Posture & Setup

Sit balanced, hold the sticks, name the kit.

Hips just above your knees. Back straight, shoulders loose.

Two grips — match the music.

Rudiments

The vocabulary of every drum part ever played.

R-L-R-L. The most fundamental rudiment.

R-R-L-L. Bounce once, then move.

R-L-R-R-L-R-L-L. The mother of all sticking patterns.

Subdivisions and counting.

Count "1-and-2-and" then "1-e-and-a".

Beats that move bands.

Hat on every eighth, kick on 1 and 3, snare on 2 and 4.

Play the basic beat to a metronome at 90 BPM.

Transition between sections without losing the pulse.

Snare-snare-tom-tom around the kit. Land on beat 1.