5 comments about Drum Set Warm-Ups: Essential Exercises for Improving Technique.

1. Every drummer should have this book in their library. Rod Morgenstein is an incredible drummer, instructor (and human being). This book is the real deal.
   
   I feel this book is for intermediate players and not beginners. Beginners are better off learning new beats and feeling encouraged by being able to keep steady time and grooving to songs. This book isnt about that.
   
   This book disects the drumset and gives you tons of mechanical exercises on how to move around the set with control, dexterity and endurance. Its much more than just licks for warming up actually... its designed to make you a more proficient technician. Once you can play basic beats, this book can help you take your playing and technique to the next level - more control, power and speed.
   
   In contrast to the previous book by Rod which is extremely musical and targetted at beginners, this one is focused on mechanics only and is better suited to intermediate players.
   
   I highly recommend this book!



2. I am so glad I got this book. It is loaded with exercises to build accuracy, independence, and endurance on the drum kit. And like Joe Morello's Master Studies, you can just flip to a page and work through an exercise or an entire page of exercises. Work through them all and see which ones you need improvement on, or just pick a few to warm up with before playing. It's helped my accuracy in hitting the drum in the middle, my speed and coordination . . . all in a short time. Enjoy!



3. My experiance with Amazon service was just great!
   I completed the process whithin 10 min and received the item ehead of schedule and in great condition.



4. This book will help drummers of ALL skill levels. If you want to improve your speed, timing, coordination, and just all around technique, this will get you to where you want to be. I don't know of any other publication with such a wealth of drumming knowlege for so little money. Rod Morgenstein took drum text books to a new level with this one. A MUST HAVE FOR ANYONE WHO WANTS TO BE A BETTER PLAYER!



5. Simply put, I love this book. I do some of the exercises for about 15-20 minutes before every practice and every gig, and it's exactly like doing calisthenics before a workout. It gets all the limbs loosened up and really improves coordination. No matter what type of music you play, and regardless of your skill level, this book is for everyone. My advice is to add it to your library.

5 comments about Advanced Techniques For The Modern Drummer: Coordinating Independence As Applied To Jazz And Be-bop With Cd (audio).

1. DEFINITELY, A 5 STAR CLASSIC...DRUMMERS NEED TO HAVE THIS........IT S ESPECIALLY A GREAT EXERCISE TRY TO PLAY THE EXERCISES IN THE HIHAT, PAYING ATTENTION TO THE CORRECT ARTICULATION.AND ITS GREAT THAT NOW IT CAMES WITH 2 CDS, SO NOW WE CAN HEAR HOW THE EXERCISES SOUND , ACCORDING TO THIS TRUE DRUMMING LEGEND:MR. JIM CHAPIN!!!!



2. This book is full of challenges and inspiration!



3. This book is designed with the jazz drummer in mind, but the exercises will help all players develop independence. The cymbal / hi-hat pattern is pretty consistent through the entire book book - the dotted 16th pattern that is common in be-bop. This means that the right hand is doing the same thing in pretty much every exercise, assuming you are right handed. Despite this, the exercises can be quite challenging, especially as the book progresses. To keep things interesting, alternate the sticking so that your non-dominant hand plays the cymbal pattern. The CDs are great and are helpful in understanding the trickier patterns. It's easy to see why this book is a standard among jazz drummers, but any drummer will benefit from mastering the patterns in this book.



4. That quote stuck with me from a Peter Erskine video in which he pays homage to (though doesn't directly mention) the genius of Jim Chapin. I spent part of my workday cutting and pasting from this book to get the exercises to fit on one page because I wanted to remove distractions such as turning the book page mid-exercise! This requires we focus.
   
   What is especially nice is that this book relates the ideas in a musical context. Not just doing a complicated rudiment that you probably won't use: this stuff you can use right away.
   
   I agree that this is a must have for drummers regardless of style. Especially rock drummers, like myself. It has opened up a whole new world of ideas. I found it easiest to start with the dotted eighths and triplet sections (1A and 1C) before trying the eighths and sixteenths sections (1B and 1D). This book is one of the treasures of my library, and it has dramatically improved by playing in only one month. This after playing for 25 years.



