Getting the Most Out of Your Beginning Percussionists

Presented By, Timothy Bupp

buppt@sgasd.org
Spring Grove Area School District
2013 PMEA Annual In-Service Conference
April 18, 2013 10:45am

Session Objective: This session provides a systematic approach to starting percussionists off on the right
foot for success in their development as percussionists. Special consideration is given to when and
how to introduce the major instruments (snare drum, multi-percussion, timpani, mallets, and drum set).
We will also focus on what a total percussion program looks like through a different school levels.

Setting up Your Program:

Recruitment: Make sure you are clear up front that they will be learning many different percussion
instruments (and NOT the drum set in 4th grade).

Instrument Interview/Test: When recruiting set time a side to have students try out the instruments.
Use a metronome at 80bmp.

Percussion Interview
Student Name: _____________________________ Classroom Teacher:_______________________

Task Evident Not Evident

Student taps foot with a steady beat given by the director.
Student claps steady quarter notes while tapping foot.
Student claps steady eighth notes while tapping foot.
Student recalls by patting the follow musical passages while tapping foot
Quarter note pattern
Quarter note pattern
Quarter note pattern
Eighth note pattern
Eighth note pattern
Eighth note pattern
Eighth note pattern (syncopation)

Using a form similar to this will help assess their ability to coordinate hand and feet movement and
feel rhythms. These are two cornerstone skills of any successful percussionists.

What do you do if a student fails? I choose work ethic over ability any day. If a student truly wants to
play percussion and nothing else, I let them. Why play an instrument they dont want to?
 Now what do I do? A Program Overview
Formula of Success- Percussionists (or any student) needs to feel success from day 1. If not, interest
declines which leads to drop outs, and problem drummers!

The Progression of Total Percussion

Snare Drum Multi Percussion/Timpani Keyboard

Single Drum Movement Begin Lateral Movement Lateral Movement

One line notation Introducing melodic notation Continuing notation

Unit 1- Snare Drum: Starting on snare drum allows you to focus on the fundamentals of
percussion, the stroke. It starts with stepping up to the door and knocking on it with a nice fluid stroke
from the wrist. Continue knocking down to the drum. Knock on the drum, insert a stick and you have a
fluid stroke from the wrist. The key is from the wrist NOT the arm/elbow.

Unit 2- Multi Percussion: The next step in the progression is to begin lateral movement once the
stroke/vertical movement is WELL established. Lateral movement is controlled from the upper arm
NOT the turning of the wrist. Start by teaching the snare lessons by putting the Right hand on one
drum and the Left hand on another drum. Write out the notation to show the difference in drums (one
high, one low)or, have your students do it as a practice assignment. They will already know how to
count and play the exercises from the snare drum you and will give added reinforcement.

Start with vertical movement and then progress to lateral movement once students can handle playing
the line with the hands on separate drums.

Unit 3- Keyboard Percussion: Now that vertical movement has been reinforced through two
units, and lateral movement has been introduced through one unit, we can begin to add more melodic
dictation through teaching keyboard percussion.
Percussionists vs. Wind Players THEY DO NOT LEARN MUSIC THE SAME WAY!

Percussionists thrive on repetition. Why are we teaching them keyboard percussion out of a flute book?
Using the same lessons used to teach the snare drum and multi percussion units, adapt these exercises
to include musical notation. I prefer to start with a C Major scale and then teach the C# Major Scale. This
teaches students every note and introduces them enharmonics early on. The visualization of the
keyboard makes this approach easier as opposed to a wind player who does not have knowledge or a
constant visualization of the keyboard.

What is covered in the mallet unit?

This program is set up with the Learning Line in mind:

It takes 1000 repetitions to gain mastery.

It takes 25-30 repetitions to develop 80% proficiency.

In closing: If you continue to use the same rhythmic material introduced in the snare drum unit, you will
continue to reinforce the rhythmic concepts and transfer that knowledge to other instruments in a
sequential manner. This process continues through eighth grade using the same process with the new
rhythmic concepts introduced on snare drum and reinforced through the other percussion instruments.

The Percussion Lesson: Getting the most out of what little time you have!
Percussionists are high active and need to be put to given a task as soon as they walk in the door. Set
high expectations that they can work for and be sure success is achieved throughout the lesson. Be
consistent, be specific, and be highly organized with your delivery of your material. Build relationships
with your percussionists and make them look good in front of their peers. This will go a long way down
the road!

