Marching Snare Drum
This section provides a detailed description of snare drum grips, the set-up position and the various playing areas and techniques on the snare drum.
Fulcrum
There are two main types of grips, determined by the placement of your fulcrum. In physics, a fulcrum is the point of rotation in a lever. In drumming, the stick is a lever, and the fulcrum is the point at which your hand grips the stick and where the stick rotates.
Index Finger Fulcrum
The first main grip type is the index finger fulcrum, where the fulcrum is made by gripping the stick using your thumb and your index finger, and the back fingers (middle finger through pinky) wrap around the stick naturally. A disadvantage of the First Finger Fulcrum is that you must rely fully on the first finger to both grip the stick and apply leverage, or pressure (with the aid of gravity and the force of the stroke) on the front of the stick.
Middle Finger Fulcrum
The second main grip type is the middle finger fulcrum, where the fulcrum is created by placing equal pressure on the stick from both the thumb and the middle finger from opposite sides of the stick surrounding the actual pivot point of the stick. The pointer finger is on top of the stick and the fulcrum is inside the hand. This creates a” see-saw” between the front of the hand (the pointer finger) and the back of the hand (the ring finger and pinky). When you play a stroke, the pointer finger, now on top of the stick, is able to give you some leverage. When the pointer finger is part of the fulcrum, it is unable to do this.
Matched Grip & Traditional Grip
For Marching Snare Drum, there are two common types of grips - Traditional Grip and Matched Grip. Traditional Grip is often also used for concert snare drum and drumset. Matched Grip is used for most other percussion instruments.
Matched Grip (Both Hands)
With this grip, both hands grip the stick symmetrically, with the left hand mirroring the right hand, as described below. The Matched Grip is used for all other percussion instruments, so mastery of this technique is imperative and should proceed before exploring the traditional grip. (The Traditional Grip can also come in handy when playing concert bass drum rolls, however. Many set drummers also use the Traditional Grip.)
Hand Position
The hands should grip the stick firmly (but without tension) at the fulcrum (the point where the thumb and forefinger/middle finger meet the stick) while keeping the back fingers loosely wrapped around the stick at all times. Position the stick resting on the crease of the 1st joint of the digits and all five fingers wrapped around the stick. There should be NO GAPS between the forefinger and the thumb, but there should also be NO TENSION. Simply keep the side of the thumb in contact with the side of the first finger. The top of your hand should not be flat, nor should your thumb be facing straight upward. The proper hand angle should be slightly less than 45 degrees. The stick should be in contact with the fingers and the palm of the hand as much as possible without "choking off" the natural motion of the stick. There is a slight upward bend to the wrist so that the stick does not approach the drum "flat".
When striking the drum, utilize a bend at the wrist. Do not drop your fingers (fly out) to gain height. Do not confuse keeping your fingers on the stick and the stick in the palm of your hand with overpowering the stroke and playing with a "choked off" sound. Your hand should feel relaxed at all times while utilizing the natural rebound from the head.
The shoulder and upper body should be completely relaxed. Be careful not to raise or “shrug” your shoulders at any time. The upper arm should protrude from the body at about a 45º angle keeping the elbow out and away (but relaxed) from the body.
Traditional Grip
In order to practice the traditional grip properly, it is important to remain as naturally relaxed as possible. The closer one moves in line with the body's natural tendencies, the more secure and consistent the grip will be. A lot of people pick this grip for several reasons. Some feel they should keep the traditional aspects of drumming alive as this grip was the first that any marching drummer used (due to the way the drum was carried on a sling over their shoulders, they had to compensate for the tilt in the drum by changing the left-handed grip). Another reason is simply that it is the more pleasing of the two grips (as opposed to matched grip) to watch.
It is important to remember that this grip is asymmetric by nature. From the upper arm to the tips of the fingers, the right hand and left hand are completely different from each other.
Right Hand
The right hand should grip the stick firmly (but without tension) at the fulcrum (the point where the thumb and forefinger/middle finger meet the stick) while keeping the back fingers loosely wrapped around the stick at all times. Position the stick resting on the crease of the 1st joint of the digits and all five fingers wrapped around the stick. There should be NO GAPS between the forefinger and the thumb, but there should also be NO TENSION. Simply keep the side of the thumb in contact with the side of the first finger. The top of your hand should not be flat, nor should your thumb be facing straight upward. The proper hand angle should be slightly less than 45 degrees. The stick should be in contact with the fingers and the palm of the hand as much as possible without "choking off" the natural motion of the stick. There is a slight upward bend to the wrist so that the stick does not approach the drum "flat".