5. excellant review of strengthening practices for finger, hand and wrist. Nothing new, older book, but man what a value for an aspiring percussionist!

5 comments about The Art of Bop Drumming (with CD).

1. I bought this book after playing professional jazz gigs for 4 years. It is authentic and a great place to start for beginning to intermediate jazz drummers. The CD is a nice accompaniment.



2. Like Jazz? Don't like Jazz? It doesn't matter. Whether you like to swing or not, this book WILL make you a better drummer and musician. The triplet feel is almost its own dimension in drumming and every drummer should master it. Although it is targeted for bebop jazz (basically faster swing feel as far as a drummer is concerned), this book will give you plenty of exercises and ideas you can incorporate in any genre. The exercises are great for independence and time-keeping, and offer very, very good fill and solo ideas.
   
   As for aspiring jazz drummers, there is absolutely no question, GET this book. Any jazz professor at the university level would approve and it is used widely in music schools such as Berklee and Indiana University Music School (I graduated from IU).
   
   The lessons on brushes are crucial and if you have never placed your hand on a brush, here is where you should start looking.
   
   The accompanying CD is great as well and helps you to master a good swing time, listen to exercises being played, listen to compositions and play along tunes with a bassist or with a whole rhythm section.



3. I'm simply going to reinforce what you may have heard elsewhere: this is as good a foundational text on jazz and bop drumming as you can find (along with Ed Soph's and Jim Chapin's books).
   
   If you are interested in learning to PLAY jazz and bop on the drums, this book takes you from a level assuming some knowledge of the drum kit, little knowledge of jazz, and brings the two together in a very logical way.
   
   I have milked four years (so far, many more to go) out of this book with regards to the density, depth and entertainment/interest-level of the material.



4. This book is fantastic sorce material for any intermediate drummer looking to begin exploring jazz. For experienced players the content can be quite challenging and the advice is imminently valuable. Really a spectacular educational resource.



5. The best educational book on jazz. Covers ride cymbal, comping, solo ideas, uptempo, brushes and has a good play along cd. All of the written words do a fantastic job of putting things in context. Mr. Riley clearly knows his stuff. "Beyond Bop Drumming" is also a great book for more advanced jazz playing.

5 comments about How to Play Djembe (Book/CD set).

1. This book teaches you the basics of Djembe drumming. The book includes a great sounding CD to play along with. However; the authors should have included more complex patterns and rhythms. But, with only 1-2 hours per day of practice for a month, you will probably surprise yourself with how much you have improved.



2. This book/CD set has given me a couple of things I could not get from taking drum classes. First of all, it documents--in written notation and in sound--the basic rhythms. Even the best drummers are not always the best teachers, so before I got this book, the rhythms were kind of a mishmash in my head. Now I am getting to the point where I can hear & identify them.

   I also could not produce a slap tone at all until I saw the drawing of the hand/finger positions for it in this book--again, because people cannot always explain things well, or different people tell you different things. This book is a great SUPPLEMENT to lessons and drum circles--I'd say you need both the book/CD and drumming with others to really learn and retain the information.

   Oh, and the section on "How to Tune Your Djembe" is really a great thing to have.




3. This is a great way to learn. I really enjoyed it. The DVD is an excellent addition to learning to play and the CD with it helps you to hear what is being played so you can match it.



4. Great intro book. Easy to understand. Great practice drills that you can start playing in very little time.



5. As a beginner I find the book to be very good, it breaks everything down and gives you steps to learn the patterns. I would give the book a 5 star rating.
   The CD is pretty good. The first song, Kuku, is easy to play along with as are some of the others. But on some of the songs, the patterns are played too fast, and I could not keep up, I even had trouble hearing all the drum beats. It would have been very helpful to me if the patterns were played more slowly at first.
   The final 5 tracks, Jaguar at Half Moon Lake (parts 1-5), are nice, there is music, singing and drumming. But, I would have preferred something in the style of what was taught in the book, maybe even the same songs that were taught with a full drum circle.

