The Exchange

I've always been a little uneasy about the concept that there should be an official list of "40 Essential Rudiments". Is it just out of date? Or is it completely inaccurate to declare that ANY list of patterns/rudimental vocabulary is essential? That leads me to ask, "What are rudiments anyway?"

Somehow soccer coaches have figured out what works when it comes to getting kids excited about playing the sport. Maybe we could learn a thing or two from them.

In the 2nd part of my discussion of teaching beginner percussionists how to read keyboard music, I'll attempt to offer some solutions to the common problems that I discussed in Part 1.

Why is it so difficult for young students to learn to read keyboard percussion music? In the first part of my article, I'll discuss the potential roadblocks that keep our students from being successful on beginning mallets.