When striking the drum, utilize a bend at the wrist. Do not drop your fingers (fly out) to gain height. Do not confuse keeping your fingers on the stick and the stick in the palm of your hand with overpowering the stroke and playing with a "choked off" sound. Your hand should feel relaxed at all times while utilizing the natural rebound from the head.
The shoulder and upper body should be completely relaxed. Be careful not to raise or “shrug” your shoulders at any time. The upper arm should protrude from the body at about a 45º angle keeping the elbow out and away (but relaxed) from the body.
Left Hand
For the left hand, place the stick between the thumb and forefinger finger. With the stick slightly to the side. Let the stick come to rest on the ring finger between the 1st knuckle and the cuticle of your nail.
Rest the pinky-finger under the ring finger, either with a relaxed, natural curve or curled. Place your thumb on your index finger and place the middle finger loosely on the top/side of the stick. You want all of the fingers to kind of "flow" down the stick.
When striking the drum, utilize a wrist turn similar to operating a door knob. Use the first segment of your forefinger, supported by the thumb to help push the stick down making sure that you utilize the natural rebound from the head as much as possible. Do not lift your middle finger from the stick, nor open up your ring or pinky fingers. (Ring and pinky fingers do disengage for rebound strokes when playing diddles or triples.)
The shoulder and upper body should be completely relaxed. The left upper arm should hang straight down the line of the body, with the elbow close to, but not touching to your side. Your upper and lower arm should remain relaxed at all times.
Common Grip Flaws
- The most common is the absence of all five fingers on the stick at all times, usually dropping the ring finger and pinky from the stick by either dropping them down or sticking them out, especially when playing diddles. You need to develop finger control to get the auxiliary fingers (ring, pinky) to help with diddles.
- Another common problem for both right and left hands is that the index finger loses contact with the thumb. To correct this try putting something (like a penny) between the thumb and index finger and hold it there the whole time you are playing. Remember, there should be NO TENSION here, simply keep the two fingers in contact with each other.
- Tension - Keep the motion of the sticks in the wrists and fingers and out of the arms and upper body. With practice, you must learn to control the playing through finger dexterity, not through tension. Tension will hinder your playing more than help it.
Posture
Have your back straight, your chin up, and your snare drum parallel to the ground unless a visual calls for your snare to drop below or rise above level. Try playing your parts in front of a large mirror to check your posture. Your upper body, neck and shoulders should remain completely relaxed, no matter how demanding the playing may be. It is easy to become tense as the playing gets harder or faster, but this tension will only slow you down. Keep the motion of playing in the wrists and fingers.
The Set position is one of the most important yet underrated parts of playing in a marching drumline. It is the first position the audience will see you in. For snare drummers, Set position is right stick in front of left, in perfect alignment with each other, centered to your body and the snare drum and level to the ground.
Playing the Snare Drum
Most parts should be played in the exact center of the drum. Sticks should be at a 90º angle to each other with the beads of the sticks meeting approximately within a 2" circle. Stick motion should always be straight up and down for both right and left hands. The "sticks out" position is when the sticks are ready to play but are not actually playing. The sticks should hover with the beads about 1 inch above the head. When a single hand is playing, the free hand should rest in the sticks out position in a controlled manner. Don't allow the free hand to "wander". For softer passages or other dynamic effects, it is common to play closer to the edge of the drum, about 2" from the far rim. Playing in this area will be determined by the musical passage played or the effect desired.
Taps - Taps are defined as almost every ordinary note played. Depending on the musical passage being played, taps should be played at a height of about 3”-6". After a single tap, the stick should return to the sticks out position, with the bead hovering 1" over the head.
Accents - Accents are generally played at about 9”-12". More physical energy is required to play in time while increasing the distance of the stick motion. This increase in energy produces the increased volume of the stroke, thereby producing an accent. After a single accent, the stick should return to the sticks out position, with the bead hovering 1" over the head. Control of the accented stroke, freezing the sticks down in the sticks out position is a very important technique to master.
Rim Shots - Rim shots are special effect sounds produced by simultaneously striking the head and rim at the same time. The most common method is to strike the rim with the stick at the lower shoulder area, which is the portion of the stick about where the taper begins or ends. This is usually about the top 1/3 of the stick. A "Ping" shot is a rim shot that produces a higher pitch shot. To create this effect, strike the rim at about 1/6 of the distance from the tip, or half way between the tip and the usual area of the stick where you would create a common rim shot.
