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Take up drums at age 56?

I know this technically has nothing to do with high end audio but I know there are some drummers here that might be able to help me along here....or tell me to skip it altogether. And it does have to do with music.

I'm almost embarrassed to even post this. I'm 56. I have never played a musical instrument other than dabbling with a harmonica. I do not read music. I am certain that I'll never perform for anyone or play in a band.

But I've always wanted to play drums.

And now I have enough money to get a simple cheap used drum kit and I have a basement that is isolated enough to not bother the neighbors. (I actually have an acquaintance who refurbishes used drums who can probably hook me up).

So I have a couple of questions:

1) Can you teach yourself to play drums? Alone or with YouTube etc? Are actual lessons required? Can I skip the practice pad and start with a kit?

2) Is there any point? In other words, even if I were to learn to play are the drums the kind of instrument that you sit down and play for your own pleasure the way you would a guitar?

My realistic expectation is that I'd get a simple kit. Try to do something with it. Find that it is much harder to do than it looks, especially for a guy with two left feet. It sits in the basement for a while and then I sell it for a big loss but hopefully at least happy that I tried it.

Any other thoughts on the matter?

(If totally inappropriate for this site I have no problem removing the post.....especially if someone points me to a better site for the topic.)


n80
lowrider57's avatar
lowrider57
5,403 posts
 
@richopp   Loved your story. And so true about proper form and strengthening the wrist while practicing rudiments. 
I was merely extrapolating the fingering concept forgetting that we're dealing with a beginning drummer. Fingering may be a non issue for him.

My advice to the OP is to warm up with the rudiments,  then practice and play the entire kit and have fun. What I did as a beginner was to have a friend teach me a basic rock beat that enabled me to jam to tunes right from the jump.

And Rich,
I forgot about the old expression "it's all in the wrist."




bdp24's avatar
bdp24
9,547 posts
 

@n80, allow me to offer one piece of advice: remember that the value of technical ability is nothing more than the ability to play with your limbs what you hear in your mind. Poorly-conceived drum parts perfectly-executed nonetheless constitutes poor drumming. There are a number of drummers known for having advanced technique whose parts in musical terms are not what I look for in a drummer. I won't mention any names, as any one of them may be a favorite of a participant in this thread ;-) .

Conversely, there is a musician whose drumming in musical terms is amongst my favorites: Richard Manuel, pianist/singer of The Band. He plays drums on about half the songs on The Band's second s/t album, and his parts are absolutely amazing. Not just musically appropriate, but very imaginative, original, and unique. And drums were not (R.I.P.) even his first instrument!

There is one drummer rarely mentioned whose playing is really, really special (even Buddy Rich loved him): John Barbata of The Turtles (and later Jefferson Airplane/Starship). Listen to his drumming on "Happy Together", "She'd Rather Be With Me", and "Elenore". For the technically-inclined, the drum parts are fairly difficult to execute. For the musically-inclined, they are not only absolutely brilliant, but also very exciting in a Keith Moon-kind of way.

Here's another tip, this one from guitar virtuoso Danny Gatton:

Danny, to his new drummer after the first set of the drummer's first live gig with Danny: "Hey, you know all that fancy sh*t you play?"

The drummer to Danny: "Yeah."

Danny: "Don't."

n80 OP
2,110 posts
 
Thanks for the additional advice guys.

Took my wife by the music store today to see if the kit was still there. It was. She looked at it and said "$450? I thought you said it was $800. You better get it so it doesn’t get sold."

It is sitting in my living room right now. I feel a bit silly.

I wish I could do an acoustic kit but the volume would just be so prohibitive.

A couple of observations:

1) The sound quality through the headphones is uncanny. Each drum and cymbal actually sound located where they are.

2) The high hat is weird in terms of open vs closed strikes. Something isn’t quite right. It is not a malfunction; it is mentioned in a number of reviews. I’ll need to read the manual.

3) I’ve been practicing some basic rudiments. My left hand is a real problem. Not near the finesse and control of my right. That is going to take work.

4) I know a lot of this has to do with grip and fingering but the snare does not seem to have the rebound of a real snare. Doing single stroke rudiments the sticks do not rebound as briskly as I’d want. Could be all from lack of technique. We’ll see. The drum heads can be adjusted with a key. Not sure how tightly it is safe to adjust them though. Again, I need to find the manual and read it.

5) I need to do some reading about body position, arm position, throne position and snare position. I can already tell just doing rudiments that it is important but don’t think I have it quite right.


bdp24's avatar
bdp24
9,547 posts
 
@n80, when you're ready to get yourself an acoustic set, give me a call. I restore and sell vintage (50's & 60's) American drums. Right now I have 20 or so kits, some of which I'm willing to let go; Ludwig, WFL, Camco, Radio King, maybe Gretsch.
n80 OP
2,110 posts
 
Thanks @bdp24 .

I will keep that in mind. Noticed that a lot of the local blues bands in Mississippi used Gretsch. Maybe a coincidence, I don't know.

However, this Alesis kit has mylar drum heads and steel cymbals and even though it is way quieter than an acoustic set, it can still be heard throughout the house, even now that I'm in the basement. They make 'mesh' heads that a quieter but I'm not spending any more money on this right now. So it would be a while before I could realistically bring an acoustic kit home. I like the convenience of this electric set....but would really like to go acoustic eventually. 

We'll have to see where this goes.

Working on rudiments via YouTube. Struggling with some of the paradiddles and flams. I'll get them for a second or two then think about it and screw up. 


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