TGIF, Part 3 (taiko drills)

VIDEO DEMO COMING SOON!

Yatta! It’s time for a new drill. If you’ve been sticking with it daily, you should be noticing some progress by now. Just make sure that you’re working at a speed that allows you to loop the drill for 15 minutes, but it should be the fastest speed you are able to work in. Your speed will increase naturally if you keep this in mind.

For example, if you’ve been working at 120bmp, check to see if you can work at 144bpm. If that’s too fast, then gradually decrease your speed until you’re able to loop it comfortably. Repeat these steps 1 or 2 days later to be sure to always challenge yourself.

Okay, so today’s drill:

Focus: Timing, Dexterity
Watch for:1. We’ve all heard it before–Listen to the base beat! I also challenge you to feel the base beat. This is essential for improvement with this drill.
2. Keep your base hits strong, but small. Your bachi should come no higher than 3 inches off the drum.

Let’s start where we left off last week. Your weak hand is the base beat (a.k.a. base hand), keeping a straight beat along with your metronome. Your strong hand will have lots of free time for this drill, but the goal is to hit right on the down beat with your base hand.
Play 8 beats base to start. At the start of the next 8 count, the strong hand should play on 1 and then rest for the rest of the 8-count. The next time through, the strong hand will play on 2 and then rest. Third time through, it plays on beat 3. Get the idea?

In the following chart, the bold indicates where your strong hand should hit.

Now when your strong hand rests this doesn’t mean it goes on vacation. Use the “ma” for movement. Your hand must go up before it comes down, right? Take the time to move that arm up so you can make a strong DON when it strikes the drum. Don’t increase your speed until the strong hand is consistently hitting at the exact same time as the base beat every time it strikes.

Consider what I mean by “feel” the base beat. The ultimate goal is for the base hand to work mindlessly, so your body actually becomes the base beat. Naturally, you’re probably not there yet, but when you get there, you’ll feel what I mean. Keep repeating this drill and it will happen!

That’s it! 15-20 minutes a day. Make sure you switch hands, spending more time with your weak hand as the base hand.

Note: To those of you who have taken my bachi technique workshop before–Be sure to make it a habit to use the shime grip with your base hand with good form (don’t get lazy with this). Getting this right can make your progress with speed much faster. Your other hand can be either grip, depending on what drum you’re on.

Extension:
Try this if you’re able to play the above drill at 112 (double time). The base hand plays always on the down beat, just as above. The bold marks where the other hand should play loud, strong hits:

So, who’s out there? If you’re checking these out let me know–I appreciate your feedback. Plus, I’m flexible! If there’s something you’d like to see me focus on, I’m more than willing to consider. According to the quiz I had posted last week, most of you are beginners. Post your questions. Introduce yourself.

Next week my sister will be in Japan! So, I have next week’s drill all ready to go, as well as an entry on the silly ways I try to become more dexterous in life. But, we’ll be doing a bit of traveling and I’m not sure when I’ll get to a computer. I’ll do my best to be on time, but things may be a bit off schedule.

Gambatte ne!