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traditional grip problem
- Thread starter Toza
- Start date
B
blink44
Guest
Its normal i had a similiar problem, the stick would go all over the place but never fell out.
my teacher just said that i haven't developed any thumb muscle.
my teacher just said that i haven't developed any thumb muscle.
Gyrefalcon
Senior Member
Is there a particular reason you are going into traditional grip threads and suggesting people should switch? If you think matched grip is inherently more even sounding I am pretty sure I can find a few good drummer who disagree.
The only time when traditional grip is inferior is in the hands of a new player, and possibly when you get to the very top of the speed spectrum (since the current WFD record holder for traditional grip singles is of this opinion, I am agreeing with the idea).
Personally, I think that everyone should become proficient at all the main grips (French, German, and American in both matched and traditional, the "ancient method" should also be studied if not learned).
Larry
"Uncle Larry"
A perspective on grip:
Traditional grip has come under considerable fire as of late in the drumming community. They say that because of its origins in marching where the drums were tilted, it loses most, if not all of its relevance in a world where mostly position our drums with much less angle then in the old days. They also cite (correctly) that matched grip is a much more natural grip.
Both arguments have their merits, but I am of the opinion that traditional grip is and shall remain formidable presence for as long as there are drummers.
I will be the first to admit that matched grip has many advantages over traditional and may be a better general grip. However, there are some areas where traditional grip is superior to matched. One of these area is subtlety. Much of which has to do with the upside down nature of the traditional grip and its placement in front of the fulcrum an opposed to behind it. Subtly comes from the ability to control the stick beginning, during and after the stroke. While matched and traditional are roughly even in the beginning and the end of the stroke, traditional excels in the area of control of the stick during flight. This comes mostly from its being in front of the fulcrum.
Suppose you’re swinging a baseball bat at a punching bag. If you wanted to stop the bat just before it contacts the punching bag, where would you want to hold the bat? More than likely, you would want to grip the bat much closer to the part of the bat that you would actually strike the bag with. The leverage you sacrifice with the higher grip is gained back in control. In actuality, you don’t lose very much leverage with traditional grip because of the adjustability of the fulcrum between the thumb and forefinger. To gain back some leverage you can open up the grip to the point where you’re pretty much just bouncing the stick with your thumb. For more control you can close the grip to the point where the stroke is almost all turn of the forearm. The beautiful thing is that the grip of the fulcrum can be changed in an instant with traditional grip.
Another advantage of traditional grip is the ability to easily adjust the angle of the stick to drum head. The angle of the stick when contacting the drum head has much to do with the texture of the sound you get from hitting the drum. As the angle gets higher you get a lighter sound, making traditional grip great for light ghost note heavy music (like jazz.)
Assuming you have proper hand technique (like that found on Jojo Mayer’s DVD) there isn’t a huge difference between matched and traditional in terms of power and speed. Many would argue that matched has the advantage in those two areas. I’ll grant them that matched has a noticeable difference in terms of power, but in my experience, the difference in the area of speed is negligible, if it does in fact exist.
Another interesting area of comparison between the two grips is the mental aspect. Jojo Mayer talks about this in his DVD, he says that “if matched grip represents symmetry and sameness then traditional grip represents asymmetry and contrast.” I’ve found it to be true that I’m inspired to play different things when I play traditional grip then when I play matched. Generally I like the stuff I come up with in traditional grip more then what I do in matched.
Traditional grip has come under considerable fire as of late in the drumming community. They say that because of its origins in marching where the drums were tilted, it loses most, if not all of its relevance in a world where mostly position our drums with much less angle then in the old days. They also cite (correctly) that matched grip is a much more natural grip.
Both arguments have their merits, but I am of the opinion that traditional grip is and shall remain formidable presence for as long as there are drummers.
I will be the first to admit that matched grip has many advantages over traditional and may be a better general grip. However, there are some areas where traditional grip is superior to matched. One of these area is subtlety. Much of which has to do with the upside down nature of the traditional grip and its placement in front of the fulcrum an opposed to behind it. Subtly comes from the ability to control the stick beginning, during and after the stroke. While matched and traditional are roughly even in the beginning and the end of the stroke, traditional excels in the area of control of the stick during flight. This comes mostly from its being in front of the fulcrum.
Suppose you’re swinging a baseball bat at a punching bag. If you wanted to stop the bat just before it contacts the punching bag, where would you want to hold the bat? More than likely, you would want to grip the bat much closer to the part of the bat that you would actually strike the bag with. The leverage you sacrifice with the higher grip is gained back in control. In actuality, you don’t lose very much leverage with traditional grip because of the adjustability of the fulcrum between the thumb and forefinger. To gain back some leverage you can open up the grip to the point where you’re pretty much just bouncing the stick with your thumb. For more control you can close the grip to the point where the stroke is almost all turn of the forearm. The beautiful thing is that the grip of the fulcrum can be changed in an instant with traditional grip.
Another advantage of traditional grip is the ability to easily adjust the angle of the stick to drum head. The angle of the stick when contacting the drum head has much to do with the texture of the sound you get from hitting the drum. As the angle gets higher you get a lighter sound, making traditional grip great for light ghost note heavy music (like jazz.)
Assuming you have proper hand technique (like that found on Jojo Mayer’s DVD) there isn’t a huge difference between matched and traditional in terms of power and speed. Many would argue that matched has the advantage in those two areas. I’ll grant them that matched has a noticeable difference in terms of power, but in my experience, the difference in the area of speed is negligible, if it does in fact exist.
Another interesting area of comparison between the two grips is the mental aspect. Jojo Mayer talks about this in his DVD, he says that “if matched grip represents symmetry and sameness then traditional grip represents asymmetry and contrast.” I’ve found it to be true that I’m inspired to play different things when I play traditional grip then when I play matched. Generally I like the stuff I come up with in traditional grip more then what I do in matched.
Toza
Senior Member
im not new player i play matched grip my whole life, and i dont have problem playing high strokes even in very fast tempos.I started traditional when i started to play jazz whit one of my friends and drum n bass. Whit one d.j. before one year. I would never let it go, Its about contrast and it REALLY SOUND DIFFERENT
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MC2JS5QTpV0
and it is bether for some styles, my english sucks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MC2JS5QTpV0
and it is bether for some styles, my english sucks
Last edited:
burnthehero
Pioneer Member
Toza.
Are you keeping your thumb in contact with the first knuckle of your index finger. That's how I was taught to do it and it really helped me keep control of the stick. You don't have to hold it tight, just keep them touching. Hope that helps.
I'm another one of the matched-to-traditional converts. I did because I finally grew too frustrated trying to achieve symmetry between my left and right hands. So I gave traditional a shot. Hated it at first. But it didn't take long before it just felt more comfortable to me than matched grip ever did. And as others have mentioned, it does afford me much more subtlety.
Are you keeping your thumb in contact with the first knuckle of your index finger. That's how I was taught to do it and it really helped me keep control of the stick. You don't have to hold it tight, just keep them touching. Hope that helps.
I'm another one of the matched-to-traditional converts. I did because I finally grew too frustrated trying to achieve symmetry between my left and right hands. So I gave traditional a shot. Hated it at first. But it didn't take long before it just felt more comfortable to me than matched grip ever did. And as others have mentioned, it does afford me much more subtlety.