Video: Single Paradiddle Introduction!

Finally a new video lesson for you. It’s not only for beginners. I often meet drummers who have multi-year experience but never played the Paradiddle. Hard to believe but true.

The Single Paradiddle is a melodic rudiment, it isn’t straight like the single stroke roll and doesn’t have the typical rolling sound of a double stroke. The Paradiddle generates a kind of wavy, pulsating sound and enables you to play very interesting figures and grooves.

The Single Paradiddle is the father of a big family of diddles. It’s not required to name him Single Paradiddle… when somebody wants you to play the Paradiddle – this one shown here is it.

It’s a combination of a group of single strokes “R – L” and a double stroke “R – R”. This combi “R – L – R – R” will be mirrored “L – R – L – L” and these 8 strokes together make the Paradiddle: “R – L – R – R – L – R – L – L”

In the video i play quarter notes, 8th and 16th notes at BPM 120. Make sure to play steady and balanced strokes, all notes have the same length, none is faster than another (Beginners often play the double part faster than the singles: ta-ta-tata-ta-ta-tata, instead of ta-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta).

Like always, avoid the typical leading hand and its uncontrolled accents. In the clip i have a soft accentuation coming from the natural flow and melody of the Paradiddle…

…this point is a bit hard to explain. When you play rudiments like the Paradiddle you don’t think about it (once after you learned it). When i play a song i don’t think “Oh, now i should play a Paradiddle”… I just play it automatically when the music and the feel asks for it… Well, kind of…

I don’t want to go too far here. Just start practicing the Paradiddle… on your desk, your knees, the steering wheel of your car, everywhere! Until one can wake you up in the middle of the night (and you’re totally drunk) and can play the Paradiddle immediately.  It’s easy like that ;-)

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