Hello ive been drumming for a couple years and i play snare blah blah blah, so basically im wondering why my chops seem to decipate so quickly once i havent drummed in a while, and im not just talking chops, im talking llike control and everything....mainly only in my right hand though , ESPECIALLY on all the low end stuff. anyone have any suggestions for keeping those chhops/control around a little longer? lol i know weird post but whatever

Well, you could practice to keep the chops up. Just a suggestion.

agreed the only way to keep the chops and control is to play more. even if its just basic 8ths.
i practice atleast an hr a day. within that time i go over music, exercises, rudiments, and just improving my technique

Some chops will stick with you and others wont, I find that if I practice a particular rudiment for a whole week for a good while each day, and then leave it alone for a week and try to pick up at the speed I left off, I can't do it. Its really about keeping your hands used to doing something.

yea thats what im talking about, because i know some guys who marched drum corps and have been out of it for 3 or 4 years and can still play like god. So does corps just give you chops for life or what?lol

What it is, is that once you reach a certain level you can't go back down to a worse level, like when you first started playing a snare drum..lets say you learned eighth notes then sixteenth notes and work on that for awhile and eventually leave the snare alone and work on something else, if you go back on snare you will still be able to play sixteenth notes. Somethings are just committed to memory in your hands, the more and better experience you get, the more chances better things will stick.

basically you have to work to maintain where you are now and work harder to get better its like any instrument after a while you start to lose thigs...example time!! so i uded to play violin, string bass, and guitar. i havent touched any of those for at least a year an now i cant play them for my life. but i still know how to play i just dont have the skill i used to...i would have to sit down for like atleast a day on each instrument to be able to play decently. same goes for drumming even though it hasnt been a year for you (im assuming) you still need to practice to maintain your skill

bottom line is commitment. All the guys who have aged out of corps who can still "drum like gods" still probably play everyday if not every other day, so yes there chops will still be there. you can't be a drummer one week and then take a week off and expect everything to be like it was it's not practical. I say it's time for you to make a decision. Commit to it and get sweet, or continue how you are and be mediocre

i posted once saying i practice atleast 1 hr a day..i really should restate that.
i say atleast 1 hr day cuz durin school with all the homework i get thats about all i have time for. but on the week ends and during breaks such as fall break, winter break, and above all summer, i find myself practicing anywhere between 3 - 5 hours a day.
some of my friends say im obsessive (maybe i am), but its more out of dedication for my instrument. so its up to where you decide to go w/ it.