Solo Writing

[arielites7]

Hi fellow drummers!

Just wanted to know what goes on in your heads when you write solos.

I'm writing a solo for an audition in for a school CCA and I get inspired by alot of things and I just write them down on the train and I think its cool but, when I look try it at home, I can't play it smoothly and it also sounds weird sometimes.

Anyone else having the same problems out there?
I need help!

arielites7

 

[DRUM YODA]

There are essentially 3 categories of drum solos :

1. Solos built up from combinations of rudiments - after all the rudiments are the building blocks or vocabulary of your drum language.

2. Solos based on a rhythmic vamp or pulse - many afro-cuban and latin drum solos are of this nature - sometimes incorporating the rudimental phrases

3. Solos based on a melodic theme or phrasing - these are the ones jazz drummers usually do but it also requires the knowledge and application of rudimental phrases.

Drum solos if prolonged usually are quite boring to non-drumming audiences even if spiced up with stick tricks and other pyrotechnics. So a purely technical solo as in (1) will turn the untrained ear off the quickest.

Jazz type solos based on the melody and rhythmic phrasing and applied in the context of the song structure (as in trading bars) can be interesting musically - up to a point....but the 10 minute type solos thet Buddy Rich or Gene Krupa were famous for tend to get boring after awhile as the audience loses its sense of relevance to the music and confused by the dazzle of their techniques.

That leaves us the category (2) solo based on a rhythmic pulse or vamp...which could be a straight 4/4 pulse or even a 6/4 type latin pulse. As long as the audience can relate rhythmically and tap their foot or wriggle their butts...the solo becomes a rhythmic experience , even danceable. Notice how some Indian dances are almost entirely based on a drum solo pattern ?

My 2 cents worth.

 

[Drumbassador]

well said. what i do is to transcribe bits and pieces of solos other drummers have done and put it together. doing this would also bring you out of your comfort zone since what other drummers are comfortable playing would most of the time be something you are not comfortable playing. you would basically be transcribing licks. but in the end you need to make it your own so change the note values, orchestrations, starting positions, stickings, hand-foot combinations and feel of the licks. add your own voicings and put licks together. the hard part would be stringing them together compared to learning the specific licks. you can even change the stickings of the rhythm to make it more economical to your style of playing so experiment and write it down. most importantly, your solo must tell a story and bring out emotions and not be a whole phrase of regurgitated rudiments. try to strike a balance and make sure it is written down.

 

[DRUM YODA]

A solo is a means of expressing a rhythmic or melodic idea. It is a form of communication and as such should have a form and structure that can communicate to the audience. It's not good enough just to cut and paste a series of phrases and articulations and try to pass it off as a solo. While the temptation is to show off one's chops and use impressive technical stuff, that is not quite the way it should be. Imagine making a speech full of unintelligible phrases and words - just to sound "cheem: but really got no meaning. Better to talk effectively - which is to choose the right words and phrases (relevant to the subject in hand) deliver it at the right tempo and dynamics(volume) and making sure your your message register by emphasising on what is important.

Apply this to the concept of a drum solo and it begins to make sense.

 

[arielites7]

Thanks Yoda and Bassador.

I'll keep these things in mind.
Hopefully I'll get the hang of what you guys are talking about when writing because I think, its like practice makes better.

I tried writing a solo in 5/4, a short one but cant really play.
I'll try writing a short 4/4 one with a theme first.

Thanks guys, this really helped!