Six-Stroke Rolls

I tend not to study lots of rudiments, but having said that there are a few fundamental rudiments that I find to be useful, especially if you can find musical ways to use them.

The six-stroke roll is a fairly modern rudiment and it can be usefully played in a few different ways.

Here are some interpretations of the six-stroke roll that are partly inspired by Jim Blackley's approach, albeit from a slightly different angle. It is important to realise that rudiments don't need to be static and there are other ways to use and move them. The six-stroke roll is actually very versatile.

These exercises take you through placing the six-stroke roll in different places in the bar. Be sure to listen to where the accents fall.

The standard sticking is "RRLL R L", but use others, such as all singles too. Try and move away from the snare drum and around the kit. Experiment with different voicings and sounds.

Figs #5 & #6 shows the notation in demi-semi and common notation for slower and faster tempos.

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.