I would like to start this lesson by saying thank you for visiting my website, and for all the great e-mails and questions I’ve been receiving. I would like to also thank the publishers and readers of Classic Drummer Magazine. Writing for them is a great opportunity and I would encourage everyone to visit their website at www.classicdrummer.com.

Since I have been on the road so much this year, it has been some time between web lessons. I also received a lot of e-mails about my first two lessons on bass drum and double bass techniques. I will have more about bass drum technique in upcoming lessons.

For this lesson, I would like to talk about warming up before a performance. As a drummer, one of the worst things you can do is walk on stage cold. Most shows start off with an up-tempo tune, no matter what genre of music you might be playing. If you have not warmed up and stretched out, you could have problems with cramping. This could also lead to long-term problems such as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome or Tendonitis. Nobody wants to run into these problems down the road, simply because they didn’t take the time to warm-up. I also drink a lot of water throughout the day, which will help eliminate cramping.

I start by stretching my hands, wrists, neck, back, and legs for at least 45 minutes before down beat. I then move to the practice pad and use the following exercise, which uses 16th notes, 33 stroke rolls, 17 stroke rolls, 9 stroke rolls, and single and triple paradiddles. I play this exercise on the practice pad while playing a sixteenth note pattern with my feet.

This gets me good and warmed up and I’m ready to go.

If you have any questions, feel free to drop me an e-mail.

Happy drumming,

Bart

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