Viewing: Mechanical Aptitude - View all posts

Why Modern Bodhrán Students Are Choosing Mark Campbell

Starting a new musical instrument can feel daunting, especially when navigating traditional rhythm techniques or trying to find a teacher who offers a safe, professional, and encouraging environment. For aspiring bodhrán players—particularly…

What's that Lenticular Spaceship Drum that You Are Playing?

Shaped like a lentil with lilting melodies and infectious grooves…The Handpan is the worlds newest musical Instrument!

The handpan, originally called the Hang, was invented in 2000 in Switzerland by Felix…

Who is Mark Campbell of Symmetrical Drumming Australia

Mark Campbell is an experienced drummer and percussionist from Bathurst NSW, now based in Canberra, Australia, and is the founder of Symmetrical Drumming Australia. 

https://symmetricalDrummingAustralia.Org

With over 45 years of experience, he…

5000 Years

The Frame Drum

Frame drums, found globally, have diverse names and variations. 

Some examples include:

• Colgrass Drum (Roto Tom) USA
• Bodhrán (Ireland), 
• Tamborim (Brazil)
• Tambourine (Egypt Mesopotamia)
• Bendir (North Africa), 
• Daf/Daff/Def (Orient), 
• Tamburello (Italy), 
• Pandeiro (Brazil, Spain, Portugal…

Myelination

Myelination is the process where myelin, a fatty substance, forms a protective coating around the axons of neurons in the central and peripheral nervous systems. This insulation significantly increases the speed and efficiency of nerve impulse transmission, crucial for…

Seeing and Hearing the Pulse

I've been using clicks (audio only) in my headphones for recording for the last 40 years.

It works but its isolating and its very difficult to ‘groove’ with the other tracks….this is because the visual…

Recording yourself is the only objective way of being able to reflect on your own playing, as well as prepare yourself properly for any upcoming studio sessions. It also lets you properly hear important aspects of your…

Your brain, emotion and timing...

Your timing is subjective…turning your varying subjective internal clock into an objectively acceptable predictable and dance-able drum groove takes years.

The insular cortex, particularly the anterior part, plays a role in processing time intervals, especially…

Life-long Drumming

Leo Pearlstein is the world's oldest living jazz drummer at the age of 104. You can watch him play "All of Me" on Instagram. 
 

Viola Smith
A professional drummer who was known as "America's fastest girl drummer". She…

The fine resolution of the Perception of Musicians

Hearing pitch variations down to 3 cents is possible…thats 1/30 of a  semitone…Microtonal.

Hearing timing differences down to a 10 milliseconds is called micro-Rhythm.

It takes years of systematic listening to hear…

Perception of time is very Subjective

As a drummer…focusing on tiny increments ot time and trying to define them with short percussive sounds, loud, soft, dense, sparse…As a Drummer…Ive become very aware of time passing at different rates depending on…

Drumming isnt about ‘Grip’ alone…drumming and percussion is a body driven art form…more than any other instrument drummers have to have a clear mental map of their entire anatomy and how it works.  Stick grip is just one tiny aspect!

The best feature of drum kit and percussion is that you can practice without your instrument at hand.

Here are some ways to practice drums without a drum set:

Practice pad: 

A quiet way to practice rudiments and sticking exercises…

Are online drum lessons worth it?

Online drum lessons with reputable teachers with a good setup…that is…a multi camera (cams on both feet and hands overhead)…clean sound and vocal…interactive approach with speech/chat, whiteboards docs, pics, vids,…and support for you and…

Breathing is an important part of drumming because it helps drummers stay relaxed, keep good time, and perform safely: 
Improves performance: Proper breathing helps you use oxygen to produce your best sound and avoid lactic acid buildup in your muscles. …

Zoom favours ‘Chats’ rather than lessons (in its default format).

Musicians have to change that default setting because Zoom aggressively removes anything that doesn't resemble speech.

Zoom has a smart noise suppression algorithm that has been setup with parameters at…

A quick update from me.

Ive updated my website once again...its an ongoing job to keep it 'Google Friendly'  and 'above the fold'

Please check it out:

https://symmetricaldrummingaustralia.org

If you have any suggestions, or would like to include my website…

I've just made everything free…so book a lesson…and bear with me as I figure out the finer points of Zoom, or Teams, or Meets…

Also gives you a chance to do the same from your end…thinking of lighting, phone or…

I am currently trying to work out how to get my website software to add a tip jar.

Once the technical issues are out of the way and its up (with links to electronic payments etc)…

Once that is all…

The Hi Hat was invented about a century ago. 

It allows the drummer/percussionist to bring two cymbals together with a ‘chick’ or a ‘splash’ sound using the foot …freeing up the hands for other parts of the groove.

It (HH)…

Drumming and Feeling Good

What does drumming do to the brain?

Drumming (Kit Drums, Percussion, and Didgeridoo) has a positive effect on anxiety, grief, fatigue, depression and behavioral issues. 

…children strengthen their ability to focus and work on impulse control…

Why Go Symmetrical with your drumming?

Do you love drumming but feel stuck in the same rhythm routines? Symmetrical Drumming might be just what you need to take your skills to the next level! This innovative approach encourages you to…