How to Play Drum Chops Like the Pros

[@TeaspoonUlysses]

You're a pro, Brett. Don't sell yourself short. I have been going through a video of yours everyday to get better, and in 3 months it is crazy how I've progressed. Thanks, mate.

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks, man! You’re too kind :)

[@nique_nique3945]

I agree do not sell yourself short.

[@Ba_stard]

Im very new to drumming and your video and shorts have given me inspiration and a good place to start. Thank you sir for your efforts they are working 👍

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks, man! And thanks for watching. If you want something with a bit more structure and guidance, you should check out Drumeo's platform. Here's a link for a free 30-day trial: drumeo.pxf.io/c/3596229/1908587/14652

[@Klassiq56]

You’re my number one already ❤ Your explanations are easy and at the same time very very very effective

[@DrumGalaxy]

Yep. Those are the ones. I would also add the RLRLLK to that list. And to get double mileage out of ANY lick, make sure you can play each one in a straight 16th or 32nd note fashion and also in a triplet fashion.

[@Thomas-ox4py]

Thanks so much for this lesson it will push me through to the next level

[@brettclurdrums]

Good luck! Thanks for watching

[@TheGhostNotePodcast]

this was so helpful man. quick and too the point. Was immediately able to get on the kit and apply this and I'm like oh.... this is a cheat code 😅😅😅

[@brettclurdrums]

Thank you!

[@philiplie7342]

love your content, fast simple clean direct so easy and quick to learn

[@brettclurdrums]

thanks, bro!

[@Heyhowareyafine]

Hey Brett. Thank you for the excellent lesson. Definitely gives me the starting point to filling creatively and will no doubt take me to another level on the kit. Keep it up and all the best.

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks so much for watching! Remember to mainly learn sticking patterns and then make those your own :)

[@thomaspoillot6036]

Thanx Guy for the time you spend explaining all the tricks of drummers 🤟🤟🤟 it helps me a LOT!!

[@brettclurdrums]

Thank YOU for watching :)

[@carp7697]

Great video! I played professionally years ago but I would hear complicated stuff similar to this this from guys like Weckl and wonder how they did a lot of it. Fortunately I never had to replicate it :)

[@brettclurdrums]

haha thanks for watching! Yeah it's not something that you have to do, but super fun to do!

[@emmanueldavis1872]

Thanks! I've always been trying to figure out how they do it but I never even knew they were called chops. Thanks man! I just need to work on my hand speed and get used to moving around the set at a faster rate and keeping the beat. But at least I have somewhere to start now.

[@jonnykk1]

Great content. Your online presence seems to be growing since you used to do those short IG clips and you should keep it up. Great playing and great lesson

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks man! Yeah I’m putting more focus on KZbin these days, but have plans for IG in the new year!

[@hashira9166]

Excellent video! One thing I like doing with the 6-stroke rolls (as 16th triplets mostly) is to just play the first half of it once in a sequence (R l l) and that way you can have your six stroke rolls end up on the upbeats and move the accents around the beats.

[@brettclurdrums]

Yeah for sure! I do that all the time as well. Also adding a few kicks to make it beefier :D

[@michaelamosu1281]

Ooo thanks for pointing that out, sounding out in my head it sounds really cool

[@qsviewsrpgs4571]

Excellent material, thank you for sharing.

[@brettclurdrums]

Thank YOU for watching! :)

[@kalvinmiller8233]

Great lesson !

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks, man!

[@davidapple5374]

Brett thank you for this, so helpful!!🙏🏽

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks for watching!

[@RotoTomDrums]

Great lesson! Something else that helps develop chops is breaking out of the 4- or 8-bar phrase. This is especially true if you have to little to no training playing solos. When you're chopping you're basically abandoning the downbeat on 1 for at least 16-bars (almost as though you were a rapper with a 16-bar window). The challenge is knowing where you are in that space and how to come back in on the one once you're finished. It's liberating but also a little nerve wracking.

[@brettclurdrums]

Great advice! :)

[@RotoTomDrums]

Thanks! Something I'm still struggling with so figured I'd add it to the convo! @@brettclurdrums

[@timothyslaughter476]

Great drummers control adrenaline which is not easy to do. People say its rushing or not having good time but its really a physical adrenaline issue. Breathing is a huge part of it. These greats are able to slow things down mentally and practice at a cadence where they can nail what theyre working on then speed up or down as needed.

[@emregurhan2332]

Awesome video Brett!

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks!

[@GideonWaxman]

4:30 is a staple in my playing right now haha. Nice video dude!! 🥁

[@brettclurdrums]

It’s definitely a favorite. Thanks for watching, dude!

