Drum set coordination: playing hands and feet together

On drum set, each hand and foot plays its own part at the same time. You build that one limb at a time: learn one part, add the next, and go slowly enough that every count lines up. Some people put a beat together in one practice session and others take a few weeks. Both are normal. Here's the basic rock beat as a grid, one row per limb. Read it down each column. That's everything you play on that count.

Why coordination feels hard at first

Your hands are used to doing the same thing at the same time, like clapping. In the rock beat, your right hand plays eight notes a bar, your left hand plays two, and your right foot plays two more at different moments. At first you have to think about each limb, and that's too much to think about at once.

Slow repetition helps. With practice, each count turns into one motion you know: on 1, hi-hat and bass drum; on 2, hi-hat and snare; on every &, hi-hat alone. Then you only think one count at a time.

Count out loud

Say "1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &" while you play, loud enough to hear yourself. The count ties every limb to the same beat, and it tells you right away when something slips. If you lose the count, check whether one limb has sped up or taken over.

You can also say what you play: "boom, tss, bap, tss." Use whichever keeps you in time.

One limb at a time

Learn each part alone first. Play it on its drum, or on your knee, counting out loud, until it runs without your attention. Then put two parts together. In this grid, set a row to You play: the computer drops that part, and you play it along with the rest.

Hi-hat and snare together

Start with the hands. On 2 and 4, both sticks should hit at the same moment, so the hi-hat and snare start together. You still hear both instruments, but as one attack. If you hear two quick hits (a flam), one hand is landing before the other.

Adding the bass drum

The bass drum lands with the hi-hat on 1 and 3, so on those counts your right hand and right foot move together. Leave the snare out at first. Add it back when the hand and foot line up every time.

Adding the hi-hat pedal

While you play the hi-hat with a stick, your left foot holds the pedal down so the cymbals stay closed. To add the left foot as a fourth part, move your right hand to the ride cymbal and press the hi-hat pedal on 2 and 4, with the snare. It makes a short "chick."

Keep the hi-hat going when the bass drum moves

When the bass drum plays on an &, the right hand tends to stop, or to hit harder to match the foot. The hi-hat should sound the same on every count, whatever the feet are doing. Those & notes still line up with a hi-hat note, because the right hand plays every &.

Practice each one with Feet, then Both. If the hi-hat changes when the bass drum moves, slow down. For more bass drum patterns between the beats, see syncopation.

Slow practice with a metronome

Pick a tempo where you can play the beat four times in a row, counting out loud, with every count lined up. Around ♩ = 60 is a good place to start. Then:

• Play four bars. If they're clean, raise the metronome 4 or 5 beats per minute.
• If something falls apart, go back to the last tempo that worked and play it four more times.
• Write down the fastest clean tempo, so tomorrow starts a little below it.

Use the metronome, or turn on Slower in any example on this page. If an example is playing, Slower stops it; press play again to hear it at the slower tempo.

Practice

Play-along in Percussion Trainer plays the rock beat with you and marks each note on time, early, late, or missed. A pass needs 80% of the notes on time, and extra hits count against you. Then try On your own, which gives you only a click.

To practice one part at a time, start with feet only, then hands only. The trainer plays the other parts, and only yours are scored. You can also pick single parts, like hi-hat and bass drum.

The trainer times your taps on the screen or keys on the keyboard, so the device you use affects the timing. Touchscreens can add a delay, and Bluetooth speakers or headphones can add more. For timing practice, try your device's speaker or wired headphones. If good taps keep showing as late or early, use Tap timing in the trainer's settings to calibrate. You'll also hear the sound of each tap a little after your finger lands. If that makes it hard to stay with the music, turn off Tap sound and play along with what you hear. A real kit feels different from tapping, so practice the same beat on drums or a practice pad too.