Beat the Boom by Cary Nasatir
Remember those pictures from ancient drum books that taught how to play the concert bass drum? Whether it was some spiffy kid in a sharkskin suit or someone's grandfather in a bow tie, they showed some techniques that by now should have gone the way of their clothing style.
Beat the Boom by Cary Nasatir Remember those pictures from ancient drum books that taught how to play the concert bass drum? Whether it was some spiffy kid in a sharkskin suit or someone’s grandfather in a bow tie, they showed some techniques that by now should have gone the way of their clothing style. Those old methods of striking a bass drum with a beater in a figure eight have been replaced with a straight forward motion using the arm and a slight flick of the wrist. The stroke should be pulled back a bit to draw out the tone. Generally, striking the head with the mallet from six to ten inches away works well for moderate volumes. You want to strike near the center of the drum, but not necessarily in the exact middle. The closer to the middle, the “thumpier” the sound. I like that timbre, but it is important to experiment and get the right mixture of thump and sustain that is being called for in the music. Your inventory of mallets should include a few different types that will give your percussionists broader colors from which to choose. A minimum assortment should include a general model that is articulate, full, but not too hard; a staccato model that has a bit more bite to it; and a pair of lighter “roller” models. I am not a fan of double ended mallets as I find they lack power and are uneven. I like a little heft to my mallets, but weight could be a factor in the smaller hands of school player. Invest in quality mallets that are covered in either soft wool, or pile. Avoid hard felt marching mallets for concert bands or orchestras except for special effects). As a mallet ages, the materials break down causing wool mallets to get more staccato, and pile models tend to get “mushy”. Replace them often. Otherwise the dynamics in your ensemble will never be quite right. Dynamics and sustain are a major concern on the bass drum. Most problems with dynamics can be solved by shortening or lengthening the distance that the mallet travels to the head, and by how loosely or tightly the beater is being held. As for sustain...this seems to be a mystery for many. One of the techniques from the past tells us to mute the resonant (non-played) head. But if we leave the hand on the head, the primary low tone that is the bass drum gets reduced to high pitched overtones and will not have the deep bass that we expect. This old technique can be applied only if the hand mutes the head after the drum has been struck.
A better method is to mute the head that is being struck. (Photo 1) Placing the hand or fingers at the edge of the drum head will control the ring and sustain, while still retaining the low fundamental of the bass drum. Make sure that the fingers don’t buzz when the head is struck. Whatever technique you employ, check that the heads are not overly tightened. Remember that longer notes don’t necessarily need to be muted. At the end of phrases and the final note of a piece, both heads should be touched in order to stop the drum from vibrating. Sometimes a well placed knee helps mute a staccato note as well.
Rolls (single strokes) should be played near the edge of the batter head (Photo 2). On a cradle holder, it may be easier to use a traditional grip, since the left hand has to come up and over the bass drum. A big advantage of a tilter (besides tone and mobility) is that the drum can be positioned flat and easily played like a timpani. The concert bass drum also known as: gran cassa (Italian); grosse caisse (French); and grosse trommel (German), has the power to be the thunder in a Strauss polka, a driving force for Stravinsky, a subtle after shock in a Varese piece, the thump thump thump of a Sousa march, and much more. Experiment with various mallets, mallet placement, stroke, muting, and tuning to fully understand this fundamental yet colorful instrument. Cary Nasatir is the Director of the Nasatir School of Percussion in Castro Valley, CA; adjunct faculty member at Patten University (Oakland); percussion coach to three San Francisco area schools; and author of "Praise And Worship Drumming...A Guide To Playing In Church" (Hal Leonard Publishing). His website is: http://www.nsopdrums.com
