Ghost notes are one of the most effective embellishments to make a beat more interesting, to personalize it and to make it groove hard.
I put together a condensed guide to facilitate the development of the hand motions and 4 way coordination necessary to deal with the most challenging combinations.
As a matter of fact, adding grace notes requires a bit of extra control and independence, because of the advanced interplay that happens between the limbs when performing these ideas.
That’s why it’s important to practice the following pages very carefully, especially with regard to dynamic differences between regular and grace notes.
A good way to do this is to start by going through each exercise a few times with a flat volume, equal between all notes played.
Only then, when we are familiar with the movements involved, we can start experimenting with different dynamic levels assigned to the Ghost Notes: at least two, so that we can develop a couple of options to draw from.
Ideally, if we want to become experts in this area, we can aim to separate the Back Beat from the Ghost Notes by playing the former as Rim Shots and the latter at three different dynamics:
– ppp (as soft as possible).
– pp (very soft).
– p (soft).
One last step we can take to further master these ideas is to play them again using the Cross Stick technique.
Here is the PDF with all transcriptions:
We’ll practice 27 powerful exercises organized in four categories, covering both straight and shuffle feel examples:
– Ghost notes studies based on eighth notes.
– Ghost notes studies based on triplets.
– Studies that involve doubled ghost notes.
– Grooves based on ghost note.
HERE you can check out the YouTube video demo.
These are mostly technical studies, designed to develop control, accuracy, coordination and speed. Just spend a few weeks on them, and you’ll notice how easily you are able to play, and create, any ghost note beat.
Related resources:
Groove Workout & Tools’ – Altitude Drumming – Volume 7
Share
