Six-Stroke Rolls as Triplets

Following on from the last post, this time we have some exercises to work on the six-stroke roll as a triplets.

Exercises #1 - #4 show four of the six possible inversions, or placements of the pattern. These feel a little different to the 16th note version because the notes are all played at the same rate. It is important, even though the basic sticking is now  the same as a paradiddle-diddle, to think of it as a roll and focus on bringing out the accents.

You can sometimes hear Exercise #1 In Tony Williams' playing and it still sounds really hip. I find I use Exercises #2 & #4 quite a bit in my jazz playing.

In the PDF you'll find two more exercises that use 16th note triplets, and gives you a way of playing the six-stroke roll as 3 over 4. Just be careful about keeping the time.

The right hand lead stickings are given, but you should do all these exercises leading with the left hand too. You can even try using single strokes.

Again, experiment with moving the pattern, and then the accents, around the kit. Next time will look at some applications of the six-stroke roll as fills in jazz time playing.

This was originally posted on "Jazz Drumming Blog" and in the "Ideas for Jazz Drumming" e-book (no longer available). This post has been revised and expanded from the original.