Hello Again! For my second LESSONS FROM TEACHING entry, I want to share with you something to study that is very important. I learned this exercise from the great Max Roach in my first lesson with him and I’ve practiced it ever since. In fact, for a long time now it’s been a staple of my warm-up routine. Max called it “The essential rudiment for drumset” –– dig that! Coming from someone who helped innovate the basic approach to playing the instrument that anyone playing today draws from––whether they know it or not––I thought that was a heavy statement.

Exercise PDF: Max Roach Transparent Sound Article Modern Drummer

Click on the PDF link to read the article about it I wrote for MODERN DRUMMER magazine’s March 2010 issue and click on the VIDEO link to see at demonstration of the exercise from my 2010 Masterclass at the Percussive Art Society International Convention in Indianapolis, IN. All the information you need is right there but if you have any questions or would like feedback on the study, contact me!

Finally remember one thing: This exercise may look and sound easy to play at first glance but trust me: it’s not! The benefits, however, are well worth the effort you’ll put into it, I promise you that. Go get it!