[@MOstix13]

Very nicely done and explained! Thanks

[@KM-px8cs]

Thank you for this!

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks for watching!

[@ediot6969]

All of the chops are out there for your disposal. It’s all about how much time are you willing to put in. Most drummers are not willing to practice like our drum hero’s did or do.

[@benimartin878]

Very good, congratulations

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks!

[@adityatyagi4009]

This is some good shit. Thanks for teaching us!

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks SO much for watching! :)

[@lobbyrobby]

A couple months ago I bought a drum kit. I'm learning slowly and having fun but damn this is hard. I knew it would be but I underestimated it. I'm not planning on getting into a band or anything like that. I just wanted to do it for the fun of it. The more I look into the more I think I made a mistake lol

[@brettclurdrums]

Broooo drumming is the best thing ever. You just need a structured guide to start out. Try this free Drumeo 30 day trial - drumeo.pxf.io/c/3596229/1908587/14652 There's a course on there called the Drumeo Method. It takes you from zero to hero in easily followable steps.

[@lobbyrobby]

@@brettclurdrums I know, you're right. It blows my mind watching these really awesome drummers thinking to myself I'm trying to get there someday. I actually am signed up at Drum Beats Online.

[@brettclurdrums]

@@lobbyrobby oh epic dude. Gabe and Shaya are awesome guys and that's a fantastic platform!

[@tonylancer7367]

Great video Brett! I think the most important think about "chops" or "gospel chops" or whatever you call it, is application. The 6 stroke roll will be your friend if you can just apply it everywhere and at different note values (with breaks too!). Also I can't help but ask, you from South Africa or Australia?

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks for watching! And yea definitely. Drumming is all about orchestration and creating your own voice once you can orchestrate in your own way. I'm from South Africa :D

[@tonylancer7367]

@@brettclurdrums Lovely stuff man, fellow SA here too! Keep winning over there Brett! 😄

[@brettclurdrums]

@@tonylancer7367 ah thanks, man! I'm from East London, so the accent is a bit deep haha

[@williewhite1161]

You sir are a pro as well. Thank you.

[@brettclurdrums]

Thank you! :)

[@StuartJrBarrett]

Great video man! Simple and explained well.

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks!

[@geralddrums]

Ein guter Einstieg 😉👍👍👍🥁

[@davidnw0]

thank you

[@JigsHidalgoMusic]

hey brett! could you do a breakdown of your recording setup and how you record drums?

[@brettclurdrums]

Hey yeah I can but I’m awful at recording drums. It’s just 3 microphones and some Logic Pro presets

[@JigsHidalgoMusic]

@@brettclurdrums would still love to know haha! i am so lost with how to do mine!

[@dumbo.productions]

nice job!!!

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks!

[@thomasnappo6309]

Well done😊

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks!

[@RafaelCairesbr]

Amazing! Great Job

[@EnochGilbert]

Awesome bro.❤

[@joshuaugah8333]

thank you very much

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks for watching!

[@Drumhousemedia]

Thank you 💕

[@sergiopezza-batteriadrums3493]

Thanks!👏🥁🥁🥁

[@brettclurdrums]

Thank YOU for watching!

[@piscotown]

this guy should be minister of music education in drums!

[@brettclurdrums]

haha you're too kind!

[@DavidBash-be9gd]

Thank you

[@VitoFleten]

I understand how to do it but i just cant get the speed on my left hand to be like that i tryed many tehniques but i just cant seem to get the speed, if someone knows like best way to do this please help.

[@NeCLiaH]

I'd say that you need to play to all this and count the downbeats simultaneously, also play to it while counting upbeats. Also work on your accents and ghost notes as well as doubles (or your sound will be crap). The sticking is easy, the work which is behind is enormous in order to make it sound the way it needs to sound. Pro keep practicing these things everyday, it's the only way to get a consistent and smooth playing.

[@felipecardoso6300]

Watching the video, I had a question: would the first example be an inverted double strooke or an inverted paradiddle? Are both interpretations valid, or neither of them? Thanks for sharing 🇧🇷

[@Sealo.]

great video but i still cant do that if i dont know how to drum that fast

[@dfinma]

0:32 You're talking about licks. Chops are the things (hands) you use to play the licks. Don't worry about it -- almost everyone gets it wrong 😄

[@brettclurdrums]

If everyone gets it wrong, doesn't that make them right? Honest question haha. The debate around the meaning of chops is really interesting. At its truest form, I would say that it refers to someone's proficiency on an instrument. "Did you see that guy playing guitar? He had some serious chops". But I agree with you and also don't agree with you at the same time. In the current internet space, most drummers just think about drum fills, repeating patterns, and shedding when hearing the word chops.