Each lesson is split into 3 distinct areas

1. Beginning of lesson
a. Post and share the objectives
 b. Warm up
c. Review previous lesson material
2. (a) Closure- (mental process of sharing what was learned= writing a composition)
(b) Home practice- (should be started during the lesson!)
3. Teaching objectives for the day

1 3 A B

2
5 min. 15 minutes 10 minutes

Beginning of Lesson: Post your objectives for the students and have them read them as they enter the
room. Once they are done setting up their instrument, have a question or musical example (from a
previous lesson) ready for them to keep them occupied until your entire lesson group is ready to go.

Teaching the Objectives: Have two exercises for each objective; one to play in class and one to use as
home practice. Teach each objective, play the exercise and repeat it 5-8 times giving specific feedback
each time. A simple good job is not specific. You can use it, however, what can they do to make it
better? Repeat for the number of objectives you have.

Closure: Have students compose a short four measure composition using the objectives they learned.
This is a good indicator for whether or not they understand it. This becomes part of their home practice,
gives ownership to their learning, provides an assessment, and allows you to use it as a warm up and
performance at the beginning of the next lesson. Close your lesson by reviewing the objectives and
playing the other exercises for your objective.

*Home Practice* Practice by repetition NOT minutes for percussionists. Going back to the learning line,
the more repetitions you performer, the closer you get to mastery.
 Beginning of Class- First Year Objectives

Snare Drum Objectives Lessons 1-12

Upon completion students should:

1. Demonstrate the correct way to assemble your snare drum

2. Be able to identify parts of your snare drum, stand, and sticks
3. Demonstrate correct posture
4. Demonstrate correct matched stick grip in both right and left hands
5. Demonstrate proper hand and stick placement on the drum
6. Demonstrate proper drum strokes from the wrist in the right and left hand
7. Demonstrate four full strokes in the right and left hand
8. Demonstrate an understanding of staff, measure, and bar line
9. Understand the concept of beat
10. Read, count, and perform quarter notes and quarter rests
11. Understand and define the percussion clef
12. Understand and demonstrate the function of a time signature (4/4)
13. Identify and perform a rudiment: Single Stroke Roll
14. Read, count, and perform half rests
15. Read, count, and perform whole rests
16. Understand and demonstrate the function of a time signature (2/4)
17. Understand and demonstrate the function of a time signature (3/4)
18. Understand the feel of a meter in one (3/4)
19. Identify and perform a rudiment: Single Stroke Four
20. Identify and perform a rudiment : Single Stroke Seven
21. Identify and understand double bar and repeat sign
22. Read, count, and perform eighth notes in groups of two
23. Understand and demonstrate the function of a time signature (Common time)
24. Read, count, and perform eighth notes, and eighth rests
25. Understand and perform an accented note
26. Identify and perform a rudiment: Single Paradiddle
27. Understand first and second endings
28. Identify, define, and perform the following dynamic markings: forte, piano and their
corresponding stick heights.
29. Read, count, and perform dotted quarter/eighth note rhythms
30. Define and perform tempo markings: Andante, Moderato, Allegro
31. Identify and perform a rudiment: Double Paradiddle
32. Read, count, and perform sixteenth notes in groups of four
33. Identify and perform a rudiment: Triple Paradiddle
34. Identify and perform a rudiment: Paradiddle-diddle
35. Identify and perform a rudiment: Multiple Bounce Roll
 Multi-Percussion Objectives Lessons 13-17
(In addition to reviewing objectives 1-34 from snare drum)

36. Demonstrate the proper placement of drums when using more than one drum
37. Be able to identify parts of a tom-tom drum
38. Demonstrate correct posture when standing behind more than one drum*
39. Demonstrate proper hand and stick placement on two drums when each hand places on a
different drum*
40. Demonstrate proper hand and stick placement on two drums when both hands play on the
same drum (different)
41. Identify and perform a rudiment on two drums: Single Paradiddle*
42. Identify and perform a rudiment on two drums: Double Paradiddle*
43. Identify and perform a rudiment on two drums: Triple Paradiddle*
44. Identify and perform a rudiment on two drums: Paradiddle-diddle*

