pink Floyd, Massive Attack and Prodigy.

1999 – 2001, Drum lessons evolved to a point where Kasem opened up his own drum teaching studio in Randwick, Sydney and continued to recruit, retain and developed drum students of all ages.  During this time, he also invested considerably, buying drums, cymbals, and kits to teach more effectively.

1997 – 1998, Kasem started teaching at various schools in Sydney and in this time his success was generally attributed to his knack for teaching and of effectively imbuing enthusiasm and firing up the imagination of his students.  As a performer, Kasem started the band Trace Element, a hip-hop band that came second in the Battle of the Bands competition in 1998.  They recorded and were part of social causes that included Reclaim the Streets and Wilderness Foundation fund raising.  He also joined the band Tantrum, who produced a classical blues, funk and blues sound.  They recorded, performed and found success in Sydney.

1995 – 1996, Kasem formed the band Trauma, a university based band from University of New South Wales, and they performed extensively in the university scene.  There sound was inspired by U2, and Jimmy Hendrix.

1988 – 1994, As a school student, Kasem began to teach himself drums and later joined the school band where he enjoyed fame and notoriety as the school drummer.  His classmates would delight in his ability to play the drum parts from the hit songs of that time.

This week marks the first time in 18 months that I will be revising and rewriting my drum lessons.  www.westlondon-drumtutor.com will have an additional set of videos, pictures and more content.  Lots to do and it will be most enjoyable.

Here is a way to drum without anyone calling the police...

A solution for drummers is to buy a Quiet Drum Kit.  This is easily achieved by buying an inexpensive drum kit, removing the drum skins and filling it with foam or unwanted clothes. You can then put the skins back on, the kit sounds muffles by about 80%.  The next thing to do is to buy a clamp in a building shop.  This is to be affixed onto the cymbal and reduces the sound by about 85%.

This solution has helped many a drummer to play without upsetting his neighbourhood and    close friends.

From West London Drum Tutor, drum tuition in Harrow, Greater London, UK