5 comments about The Complete Idiot's Guide to Playing Drums, 2nd Edition (The Complete Idiot's Guide).

1. I got the Dummies title first, which is usually the case. However, it was very disappointing. I then checked out the Idiot's Guide title. It was just what I was looking for.
   
   It has all the necessary information and is not too sparse or too thick on any areas. Definitely recommended for people wanting to get started in drumming.



2. Of course, there's no arguing that the best way to learn how to play a musical instrument of any kind is through direct instruction from a teacher (even the author of this book admits so right from the start!) But that may not be possible (or affordable) for everyone, and besides, it never hurts to have instruction and reading material from many unique sources to be exposed to different styles and points of view.
   
   This book is an excellent source for a beginning drummer, or someone who hasn't even yet purchased a set of sticks but is contemplating learning more about the drums. Miller takes the reader through selecting and setting up equipment, different kinds of percussion instruments, and points out drummers to listen to before starting in on the basics. He even recommends against diving into buying a full kit at first and instead starting solely with a good snare drum, in order to learn basics of stick control, rhythms and rudiments. Then he slowly adds in cymbal and bass patterns to develop independence and basic kinds of rhythms. Later chapters illustrate beats for rock, jazz, r&b, country, and odd time signatures, then begin to cover more advanced topics such as fills and solos.
   
   I learned a lot about the basics of playing through this book (having a background in playing musical instruments but never the drums). I do agree with other reviewers to take his promoting of certain brands of drums with a grain of salt. You should take the time to explore different kits on your own and read other reviews before sinking your cash into any one brand. Also, one area I wish was covered here which I find the most difficult in playing is how to develop not just a drum *pattern* but an entire song. Even just some more hints on using fills or other "effects" to transition from one phrase of a song to the next would be good, instead of mostly sticking to repetitive 2-bar patterns. Also, a cd of the included drum patterns and beats would be useful--I know I had some trouble figuring out how some of the rudiments should sound just from reading this book, and had to search around elsewhere for sound samples to clear up my confusion.
   
   Still, there is plenty of ground covered in this book already, and more than enough to recommend it for anyone looking to solidify their basics.



3. I got this book becuase I was going to start giving drum lessons to my friend. I wanted to find out if I knew what I should teach him. This book taught me pretty much everything that I needed to teach him. I think every aspect of drumming is covered in it. It's a very good tool for any aspiring drummer.



4. I bought a set of drums and this book. I would read this book everyday as I would play the drums. This book is so complete in information that I read and read and read and never did get to the part to where I would start to learn how to play the drums. I finally just sold the book and the drums. I learned must of the history about drums from cave man on up but never made it to the part of learning how to play. If you are wanting to study the history of the drum for a book report this is a good book. If you want to learn to play the drums I would suggest buy a book that will get to the point.



5. Awesome book!
   
   First of all it has some great info about buying drums, price ranges, brands, etc. Very good resource there.
   Second, lots of "getting started" topics for the beginner drummer.
   This book really is a must for anyone starting drumming. My only complaint, i wish there was more sheet music within the book, but that is a small negative when compared to the huge amount of info in this book.

5 comments about Flute Fingering Chart: For Flute and Piccolo (Amsco Fingering Charts).

1. Brenda Murphy's Flute Fingering Chart is a good, basic, accurate fingering guide for the beginning flutist. It's made of durable, laminated paper appropriate for young students. (If you have more than a passing interest in the flute, then a thorough guide to all the fingerings you could ever need is in James Pellerite's classic fingering guide, Modern Guide to Fingerings for the Flute).
   
   Brenda Murphy's chart is simple and easy to read. It has standard fingerings for what is generally considered the full range of the flute and piccolo, and uses both staff notation and octave numberings to show the sounding pitch of the notes - however trill fingerings are not included. Also I would prefer it if she had given the two standard fingerings for B flat, rather than combining them as she does. If you don't already know about them that could be confusing.
   
