How to practice percussion at home
Most percussionists don't have a snare drum or marimba at home, and that's fine. A practice pad, a pair of sticks, and a metronome cover most of what you need. Here's a plan for 15 minutes a day.
A 15-minute plan
| Minutes | What to do | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 0 to 3 | Eighth notes on the pad with a click, then sixteenths | Even strokes and matching hands |
| 3 to 8 | One or two rudiments, starting slow | Builds control you use in every piece |
| 8 to 12 | Mallets: one scale, or a few minutes of note reading | Keeps your reading and keyboard skills going |
| 12 to 15 | The hardest measures of a band piece, slowly | This is where you actually get better |
Use the Tempo Ladder in Percussion Trainer for your rudiments. It starts slow and moves up only when you play 90% of the notes on time with the right hands. Switch to Mallets in the same trainer for scales and Find the Bar.
Rudiments that grow
- Start slow enough to be clean. If the sticking falls apart, the tempo is too fast.
- Say the sticking. "R L R R, L R L L" out loud keeps your hands honest.
- Matching heights. Both sticks should start and stop at the same height. Watch them in a mirror, or film yourself with your phone camera.
- Move up a little. A few BPM at a time. Write down your top clean tempo for each rudiment.
- Rolls and flams on a real pad. A screen can check sticking and timing, but buzz, bounce, and grace notes need sticks.
No pad? No mallets?
- No pad: a firm pillow, a folded towel on a table, or your knee. A pillow gives no bounce, which makes your wrists do the work.
- No sticks: pencils or wooden spoons work for timing and sticking.
- No mallet instrument: practice note reading and bar layout in Percussion Trainer, or use a piano or keyboard. The bars are laid out like piano keys.
- Mallet parts: name the notes, then "air mallet" over a printed keyboard so your eyes learn where each bar is.
Keeping it quiet
Practice pads are much quieter than a drum, and a pillow is nearly silent. Turn the metronome down instead of off. On quiet days, count and clap rhythms in Rhythm Trainer, or tap rudiments in Percussion Trainer with the volume low.
For fixing hard spots and building the habit, the steps in How to practice at home in 15 minutes work the same for drums.