I am currently Captain of my Drumline. My drumline consists of 2 Snares (inluding me) 1 Quint, 2 Cymbals, and 4 Bass Drummers. We have been practising the main and most easiest cadence for about 3 1/2 months now. And the bass drummers still cant get it right. They know how to play the notes. but they arnt together with the snares quint and cymbals. I dont understand it. Why they always get off. The first note of each measer for all of us is an eighth note. So we should all be together on that. But bass drummers always get off. Do you think they cant hear us. Or they arnt counting right? Ive also wondered if they dont listen to the main tempo of the snares, or my snare intro. Any suggestions??

To approach a complex matter simply...

I believe there are 3 abilities a drummer needs in order to function in a drumline.

1 - the ability to play a drum properly... stick technique

2 - the ability to read... rhythm interpretation

3 - the ability to play in tempo... time keeping

(also, 2&3 merge into another fundamental... meter)

In order to clean a dirty drumline, you must improve these 3 fundamentals.

1 - stick technique - especially in the basses, stick heights must be strickly regulated... I say "especially", because each drum, due to size, will produce their sound at a slightly different delay... 5th bass, for example, has much more head surface than 1st bass and has less tension on the head--- thusly, 5th bass moves more material a longer distance to make a sound, where as 1st bass moves less material a shorter distance to make a sound (not to mention that, when comparing mallet size, 5th bass has to swing logs while 1st bass plays with pencils)... the very nature of the bassline is opposed to unison and a lot of work is necessary to make X basses sound like 1 drum... someone with more experience than myself can elaborate on how to fix that effect... all I can say is: practice together, listen to eachother, and adjust in as many baby steps as it takes

summary... STICK HEIGHTS MUST MATCH... technique, too

2 - rhythm interpretation - your basses should be able to play their part solo... if they can't, they only (don't) know their part by ear and should be SHOT, then taught how to read music... in a musical setting, being music illiterate is just as bad as being real-life illiterate... you can barely function, if at all

summary... KNOW THE MUSIC... learn basic 16th timing, 16th syncopation, and splits... a HS bassline should be fine with that level of profeciency... a 2/3 timing exercise would probably be necessary as well, but for the most part, a mastery of 16th note combos will suit you fine as a HS bass drummer

3 - time keeping -

MARK TIME! MARK TIME! MARK TIME!

every time you play a drum, keep the tempo with your feet... personally, I believe the hands should be added after the feet, never the other way around... if you can't mark time to the music, your butt doesn't need to be on that practice field, yet

once you add the hands to the feet, govern the feet with the metronome

to reitterate... MARK TIME

to fix your problem, do whatever you can to improve those fundamentals in your drummers... I guarantee you that your problem is due to weakness in one or more (or all) of those fundamentals... and I guarantee that if your drummers at least improve those things, your problem will clear up proportionally

good luck with your drumline--- from one captain to another

well i think there main problem is that they are not listening. To me that is one of the hardest things to master. Being able to play in time with good technique while placing every note can be challenging but often times the ability to listen is something that is so hard to master. To be able to play with the person next to you can be difficult especially between each section. So work on listening to the different sections. I mean all the stuff above is good but most of that should be a given.

remember, also, attitude is a big deal. they have to want to play on the line. if they haven't been able to get a cadence down for 3 and 1/2 months, how is the show going to go down?

they need to count count count practice practice practice.

I'm in a show band, the marching 110. I'm the freshman top drum (we march four basses) and I have to agree that listening is the ABSOLUTE top thing on anyone's list. Besides knowing the parts, listening to the rest of the bass line, and eventually the rest of the drumline, is a focus that our bass instructor preaches day-in and day-out.

Really, when it comes down to it, making a great bass line needs talent and determination. Detication and practice. Good luck!