   The back of the chart contains some information on musical notation and very basic information on flute care. Most students encounter problems with flute care not from what they neglect to do, but rather from what they do in an overly zealous attempt to care for the instrument.
   
   It is a helpful starting guide, though think this chart would be greatly improved if she had incorporated a basic trill-fingering chart on the back, which is also essential to beginning flutists, rather than the material on musical notation and flute care.



2. Just what I was looking for, a great visual, wonderful to have it in plastic for durability sake, perfect size, folds open... folds into thirds. I like that I can limit what octave I'm looking at. I've seen other charts and this one's the best. Crystal clear as to the information and a pretty color too.



3. My daughter just started playing the flute and this thing is awesome! It reads a bit complicated for a beginner, but I have enough flute/music experience to help her decipher the finger placement and notes she needs right now as opposed to those she doesn't yet. Wonderful!



4. I am teaching myself how to play the flute (after a few weeks of lessons many years ago) and I couldn't have done it without this guide. It has big diagrams of each of the notes, showing which keys to press. It folds out into 3 sections so you can lay it next to your music book and check which fingerings you need to play the correct note. I found some of the beginning flute books to be lacking in this department. Either the diagrams of what keys to press are quite small, or they are scattered throughout the books so you'd have to keep searching for them. This is a great learning tool!



5. I'm in the middle of liking it and hating it. I would have prefered it was one page and printed on both sides for easier use and transportation. Since it's laminated and lasts quite a while, I can ignore that. I has basically all the fingerings you need, but should have listed ALL since it is 3 pages, lol. Awesome nonetheless.

5 comments about Roadshow: Landscape With Drums: A Concert Tour by Motorcycle.

1. Despite what many others are saying, this is a great book if you're a fan of Neil's previous writings. This book is not a "Rush on tour" book, nor is it a glimpse into the life of a touring band. Rather, it's a long essay of a journey by a travelling man who happens to be in a band.
   
   I've noticed a lot of criticism of Neil in previous reviews of this book along the lines of why a famous guy would want to be so private. I don't presume to speak for him, so I'll offer this to the naysayers:
   
   Let him be him and allow him to interact with his fans on his terms.
   
   It's worked out well for the past 30 years. Notice in the book that his main rub with fans is that they always want more-more time, more attention, more of himself than he's willing to give. That's reflected and confirmed in many of the previous reviews.
   
   The main impression I get about Neil from his writing in this and his previous books is that he's a humble and private man. I'm can accept that fact of his character, and I'm glad he chose to share some of his life with his fans.



2. Let me say that while I enjoy Rush's music, I'm not what you'd call a hardcore fan (I own only six of their albums). That said, I very much enjoyed this book and Peart's adventures on the road.
   
   I have to disagree with others who have reviewed this book. I didn't come away from ROADSHOW believing Peart "hates" his fans . . . he is simply uncomfortable with the in-your-face attitude of some of the more fanatical individuals out there. Also, I don't see how his comments on the church signs can be construed as anti-Christian. I'm not religious by any stretch of the imagination, but his comments seemed harmless; a mere voicing of his own opinion.
   
   As for the book . . . I breezed through it in several days and very much enjoyed Peart's writing style. It's relaxed and flows nicely with wonderful descriptions of his travels. It made me want to load the backseat of my car with CDs and hit the open road. Peart's passion for writing and life in general comes through page after page. This is a guy who harbors a wonderful fascination with the world around him, and I'm thankful he invited us along on this enjoyable journey.



3. I really enjoyed this book. If you are a motorcycle rider and like music, you will enjoy this book also. Great book for the winter when you cannot get out and ride because Neal takes you on a motorcycle tour and the rigors of being on a concert tour with a band. I like this book better than another Neal Peart book, Ghost Rider for personal reasons.



4. Every Neil Peart book is better than the last. Don't get me wrong, I like them all, but he is making incredible strides as a storyteller with each book. His writing is so good now that you really care what he's going to have for breakfast in Denver, or if he'll change his bike's oil in Dallas or Oklahoma City. Simple everday things, for sure. But the prose are so riveting, he makes you want to know.
   
