drummerboy_04AP
New member
I kind of struggle at playing swing, mainly with like snare comping and fills, any tips?
Swing more than any music is a feel kind of thing. Listen to a lot of swing and be-bop and you'll start to hear/feel where drummers drop the snare accents. I'm sure you've already figured out that most of the snare hits are not on the "downbeat" but rather on the 1/8th note "up-beats" (accenting the "and" if you count 16th notes):
1-da-and-da-2-da-and-da-3-da-and-da-4-da-and-da
As a general rule of thumb - the kick plays all the 1/8th notes (lightly so the beat is implied more than heard) with occational hard hits to accent certain parts, such as cymbal crashes or to accent parts of horn lines (this is often called "dropping the bomb"). The hi-hat normally keeps time (often the quarter notes of 2 & 4 - which in most music is the standard "backbeat"). Then naturally the hand not playing the snare accents plays the swing (normally on the ride, but possibly on the hi-hat or if playing with brushes, on the snare - you do know how to stir the pot right)
Like I said, listen to a lot of swing and/or be-bop. If you are a decent player and have an ear. you'll figure it out.
There are a lot of videos/DVDs that you could watch. One in particular by Ed Shaughnessy & Clem DeRosa (Time,Taste,Technique & Timbre) does a good job of showing and explaining how the drummer pushes the swing in a big band. Overall the video is rather boring - but the camera angles and the rather simplistic way they talk about playing swing is easy to follow.
First and foremost... Eat, think, drink, and breathe in TRIPLETS!!!!
1 & a 2 & a 3 & a 4 & a ... Or better yet: 1-trip-let 2-trip-let 3-trip-let 4-trip-let
Every part of your swing pulse is a variation of a triplet. When you comp on your snare, you're dropping in on the various triplet patterns.
eraos,
You are correct- I should have referenced 1/4 notes on the kick