DrumShack Practice Regiment Outline

Having a good practice regiment is essential for getting better at the drums, and to make sure you enjoying it along the way. I hand out homework to students all of the time, and I want to make sure they have a structured way of going about it, instead of heading off to the, so to speak, ‘shed’ with my material handed them, in the dark.

This is just a brief and generic outline for my students on how a typical practice session should look. These are the basic requirements for an effective practice session, regardless of wether you are a beginner, or an advanced player. Some of the specific activities will probably look different for each individual as you fit these guidelines to your own skill level and time constraints. However, bear in mind, this is simply a guideline that, if followed, will MAXIMIZE the effectiveness of your practice. = )

Lets dig in!

1. Practice EVERY DAY. If you can’t make it every day, then try to do it at least more days than not. It is way more important to do something more frequently, than for long periods of time.

2. Shoot for 15-30 minutes each practice session. PRO TIP: start a timer as soon as you start.

3. Always start with a Warm Up. A warm up can be a very individualized thing and should consist of a very easy (set of) exercise(s) that you can play VERY WELL, are hopefully fun, and that will ‘activate’ the mental faculties associated with playing drums such as

   1. Sense of time

   2. Dynamic control

   3. Technique

   4. Musicality

4. Divide you practice time as follows: (Divide practice time by time available, not how you feel during your session)

   1. 1/4 of your session: warm up

   2. 1/2 of your session: working material - Focused on practice material

      1. Focus on adding consistency in timing

      2. Consistency in dynamics

      3. Comfort while playing - if you don’t feel completely relaxed while playing it, slow it down and or keep practicing it. Don’t move on yet.

   3. 1/4 of your session: play time material - This is the time to improvise, and be creative.

5. Log it in your practice log when you are done practicing! [download the practice log here]

Now…get your timer ready….

GO PRACTICE!!!