   I admit I'm a huge Rush fan, and I know that influences my enjoyment of his books. But I am also a published author, and I can recognize the work of a talented writer. His musical talents aside, Peart can write, and it seems that he's found a perfect niche in these travel memoirs.
   
   Even if you're not into Rush, give this book (or one of his other books) a chance. His books are hidden gems in the literary world that I fear may not be fully appreciated.



5. I found this book very interesting as I am intrested in my favorite performers lives. The only reason I gave it 4 and not 5 stars is because of the constant Christian bashing. It's obvious Neil is very bitter about Christianity for whatever reason. He never really tells us why. He did mention that after the tradgedies happened in his life that the Bible was no help. He quotes all the church signs he comes across in his journeys through the US. I agree that some of them were over the top but others had a good message. As a Christian myself I am praying for Neil. I pray God will change his heart and turn his face toward Christ.

5 comments about The Drummer's Bible: How to Play Every Drum Style from Afro-Cuban to Zydeco.

1. NOTE: This is not a book for beginner drummers rather it is a book better suited for intermediate to advanced drummers who wish to expand their abilities outside of conventional genres and also maybe to brush up on those conventional genres.
   
   That being said, this is a really fun book and the title is justified as it gives an overview of just about every thing you would ever need to possibly play on the drum set. Even the more obscure rhythms such as Middle-eastern, though you may never realistically be asked to play them for a gig, are still a blast to try to play and the odd rhythms help develop your mind to accept more syncopated rhythms.
   
   A couple of useful appendixes in the back that aren't as advertised are the list of the 40 rudiments which is very handy for practice sessions, and a nice list of a few recordings from each of the styles of music listed in the book. The latter is not by any means definitive, but it gives a starting point for some more obscure styles of music that are very difficult to find any sort of reccomendations for.



2. When I bought this book was because it has information about the "bomba¨ a rhythm from Puerto Rico. The whole information about the "bomba" is incorrect. Since the book has no footnotes I have no idea where the authors took the data. I read in French, André Pierre Ledru's second volume, the one about Puerto Rico, of his "Voyage aux îles de Ténériffe, la Trinité, St-Thomas, Ste-Croix et Porto-Rico, exécuté par ordre du gouvernement français, de septembre 1796 à juin 1798, Paris, 1810" and there is no a single mention of the word "bomba". The confusion was when in 1863, Julio de Vizcarrondo, a Puerto Rican living in Spain, translated the word "bamboula" the name of the drum for playing an African dance, as "bomba". But "bamboula" is a common word registered in the African languages in the American Continent, even in USA and France. I have not check in Portuguese, but most probably they have it, also. In Puerto Rican Spanish we have "bámbula".
   Second, the dance Ledru saw was not in Aibonito. Aibonito is a town located in the mountains of Puerto Rico looking to the South, and mostly white "criollo" population. What Ledru says is that trying to go to Aibonito he got lost and ended up in a hacienda, close to the river and town of Loíza. Loíza is a black town founded by "libertos", that means former slaves. By the way, they also owned slaves. There he saw an African dance. He gives the name, also a common name, "calenda".
   A friend of mine heard the example given in the CD for this music. He is an expertise of the "bomba" dance, he also makes "bomba" drums, and he told me that music is not "bomba".
   The authors try to put almost every Caribbean music under Cuban music. What a bias! Cuba is neither the father nor the mother of Caribbean music.
   If the book has so many inaccurate data as these, I wonder about the rest of the book.
   
   
   Manuel Domenech



3. I am sorry to say this, usually I rate dvs and books 4-5 stars cause I have bought very nice, fun and instructive items until I bought this book. I am not a professional drummer, but I am advanced, and there were many subjects I already knew about this. Anyway, it has many WRONG things!!! What made me buy this was the pretty neat title: The Drummer's Bible. Play from afr-cuban to Zydeco... screw this... thats the name of the book just to sell... but is not worth since this guys are wrong in many stuff.. DO NOT SPEND YOUR MONEY IN THIS BOOK... Many concepts are wrong!



