![]() (In The Band Teacher’s Percussion Guide: Insights into Playing and Teaching Percussion, I advocate and explain the teaching of matched grip for snare drummers– though students who exhibit good control playing with traditional grip need not change.) Indeed, those first weeks of classes, when they are expected to play nothing more than single strokes, are an ideal time to have them focus on and absorb the points below, which apply to all percussion instruments no matter what specific grip is used. So once you’ve introduced your percussion students to a good grip, hand out the points listed below – then relentlessly remind them to follow them. And there is nothing more difficult than having to change a student’s playing once bad habits have been ingrained. ![]() If they don’t, they are far more likely to develop bad playing habits and tense, uncontrolled playing – which will cost them dearly later on when they have to play rolls, other rudiments, and more demanding music in general. ![]() And with snare drum and xylophone, you don’t even have to worry about pitch or intonation!Ĭompare that with what the other beginning band students must learn – how to form good embouchures, proper breathing, fingerings – and its no wonder that, after a lesson on holding the sticks, percussionists are often left largely on their own for the first few weeks of classes while the other instrumentalists demand all the attention.īut, like everyone else, percussion students should focus on developing a good percussion technique from day one.
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