Vic Firth Presents: Percussion 101

VIC FIRTH PRESENTS
PERCUSSION 101
A Video Guide to Essential Percussion Techniques

This series of video lessons will provide students and instructors alike with a comprehensive introduction to the fundamental techniques for the most common percussion instruments. From instrument setup to maintenance to performance techniques, Vic Firth's PERCUSSION 101 will cover the essential skills necessary for today's all-around percussionist.

The curriculum for this series was compiled by members of Vic Firth's Collegiate Educator Program which includes some of the most influential university instructors in the country. Presented by percussionist David Skidmore in a relaxed, approachable atmosphere, this series is sure to become the most widely referenced video guide for percussion education!

OUR CURRENT LIBRARY OF VIDEO LESSONS:

CONCERT BASS DRUM
01: General Characteristics and Maintenance	03: Playing Techniques Including setup, proper beating area, stroke, mallet selection, muffling, rolls and special effects.
02: Replacing a Bass Drum Head A guide for replacing a drum head and tuning a concert bass drum. Including basic maintenance issues while the head is off the drum.	Additional Reference: Tom Gauger's Concert Bass Drum Lesson Series Legendary percussionist Tom Gauger details many of the techniques involved in concert bass drum performance.

CRASH CYMBALS
01: General Characteristics and Maintenance Including instructions on how to tie a cymbal strap.	02: Playing Techniques A guide for playing loud and soft crashes as well as muffling techniques

GONG / TAM-TAM
01: Characteristics, Setup and Maintenance Covering instrument selection, positioning and general maintenance tips.	03: General Playing Techniques Presenting the fundamentals of playing the tam-tam, including proper beating area, stroke, muffling and rolls.
02: Mallet Selection A demonstration of 2 popular mallet choices for the tam-tam.	04: Special Effects Including suggestions for non-traditional techniques: bowing, scraping and dipping in water.

KEYBOARD PERCUSSION INSTRUMENTS
01: Characteristics and Maintenance Covering the characteristics for all the keyboard instruments, including a discussion of proper beating areas and general maintenance tips for replacing cord, fixing posts and stopping rattle sounds.	06: XYLOPHONE Specific instrument characteristics and mallet selection choices for the xylophone.
02: Setup and Playing Position A discussion of general set up tips for all keyboard instruments, including moving around the instrument and feet positioning.	07: GLOCKENSPIEL / BELLS Specific instrument characteristics and mallet selection choices for the bells.
03: The Grip and Basic Stroke Instructions for gripping mallets and performing relaxed strokes on all the keyboard instruments. Including mallet positioning on the bars.	08: VIBRAPHONE Specific instrument characteristics and mallet selection choices for the vibraphone. Including an overview of dampening techniques.
04: Sticking Considerations General suggestions making sticking choices on all the keyboard instruments. Including when to use double sticking patterns.	09: MARIMBA Specific instrument characteristics and mallet selection choices for the marimba. Including moving throughout the registers with foot positioning.
05: Rolls A guide for developing consistent sounding sustained rolls for all the keyboard instruments, as well as how to connect rolls from note to note.	10: CHIMES Specific instrument characteristics, setup and playing techniques for the chimes.
Additional Reference: Gary Burton's Vibraphone Masterclass Legendary jazz vibist Gary Burton gives a detailed video lesson series on the Vibes, from it's history to all of the common playing techniques: 4 mallet grip, stroke, sticking recommendations, pedaling and mallet dampening.	Additional Reference: Giff Howarth's 4 Mallet Lesson Series The most extensive reference available online for learning the Musser/Stevens 4 mallet grip for marimba.
Additional Reference: Speed Note Reading Tutor An online video game designed to get students reading notes quickly in a fun format. Excerpted from Mark Wessels' “A Fresh Approach to Mallet Percussion” method book.	Additional Reference: Ney Rosauro's Extended Cross Grip Lesson Series Renowned performer and composer Ney Rosauro gives an detailed explanation of the extended cross grip, an easy-to-learn method of gripping 4 mallets that immediately applies to all the instruments.
Additional Reference: Teaching the Beginning Mallet Player Noted author Mark Wessels discusses the inherent problems with learning to read on the keyboard percussion instruments. Presenting a list of solutions and strategies for developing the musical percussionist.	Additional Reference: Vic Firth Concert Podcast The most extensive collection of video performances from percussion soloists and ensembles. A great resource for exposing students of all ages and ability levels to the wide range of musical genres in percussion.