4. I've been drumming for about a year, taking lessons from Mick ,the author of this excellent book. I use this book every time I practice either as a reference, to learn new stuff, or to get new ideas. I love the background information on each section and feel the book helps to understand rhythm and drumming from a worldwide historical perspective. Each section teaches solid basics and some intermediate and advanced intermediate techniques. The real pearls are the included transcriptions of some famous drum grooves (e.g. James Brown, etc.) and the references to bands and players and styles. The notation, fonts, spacing, and general organization are outstanding, making the book very easy to read and use while playing. The accompanying CD's are excellent and crucial to be able to learn new techniques. I'll be using this book for years.



5. The Drummer's Bible is the most informative, directive and comprehensive book on drumming styles I have ever found. Mick Berry and Jason Gianni have painstakingly researched every style; they explain each beat clearly and provide excellent examples. The price of this book is negligible when you consider the alternative cost of hours of private instruction. If you are happy being the average head-banger, no need to buy this book, but if you really want to be a drummer who can handle anything, this book is for you.

5 comments about Progressive Steps to Syncopation for the Modern Drummer (Ted Reed).

1. I recommend this book for anyone interested in developing there reading and coordination skills for drumset. It also challenges you to use your imagination to adapt each page to your particular drumset needs.



2. I am currently using this book to teach my son basic drumming with a roland practice pad. It has been a fantastic help.
   
   This book would be helpful to any beginning student learning to read music, not just drummers, since it so clearly breaks down rhythmic notation. The exercise progressions make a lot of sense, and there are quarter note guides that align the drum notes relative to the downbeat, which is very helpful for learning syncopation.



3. Any drum teacher worth having will insist you buy this book. I bought this for my daughter who will be adding jazz drumming to her arsenal of rock drumming. This is one book all drummers should have



4. If you want to significantly improve your independence skills, buy this book and then find an instructor who can show you the more than 40 different ways to apply it to the drum set.
   
   Alan Dawson used this book extensively with his students. Thankfully, one of his students has documented those 40+ ways. See "The Drummer's Complete Vocabulary As Taught by Alan Dawson" (Paperback), by author John Ramsay. Ramsay did a great job of identifying (and providing audio examples) of the numerous ways you can apply Syncopation.
   
   An excellent precursor to this book is Jim Chapin's "Advanced Techniques for the Modern Drummer". That book will help you develop the basic independence you'll need to dive into Syncopation. Or if you already possess the ability to play the swing ostinato while playing swung eighth notes and triplets and sixteenth notes between your snare drum and bass drum, then you can likely dive right in.



5. This is a fantastic book to learn all the drum syncopation you need to set yourself apart from any other drummer

5 comments about 4-Way Coordination: A Method Book for the Development of Complete Independence on the Drum Set.

1. This book holds many challenging exercises. You first look at some of them and think "It can't be that hard." Then you try them and it is not so easy. Definately a great way to challenge your coordination and make it stronger!



2. This is a really good book to train your brain to control your hands and limbs to move separately. But it will be helpful if there's an audio CD that comes with it.



3. I expected something different from this. I'll say up front that I'm a novice/hobbyist drummer. Having said that, the exercises here are just painful. I didn't find any particular rhythm to them, it just seemed to treat the drummer like a machine required to play right-hand, left-hand, right-foot, left-foot (assigned to no particular drum or cymbal/HH) at prescribed times. I'm impressed if you can do this, but it really helps me if the exercises sound like something in addition to building up skill.



4. I like this book because you can engage it at so many different levels. It can be as noncommittal as picking a few challenging exercises and working through them slowly before each session, or it can be as involved as tackling the whole book and mastering each exercise at different tempos. The exercises are also quite fun to try master, and I found that they helped develop a framework for my own rhythms.



5. A lot of the exercises in this book have almost no groove value at all. But that doesn't mean it's not a good buy. It will do what it says. It WILL help develope interdependence with all four limbs. However, I would not throw this one to a beginner unless they had an endless supply of patience to spare. Intermediate to advanced players will grasp the concept a little better.