Jazz-drum independence exercises for beginners (3 drum lessons) | PDF download

Independence on the drum set, or the commonly used term, limb independence, describes the coordination ability necessary for multitasking behind the drumkit. Almost all drummers use their four limbs independently whenever they play the drums. As this ability allows them to move freely around the drumkit and respond to various factors within the music their playing, this skill is even more critical when playing jazz music. The following jazz-drum independence exercises for beginners start from a basic or fundamental swing groove. From there, these exercises focus on one particular limb to train independence.

All the following drum lessons consist of two different notations. The first notation is the classical drum notation. The second notation represents the accompanying permutational visualisation. Only the first four exercises are written in classical drum notation and give a synopsis of the 15 different permutational options. I opt for learning these jazz-drum independence exercises by the permutations to make you play independently from the classical notation. Moreover, it is easier to visualise all possible combinations through these permutation tables than in the classical notation. Instead of writing 15 different exercises each time, we have to follow along with the permutations, which stay the same for every activity.

How to practise these exercises?

I suggest practising with a metronome or playing with the accompanying play-along track for the best long-term results. I did not give any metronome marks as it doesn’t matter how slow or fast you can play these exercises. It is more critical that every pattern feels comfortable while playing it. Only when the movement feels right can we work on improving the speed. The tempo of the play-along track is 100 bpm. However, the pace is adjustable to your needs in most audio players. I suggest playing every practice at least four times before moving on to the next exercise. Correctly playing an exercise four times a row is a good sign that the activity is well understood.

The downloadable play-along track for these jazz-drum independence exercises for beginners has the following structure; 

• Two bars as a countdown.
• Four times the basic or fundamental swing groove. 
• All practices played four times. 

1. Jazz-drum independence exercises – Snare drum (8th note).

The first drum lesson focuses on snare drum independence. Exercise one shows the fundamental swing groove we will use in this entire exercise. Although the notation is straight in the first cell and throughout the exercises, the practice should be played in a swing feel, as the second cell shows. The snare drum notes are between brackets, so this basic swing groove only consists of the ride-cymbal in the right hand and the hi-hat on the second beat in the left foot. The hi-hat is not notated in the second exercise but should be played consistently on the second beat.

In exercise two, we add the snare drum. The first snare drum comes together with the first ride-cymbal. After that, the snare drum moves to the second eight-note, which is technically the third triplet as this is played in a swing feel and moves to the third and fourth eight notes, going over all the single eight-note snare drum options. Exercise two shows two different notations. The image on the left represents the classical drum notation. The image on the right is for the accompanying permutational visualisation. To finish this first drum lesson, we must complete the table at the end of the page according to the same principles above. Two black dots stand for two snare drums, and three black dots for three snare drums.

2. Jazz-drum independence exercises – Bass drum (8th note).

The second drum lesson focuses on bass drum independence. Exercise one shows the fundamental swing groove we will use in this entire exercise. Although the notation is straight in the first cell and throughout the exercises, the practice should be played in a swing feel, as the second cell shows. The bass drum notes are between brackets, so this basic swing groove only consists of the ride-cymbal in the right hand and the hi-hat on the second beat in the left foot. The hi-hat is not notated in the second exercise but should be played consistently on the second beat.

In exercise two, we add the bass drum. The first bass drum comes together with the first ride-cymbal. After that, the bass drum moves to the second eight-note, which is technically the third triplet as this is played in a swing feel and moves to the third and fourth eight notes, going over all the single eight-note bass drum options. Exercise two shows two different notations. The image on the left represents the classical drum notation. The image on the right is for the accompanying permutational visualisation. To finish this first drum lesson, we must complete the table at the end of the page according to the same principles above. Two black dots stand for two bass drums, and three black dots for three bass drums.

3. Jazz-drum independence exercises – Hi-hat (8th note).

The third drum lesson focuses on hi-hat independence in the left foot. Exercise one shows the fundamental swing groove we will use in this entire exercise. Although the notation is straight in the first cell and throughout the exercises, the practice should be played in a swing feel, as the second cell shows. The hi-hat notes are between brackets, so this basic swing groove only consists of the ride-cymbal in the right hand and a snare drum rim click on the second beat in the left hand.

In exercise two, we add the hi-hat to the left foot. The first hi-hat comes together with the first ride-cymbal. After that, the hi-hat moves to the second eight-note, which is technically the third triplet as this is played in a swing feel and moves to the third and fourth eight notes, going over all the single eight-note hi-hat options. Exercise two shows two different notations. The image on the left represents the classical drum notation. The image on the right is for the accompanying permutational visualisation. To finish this first drum lesson, we must complete the table at the end of the page according to the same principles above. Two black dots stand for two hi-hats, and three black dots for three hi-hats.

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This jazz-drum independence post for beginners is one of the first drum lessons and exercises posts of many to follow. If this lesson was helpful for you, please let me know in the comments below. Suggestions and questions are welcome, and I’ll try to answer them as soon as possible. Good luck, and I’ll get back to you with more drum lessons and exercises!

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