SNARE DRUM
01: Instrument and Head Selection A demonstration of the most common types of snare drums and suggestions for head selection.	11: Flams A fundamental approach to playing flams, both single hand and alternating. Including suggestions for playing soft flams and achieving a consistency of sound.
02: Care and Maintenance	12: Sticking Methods A demonstration of Lead Hand and Alternating sticking methods, including the pros and cons of each system.
03: Head Replacement and Tuning Covering top and bottom head replacement and maintenance, including detailed instructions on tuning for a good concert drum sound.	13: Ruffs The basics for playing ruffs: multiple bounce, double bounce, 4 stroke and 5 stroke ruffs. Including a discussion of which type of ruff (and sticking for the ruff) is appropriate for the music.
04: Stick Selection and Characteristic Sound Including a demonstration of how various playing areas and muffling can effect the sound of the drum.	14: Alternative Sounds A demonstration of other implements that may be used to achieve a variety of sounds and tonal colors: brushes, dreadlocks and rute.
05: Proper Setup and Playing Position Setting the drum up to the proper height and position for the best playing posture.	Additional Reference: Mark Wessels' Beginning Snare Drum Lesson Series An extensive video lesson series based on ”A Fresh Approach to the Snare Drum,” designed as a progressive approach for the beginning student.
06: The Grip Instructions for gripping the sticks in the matched grip.	Additional Reference: 40 Essential Rudiments A great resource for practicing your rudiments, with exercises and playalong tracks for each level of student. Including video demonstrations of each rudiment performed open-close-open style by Dr. John Wooton.
07: The Basic Stroke (Rebound / Legato Stroke) Presenting the fundamental stroke for independent right and left hand strokes independently, as well as three important rudiments: alternating strokes (single stroke roll), double strokes (long roll) and paradiddles.	Additional Reference: Norm Weinberg's WebRhythms A series of articles designed to teach rhythm reading from the most basic to very advanced. Includes play along files for various skill levels and downloadable PDF files of the exercises.
08: Roll Fundamentals An approach to develop the multiple bounce and double bounce roll. Including when multiple and double bounce rolls are appropriate.	Additional Reference: Mark Wessels’ Rudimental Technique 14 fundamental exercises with video lessons designed for the beginning to intermediate snare drummer.
09: Metered and Unmetered Rolls Selecting the stroke speed to produce a smooth sustained roll sound. Also including a discussion of various roll bases for different tempos.	Additional Reference: Jeff Queen's “The Next Level” Rudimental Technique Exercises and video explanations by rudimental master Jeff Queen that is designed to take the intermediate player to the advanced level.
10: Tied and Untied Rolls Instructions on how to play rolls that are not tied to a release note

SUSPENDED CYMBAL
01: Instrument Selection and Playing Techniques Selecting a good suspended cymbal, picking a suspended cymbal mallet Including basic stroke, rolls and muffling techniques.	02: Maintenance and Specialty Sounds Covering a discussion of stand types as well as alternative implements and bowing techniques.

TIMPANI
01: Instrument Characteristics and General Maintenance An overview of the timpani and tips how to maintain and transport the instrument. Including an extensive article on replacing timpani heads.	09: Articulation and Stroke Speed Using stroke speed to create more articulation without changing mallets.
02: Setup Suggestions for properly positioning the drums, music stand and mallet tray.	10: Mallet Selection An overview of some of the sound possibilities possible using a variety of mallets.
03: Grip and Basic Stroke Presenting the fundamentals of gripping the sticks (French, German, American), proper beating area and playing with a relaxed, full stroke.	Additional Reference: Interval Recognition Chart A collection of tunes for all of the intervals, ascending and decending.
04: Sticking Considerations A discussion of alternating, leading-hand, cross-over and double sticking techniques.	Additional Reference: Replacing/Clearing Timpani Heads Including complete instructions on replacing a timpani head, clearing (tuning) it, and adjusting the pedals.
05: Rolls Suggestions for developing a relaxed sustaining roll sound on timpani. Including a discussion of roll speed and moving from drum to drum.	Additional Reference: Tim Genis Timpani Clinic Presented at the 2007 PAS International Convention by Tim Genis (timpanist for the Boston Symphony Orchestra)
06: Muffling The basics for stopping the sound with the fingers, including muffling for note length and for clarity.	Additional Reference: Stuart Marrs on Elliott Carter Watch Stuart perform and examine “March” from Elliott Carter's “Eight Pieces for Four Timpani”
07: Tuning Learning to sing and hear pitches as well as transferring the pitch to the drum. Including finding the best drum for a given pitch.	Additional Reference: Recovering Timpani Mallets Including an instructional video on how to recover your Vic Firth American Custom® Timpani mallets.
08: More Tuning Recommendations Covering other tuning topics: singing intervals, tuning with a tuning fork, sympathetic resonance and tuning etiquette.

TAMBOURINE
01: Instrument Characteristics and Striking Techniques A discussion of the basic playing techniques for playing slow and fast rhythmic passages on the tambourine. Including various striking techniques to get a wide variety of sounds.	02: Rolls A guide for learning to play shake rolls and thumb rolls. As includes how to play crescendo rolls.

TRIANGLE
01: Instrument Selection and Playing Techniques Including suggestions for selecting a triangle, clip and beater as well as general playing techniques and muffling.

WOOD BLOCKS AND TEMPLE BLOCKS
01: Characteristics and Playing Techniques Covering instrument and mallet selection as well as general playing techniques.

About David Skidmore:

David Skidmore is active as both a performer and composer of music for percussion. David is a member of the Ensemble ACJW, Third Coast Percussion, the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, the Lucerne Festival Percussion Group, and Collide. He is a dedicated advocate for the music of our time, having commissioned, premiered, and performed dozens of new works by many of the great composers of the 20th and 21st century.

David has been featured as a soloist with the Royal Academy of Music Orchestra in London, the Pacific Soundings series in Sapporo, Japan, the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, and the Chicago Civic Orchestra LaSalle Bank Chamber Music Series. As a chamber musician, David has performed for the Music on the Edge series in Pittsburgh, the Cleveland Art Museum Concert Series, June in Buffalo, Klangspuren Schwaz, the Philharmonie Essen, the Ojai Music Festival, the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage, the Bang On a Can Marathon, the Princeton Composers’ Ensemble, and at three Percussive Arts Society International Conventions.

David’s compositions are performed regularly in concert halls and universities across the country. Two of David’s pieces were performed in November 2007 at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention. In May of 2007 his latest piece, “Unknown Kind”, was premiered at Carnegie Hall. He was awarded 1st prize in the 2005 Percussive Arts Society Composition Contest and 2nd prize in the 2004 contest. His piece “Whispers – for 9 Percussionists” was a finalist for an ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Award in 2005, and has been recorded by the Northwestern University Percussion Ensemble.

David received the Bachelor of Music degree from the Northwestern University School of Music and the Master of Music degree from the Yale School of Music. His teachers have included Robert Van Sice, Michael Burritt, James Ross, Paul Wertico, and Michael Hernandez.

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