[@dfinma]

@@brettclurdrumsYes, the meanings have changed recently. "Chops" originally referred to a [skilled] horn player's lips, which came from the phrase "getting punched in the chops" (teeth/mouth), teeth being known as "choppers" (easy enough to understand). Shedding means practicing, which was derived from [literally] practicing in the wood shed so you didn't bother people in the house. Practicing was also known as "chopping wood" so I contend "chops," as in the skill you get from practicing, has two origins -- lips and, by extension, whichever bodypart performs the activity and the act of practicing which results in skill. But it's ok -- only us old guys know this! 😄

[@brettclurdrums]

@@dfinma haha! it's kind of like the word "hard". For years, my parents and grandparents tried to correct me every time I used it, saying it doesn't mean difficult. But people have used it in that way so much that it now does mean difficult.

[@KLHDAGREAT]

What’s your mic setup

[@soopofgreatness]

How do you go so fast

[@brettclurdrums]

Years of practice :)

[@haizk]

how to improve the speed and the doubles :'

[@Arbigale]

Feels good to do, but as a working drummer (Cruise ship, Broadway) I cant play much😂, plus the sight reading.

[@brettclurdrums]

I feel you haha

[@alvarohernandez2764]

Honestly, i don't even like it when drummers do stuff so crazy you can't even tell there if there's even a rhythm and tempo anymore, which is the whole point of a drummer in the first place. As far as I'm concerned, they could also be pretending like they're still keeping track when in reality they're probably just as lost hitting random things left and right

[@brettclurdrums]

That's a good point! It's why I love players like Larnell Lewis. He can smash it around the kit with no issues but everything he plays is so tasty and musical.

[@ghyogi1]

The secret of a master is to keep the hi hat goin all the time during fills and chops.Weckl is good example.

[@popeyesailor9571]

they learn their rudiments and then they PRACTICE!

[@smanduu9204]

the speed thoooo

[@brettclurdrums]

That's the part that just requires practice haha

[@smanduu9204]

@@brettclurdrums should i just put on a metronome and slowly increase the speed?

[@brettclurdrums]

@@smanduu9204 yup! When you play slowly and repeatedly, it builds your muscle memory. Then you can speed it up in small increments and your body won't really notice the speed change

[@smanduu9204]

@@brettclurdrums like maybe 5 bpm? also since you’ve responded and that means i know you’ll see this, i’ve been drumming for about 2 years and you’re almost the entire reason i got out of two separate points where i felt like i could NOT improve no matter what, your videos are inspiring and super good for any skill level of drummer and i appreciate every video you put out for us

[@brettclurdrums]

@@smanduu9204 Thanks so much, man! That's awesome. Yeah when I practice something new, I always play it at like 60BPM for 5 minutes and then increase it to 65BPM for another 5 minutes. Repeat the process and you'll be at 140BPM by the end of the week.

[@RandomnessVortex]

Cool

[@brettclurdrums]

Thanks!

[@dean532]

Start with tuning drum sounds short rather than making the heads “resonate” with the rebound for chops; chops on an 80’s arena rock kit will make nullify those blazing sounds from reaching ears.

[@sethwexler6910]

It’s called practice and study.

[@PostThaMost]

I don't have a set right now, but my practice pad... It calls to me...

[@brettclurdrums]

Good enough to work on those hands haha

[@egemenata67]

as a turkish drummer in our culture&music we usually do not prefer chop/pocket drumming as well this is why we cant play like this

[@cymandeh]

im just trying to keep time lol

[@redlightclinicdrummer]

don’t forget LRLKRLKLR

[@maga_mantris]

I don't really partipate in noodles and chops. To me it's all about people wanting to dance and clap when I play.

[@brettclurdrums]

Nothing wrong with that :)

[@zigzagposers2955]

All these gospel players and other great drummers actually play with greatest pop funk soul artists ever , groove and pockets are fundamental but clean crafted chops always needed at a right moment

[@valcic1993]

Just play doubles al around

[@justplayqueen]

use the ear quit trying yo be lije soneone else money robots due that

[@danjosh7380]

I'm actually learning it but the only problem is I don't know how to hold the sticks properly when playing ghost notes that's why sometimes instead of playing ghost notes it always ended up like vibrating or something like instead of doing just 2 hits of left it becomes 3 to 5 hits 🥲