Drums For Dummies [Paperback]

Jeff Strong (Author)

Book Description

Series: --for Dummies | Publication Date: September 29, 2001

You’ve got rhythm…now learn how to use it! Drumming is universal; every musical culture in the world incorporates percussion. From just tapping a straight 4/4 beat with your foot to follow the radio, to the intricate polyrhythms of a West African ensemble, the possibilities of keeping time are limitless. If you just can’t stop yourself from banging on cans with bent twigs, rolling your fingertips on the kitchen table, or twirling an imaginary drumstick in the air when the radio plays “Sweet Home Alabama,” the only question is, how to get started?

Drums For Dummies takes you from the basics of what makes a drum right through how to carry a solo on a full kit. Whether you’re a budding Buddy Rich or a rising Ringo Starr, you’ll benefit from author Jeff Strong’s straight-ahead guidance on:

• Rhythm
• Technique
• Drum sets
• Other drums
• World beats
• Styles
• Grooves Fills

Keeping the musical notation simple for total beginners, this book nonetheless delves into a wide range of music, allowing you to both sample forms of rhythm from across the globe and lay down a foundation in rock, funk, jazz, blues, and latin. At the same time, you’ll find out about the right way to splash a cymbol, kick a bass, slap a conga, scrape an udu, or ring the agogo bells. You’ll also discover:

• How to choose and tune your drums
• Backbeats and syncopations
• Drummers you should know about
• Rattles, bells, and other such percussion instruments
• How to get a feel for pulse and meter
• African, Cuban, and Brazilian polyrhythms

An accompanying CD works closely with the book to bring its exercises straight to your ear, while illustrations show how to hold and strike a huge range of instruments. With a fun, easy-to-understand tone that leaves the standard, dry musical method – speak in the dust, Drums For Dummies will have you shaking, rattling, and rolling in no time.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Get down with rock, R&B, jazz, blues, funk, and Latin rhythms!

Groove to the beat — the fun and easy way^™ Whether you're dreaming of starting a band or simply playing a hand drum, this friendly book-and-CD package makes it easy to pick up the basics. From beating the bongos to striking the snares, it delivers just what you need to rock'n' roll! all this on the bonus CD-ROM Various music styles and beats—from jazz and rock to samba and R&B—that you can play along with Rhythms for hand drums from the bongos, congas, and djembe to the ashiko, tar, and udu Solos you can use to amaze the other guys and gals in the band

Discover how to: Bang out basic rhythms — with or without sticks Understand fundamental drumming techniques Explore other percussion instruments Find the perfect drumset Tune and maintain your drums

Get smart! www.dummies.com Sign up for daily eTips at www.dummiesdaily.com Choose from among 33 different subject categories Get news you can use on everything from money to health to computers

About the Author

Jeff Strong, President of the REI Institute, a Music Medicine research organization, has been drumming for more than 30 years. He has released five CDs and leads workshops for beginning and experienced drummers throughout North America.

Product Details

• Paperback: 360 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies (September 29, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764553577
• ISBN-13: 978-0764553578
• Product Dimensions: 1 x 7.5 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,158,435 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jeff Strong, the author of Home Recording For Musicians For Dummies, is President of the REI Institute, which is a MusicMedicine research organization and therapy provider. Jeff graduated is his ninth book.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Drum Bible, February 3, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Drums For Dummies (Paperback)

I would have given my eye teeth for a book like this when I was starting out. A student of mine brought it in during a lesson and my god was I impressed! This book and CD spell it all out-Jazz, Rock, R&B, Latin and Carribean, you name it. The author, Jeff Strong, can play and he can also teach it well.

The book covers set as well as hand/stick drums-which is where the eye teeth come in. Nearly every drum a drummer would want to play is covered in this book. He's got every little Brazilian thing from the Surdo to the Pandeiro, and goes on to Latin with the Clave (which confuses so many people), the Congas, and on and on-you name it it's all here.

It's easy to read, the instructions are clear, and the CD is a big help. It's gonna turn a lot of drummers out there into very good drummers. And for those drummers who want to explore beyond the set, this book's like a candy store of sweet, sweet options.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Decent brisk introduction, February 14, 2006

By 

Kuru (Seattle) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Drums For Dummies (Paperback)

It's not reasonable to expect to learn a musical instrument from a book, much less a single book. This is a useful book for anyone just starting out or thinking of starting out, to help explain the lingo, to show the variety of drums one can choose from, to provide some advice on how to choose drums, and how to tap out a few basic rhythms. It would also be useful for music directors, band teachers, or composers who are not drummers but want some basic understanding of what drums can (and can't) do. Beyond that, to be a drummer one needs a teacher and many hours of practice -- there are no shortcuts.

This book, unlike the "Idiots" competition, devotes a lot of space to all sorts of drums, not simply rock kits. It also covers basic drumming patterns for a number of different styles. A demo CD is included. If you can't read music, you should plan on supplementing this book with enough study to be able to.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great all-around drumming book, January 28, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Drums For Dummies (Paperback)

This book is great! Not only does it cover the drumset it also has instructions on how to play a bunch of other drums including congas and bongos and quite few that I'd never heard of before. It also has rhythms and techniques for playing cowbells and shakers and other percussion instruments.

I like that this book gives me so much great information on how to play more than just basic beats. I learned about song structure and how to use fills and licks and there's even a section on playing solos! The CD that comes with this book makes it really easy to learn the drum beats.

This is the best drumming book that I have.