

To dance, rock out, and get lost in the music! Don’t forget the hi-hats This creates a feeling of motion that encourages listeners

Great drummers move from bass to snare in the same way that a pendulum moves from side to side. Keeping great time is your most important job as a drummer,Īnd the bass and snare are the key weapons that will make you into a On beats 2 and 4, you play the high-pitched snare drum. On beats 1 and 3, you play the low-pitched bass drum. That’s why our first job as drummers is to count to 4 to bring the band in at the start of a song. In a standard bar of music, we have 4 beats. Then, take a look at the infographic below that breaks down how this drum beat works. If you’re reading this on mobile, choose the ‘listen in browser’ option when listening to the beats to make it easier to follow along with the article. To get us started, let’s have a listen to what it sounds like: I’d be willing to place a bet with you that this beat appears more in your playlist than any other. Metal and a variety of other musical styles.

You’ll have heard it countless times in pop, rock, blues, In fact, it provides the foundation for most of the music No drum beat is more iconic than the standard 8th note What better place to start than with the most popular drum beat Otherwise, let’s start from the beginning. See any drum beats that catch your eye immediately? Jump straight to your favourite groove with the links above. Music you love, there’ll likely be a beat to suit you in this wide-ranging guide.Įverything from hip-hop to the blues, jazz to metal, and everything in between.Īdo, let’s get started! Top 10 common drum beats If you can get a grip on these ten drum beats, you’ll be well on your way to becoming a capable and versatile player. Then, we’ll explore some of the more complex backbeats and drum grooves out there, adding more variety and difficulty as we go along.Īnd stay tuned, because I’ll be showing you at the end of this article exactly how to learn these drum beats for yourself. We’ll start by looking at the most common backbeats (where the snare drum is played on beats 2 and 4). Whether you dream of rocking a stadium or simply want to start a local band, it all starts with these standard drum beats.Īs a professional drummer, I’ve picked the 10 examples that I use most often in my work. It’s the question that every beginner drummer wants to know the answer to: what drum beats should I learn? Which common drum beats will allow me to jam my favourite songs like a pro?