Diddles - A diddle is a controlled, double bounce produced with a single stroke. For the both hands in Matched Grip, make the primary stroke with your wrist, and the secondary "bounce" with your fingers, pulling your fingers close to the palm of your hand. For the left hand in Traditional Grip, begin with the normal wrist twist movement of the primary stroke and the secondary "bounce" with your first finger, stopping the motion with the ring finger.
Stick Heights and Dynamics
Stick Heights
In order to produce a "clean" ensemble sound, all drummers have to be playing at the same heights. A height is usually referred to as the height your stick is over the head in taps as well as accents. Play taps at around 3"-6” and accents around 9"-12”. Check your stick heights visually, seeing the bead of the stick at the top of the "blur" as you play.
Make sure that right hand stick height and left hand stick height is the same. Differing stick heights affect both volume and speed of the note and are the primary cause of uneven sounds.
Dynamics
Stick heights affect the velocity and thereby the dynamic level of the stroke. Use the following guide as a starting point for determining stick height in relation to dynamic markings. These will be further defined or modified in rehearsals.
Pianissimo – 1”
Piano – 3”
Mezzo Piano – 6”
Mezzo Forte – 9”
Forte – 12”
Fortissimo – 15”
Common Stroke Flaws
- The main problem of this genre is that drummers hit the drum at angles other than perpendicular to the head. This is also called "chopping wood." To correct this make sure your palms are facing the ground (or that your left hand is sideways in Traditional Grip) which will more or less force you to play the correct stick angles.
- The last stroke flaw is where people playing traditional grip strike the drum by moving their left hand up and down by bending at the elbow. Think of the wrist movement as a clockwise motion of the wrist, not an up and down motion.
General Flaws
- Pulsing on rolls. A pulse is when the roll brings out certain hands (usually the right hand) commonly pulsing the eighth note in an effort to keep time or to not to drag the roll. Try to strive for evenness in the rolls. Make sure stick heights (left and right) are equal, regardless of grip.
- Another flaw is separation in diddles. A lot of drummers make diddles sound like buzz rolls. To correct this just develop a slow open stroke roll and incorporate the double-stroke into your diddle.
- Tension - Keep your upper body, neck, face, upper and lower arms relaxed at all times. Tension is caused usually while trying to play through difficult passages will only hinder your playing, having the opposite effect that you desire.
Instrument Care
Resting Instrument
Although most marching snare drums are fitted with feet or guards on the bottom rim, this is not a practical alternative for resting the drum outside where high grass, sticks or other obstacles could puncture the bottom snare head. Ideally, snare drums should stay attached to the marching carrier, and the carrier should sit on the ground, supporting the drum, thereby keeping the drum and all of the heads and mechanical parts off of the ground.
Drum Heads
The batter heads (top) of marching snares are made of a combination of plastics and highly durable kevlar or carbon fiber. These heads are very strong, but are still susceptible to breaking and distress. Care should be taken to protect the heads from cuts and scratches, Heads must also be cleaned regularly to remove scuff marks and stick marks.
Mechanical parts
Lugs: Lugs maintain the tension on the drum heads. Bottom lugs have a tendency to become loosened and are equipped with a safety washer to keep them from falling off the drum. When the lugs become loose however, the tuning of the head is affected. Lugs must be inspected to assure that proper tension is maintained all around the drum head.
Snare Strainers: Snare strainers are complicated mechanisms that allow for the snares to be engaged or disengaged from the drum. There are different knobs and screws that must all be properly adjusted to ensure proper tuning of the drum.
Snare strainers not only affect the tension of the snares across the drum, but also have adjustments for where the snares make contact with the shell on both sides of the drum. Adjusting these mechanisms in correctly can alter the way the snares rest against the drum head.
Marching snare strands are individually tunable. These can occasionally break or become loose. Inspect the snare regularly to ensure that equal tension is applied to all strands of the snare.
Lubrication: All mechanisms must be properly lubricated to function properly. Lubrication is best applied by simple oil.
Dirt: Dirt can easily get into mechanical parts, especially bottom head lugs. Dirt is abrasive and can cause parts to wear out quickly. All dirt or sand must be cleaned off of every part of the drum.
Cleaning the instrument
Before each performance, each drum should be thoroughly cleaned to remove fingerprints from all metal parts. Also, blow out any dust or tape fragments that may accumulate between the rim and the edge of the batter drum head.