Keyboard Objectives Lessons 18-27

45. Demonstrate the correct way to assemble your keyboard percussion set
46. Be able to identify parts of your keyboard percussion instrument, stand, and mallets
47. Demonstrate correct posture while standing behind the keyboard percussion instrument
48. Demonstrate correct matched mallet grip in both right and left hands*
49. Demonstrate proper hand and mallet placement on the bars*
50. Demonstrate proper strokes from the wrist in the right and left hand*
51. Demonstrate an understanding of the following music theory concepts: treble clef, time
signature, line and space notes, sharp, flat, natural signs and functions
52. Review meter (4/4) and quarter note/rest rhythms*
53. Learn a new note (C)
54. Learn a new note (D)
55. Learn a new note (E)
56. Learn a new note (F)
57. Learn a new note (G)
58. Read count and perform half notes and half rests*
59. Learn a new note (A)
60. Learn a new note (B)
61. Review meter (2/4) and eighth note/rest rhythms*
62. Learn a new note (C 8va)
63. Understand the concepts of scale and octave
64. Perform a Concert C Major Scale
65. Understand and perform enharmonic notes
66. Identify and understand an accidental
67. Learn a new note (C#/Db)
 68. Learn a new note (D#/Eb)
69. Identify, define, and perform the following dynamic markings: mezzo forte, mezzo piano and
their corresponding stick heights*
70. Learn a new note (E#/Fb)
71. Learn a new note (F#/Gb)
72. Define and perform tempo markings: Maestoso*
73. Learn a new note (G#/Ab)
74. Learn a new note (A#/Bb)
75. Review meter (3/4) and sixteenth note (groups of four) rhythms*
76. Learn a new note (B#/Cb)
77. Review the concepts of scale and octave
78. Learn a new Note (C#/Db 8va)
79. Review Concepts of scales and octave
80. Perform a Concert C#/Db Major Scale
81. Understand and perform a one octave chromatic scale

When teaching the objectives use as many senses as you can and incorporate as many repetitions as
possible.

When learning new rhythms, this process helps to internalize the rhythm sets up a foundation for
identifying and writing them as well:

1. Body Percussion- perform rhythm for students, have them echo using body percussion
2. Drum Speak- using body percussion, use drum speak and have students echo using body
percussion
3. Rhythmic Syllables- using body percussion, replace drum speak with rhythmic syllables and have
students echo
4. Repeat Step 3 with sticks/mallets and drum/keyboard
5. Show students notation and perform on instrument
6. Have students write in the correct counting
7. Perform for repetition and memory

*Periodically insert a review to bring the end to an objective. Studies show that with more beginnings
and ends in your lesson will aid retention.*

A simple example is to tell your group, Take 30 seconds, turn to your partner and demonstrate.

This allows you to do a quick check, students to work together, and students perform for one another.
 Closing the Lesson
A. The mental process of sharing what was learned. I stay kid focused as much as possible. Have
students take 45 minutes and share one thing with a partner that they learned to day. Be able to
demonstrate their knowledge for the class (extra reps from hearing/seeing the objectives
performed again!)

Another important component to my lessons is composition. One of the exercises assigned for
homework is a brief four measure composition that must include one of the objectives learned
for the day. These compositions should be started in class (a measure) and work well as a warm
up to the next lesson.

B. Homework/Practice: Dont assign an entire page! It is not a marathon to get through a book as
quick as possible! Research shows assigning anything over 4 will lead diminished returns. Focus
on repetitions and your compositions ! I assign 2-3 exercises and the composition. If you want
them to practice it dont assign a lot but repeat often!

Other Tidbits
Suggested 1st Year Gear:

Essentials- Snare Pad (Pearl, Yamaha, Remo, CB) Or, splurge with on Kieffa Practice Pad. I usually do not
recommend the actual drum. Its loud and more expensive. If students stick with it to year 2, then I
have them trade the pad in for the drum. (Or keep the pad as a mobile device and keep the drum set up
at home)

Snare Sticks- Vic Firth SD1 or 2b wood tip drum sticks

Mallet Keyboard- 1Pearl, Yamaha, Innovative Percussion, Vic Firth Steel Bell Set w/ Vic Firth M6
Unwound American Custom Keyboard Mallets OR 1 Korogi EKO32 2.6 Octave Desktop Padouk
Xylophone w/ Encore 103B Mallets feature Black 1" Oval Hard Rubber Heads and Birch Handles.

The Pearl, Yamaha, Innovative Percussion, Vic Firth, Bell Kits with pad all have what you need. I swap
sticks and mallets out with our local dealer.