Mark Gibson Paradiddles are some of the most important rudimentary techniques for drummers. The next series of online drum lessons will be based on paradiddles and will take you from the very basics through to using them in beats, as fills and as four-way independance exercises. Let’s start at the very beginning though, what is a paradiddle? Well, actually, there are four of them but they all consist of combinations of single stroke and double stroke rolls.
The most commonly known version is the Single Paradiddle.
Single Paradiddle
As you can see it is just two single strokes (RL) followed by a double stroke(RR) etc. Start slowly and work with a metronome if you have one. Play along to a CD or the radio if you don’t. Work on making every stroke sound the same no matter which hand or whether it is a single or double stroke. It should all sound very even.Once you have the single paradiddle sounding smooth, try each of the following variations. Work on them one at a time until they sound smooth and even.
The first variation is the Outward Paradiddle.
Outward Paradiddle
The next is the Reverse Paradiddle.
Reverse Paradiddle
The last one is the Inward Paradiddle.
Inward Paradiddle
Once you have practiced each of them to a reasonable tempo (80-100 beats per minute played as 16th notes) then practice playing them one after the other as a single piece. It takes a bit of concentration but is worth the effort. These rudiments will help your independance and help to strengthen your weak hand, whichever hand that is.
In the next article in the series we will look at adding Accents to our paradiddles.

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