#WHAT IS A FLAM HOW TO#

The reason for the differences in the stick heights for the down and up stroke is because you want the up stroke to be very quiet and the down stroke to be louder. Remember this: The UP stroke is theвЂќ FLвЂќ and the DOWN stroke is the вЂњAMвЂќ Be a Robot when You Practice the Flam!ДЇlam strokes need to be practiced as if you were a robot so that the stick heights of the down and up strokes are precise. ItвЂ™s important that when you play the Down stroke that the stick rebound to a height of only one inch above the drum and when you play the up stroke the stick rebounds to the height of the down stroke position which is about one stick length in height above the drum. Play this exercise starting from the down stroke position with one hand then the other separately. The up stroke starts at a point of 1 inch above the drum and вЂњflicksвЂќ the drum head as it goes to the down stroke position which is again about one length of the stick in height above the drum. When you play the down stroke only allow the stick to rebound off of the drum to the height of 1 inch.

Take the stick in your right hand and hold it about one stick length in height above the drum. The grace note needs to be very soft and does not interfere with the main note. Make sure that you play with precise stick positions to ensure that you play the flam accurately. After each flam the sticks switch position as shown in the next picture. In the first picture my right hand is in the Down Stroke position and the left hand is in the Up Stroke position. One of them is the down stroke and the other is the up stroke. There are two motions that your sticks will make when playing a flam.

#WHAT IS A FLAM HOW TO#

To really understand how to play a proper FLAM make sure you say the word and then copy the sound you hear with your sticks on the drum. The way someone naturally says the word flam is with the emphasis on the вЂњAMвЂќ and the вЂњFLвЂќ sound is less pronounced. The FLAM is one of those onomatopoeic words and when you say the word you notice that there are two parts of the word. and when you say the word it actually sounds like the rudiment itself. Words were used to help the student remember how to play the rudiments and they were onomatopoeic in nature like Flam, Paradiddle, Ratamacue, etc. The very first drummers couldnвЂ™t read music so they were taught how to play by being shown what to do and they were taught in an aural tradition. The Aural Tradition of Learning to Play the FLAM LetвЂ™s talk about how to play a Flam on the Snare Drum The second note is the main note and itвЂ™s played on the beat or in rhythm. The first note is a grace note and is played just before the note that is playing the rhythm. What is a flam?ДЄ flam is a pair of notes played on the snare drum where one note is played ever so slightly ahead of the other note.

Flams can be tricky! But they are very important for every percussionist to learn how to play correctly.