Have you drummers ever felt this? Question about hands.

[jesperz]

Have you softies drummers felt that your left/right(for left handers) hand is weaker than your right/left hand even though u practice all sorts of funny rudiments and crazy workouts and even get metal drumsticks to train up your weaker limb, yet you still feel that it is still weaker?

Well, i did alot of things that i mentioned. Still, i felt this and it is consistantly haunting me. I mean look at buddy rich or steve smith or whoever is professional that we know of. Do they actually feel both hands are trained to a point that both hands actually feel the same? in terms of speed, power, less flexible (smooth action) and control?

My lefty somehow just couldn't catch up with my righty and somehow the left's technique is alittle bit different. Probably because 4 years ago i torn my left wrist's ligament when i was just starting out my drum journey and now it is affecting my performance? Now it is like i can do 125 bpm semiquaver notes on my right effortlessly but only 108 bpm semiquaver notes on my left at a comfortable pace. eg... |L L L L L L L L L L L L L L L L| with accent

So is this a norm or there is a better way to break through? For those who made it, please advice... For those who suffers the same fate as me, may i know what are you practicing now?

 

[metzalx]

I'm encountering the same problem even up to now. My left hand is weaker than my right hand, for example, I can do the Moeller thing with my right hand but not with my left hand, even at a slow pace.

Normally what I'm trying to do now is to practice doing single strokes with my left hand everyday, trying to go as fast as I can without going off. I'm not sure if that's the right way to do it, but I do hope so. :mrgreen:

 

[weckl-x]

Don't forget that drumming ain't the only thing you're doing with your hands and legs. In other areas of your life, in almost everything you do, you're always favouring one limb over another - Eating, carrying stuff, resting your weight on a foot while standing.

 

[Bor]

Hi jesperz,

semiquavers (16th notes) at 108 - 125bpm with one hand is pretty darn fast!

I still face the same problem you're talking about, one hand / limb being weaker than the other. Im a right hander, and despite years of deliberate practise to strenghten the left hand, my right is still stronger. I guess its down to the way I play (right handed setup) which relies largely on the right hand to lead the groove.

I've also noticed something queer in the course of my practise, and that is that although my right hand is stronger and has infinitely more stamina than the left, my left hand is better at doing stuff involving a lot of finger control, such as moeller, single strokes with fingers only, open close one-handed roll and stuff like that. Somehow, the left, despite being weaker, is just that bit more flexible and nimble than the right that enables it to have better close control.

In my opinion, i feel its going to be hard or maybe impossible to get the weaker limb up to the level of the stronger one, unless you totally change your playing setup (ie from right to left handed) or unless you're a technique freak like Mike Mangini. However, what i find helps me is that i try to incoporate my left hand more in daily activities such as brushing my teeth with the left hand or carrying stuff with it. In drumming terms, I consciously make an effort to crash cymbals, play fills or lead with the left hand more often.

 

[plainsman]

yeah, i second that. jesperz, 125bpm on one hand is almost at the speed limit already.

if you can play eighth notes at 250bpm (or 125bpm) consistently you are technically at the same blast beat speed as derek roddy!!!




different folks will have different take on this.

for some playing styles, the idea is to have as equal a matched grip as possible.

for others, the left hand is a little bit more american while the right hand is french-based (thumbs up) but with wrist snap.

for trad grip, both hands have different possibilities in terms of touches.

for me, not having equal hands bothered me for a long time.

it was only until recently i asked tama for advice that he helped me realise that what i was trying to do, is pursue a perfectionist goal of having 2 equal limbs. yes, it must be consistent, but to be completely equal is like chasing a mirage in a desert.

i asked simon phillips the same question and he said maybe try to brush teeth and open doors with left hand.

i've read about the same thing guys like vinnie colauita and virgil donati were going through.

i don't know if i'm out of it completely yet. i realise, i will keep working towards getting both hands to be as stable and consistent possible. and to clean up any fundamental problems or resistance to having a good fulcrum, finger control and wrist snap. but not to be too overly concerned with it till the point where its nagging me all the time.

just sharing my personal experience as additional food for thought cheers!

 

[alvyn]

if your master hand's your right hand, its definitely true that your left hand will be weaker than your right.

what i did was to reverse sticking order for all the rudiments that i practice, ie. singles, doubles, 5 stroke-roll, paradiddles, etc etc... so that means my left hand'll be leading, and i'll accent all the first strokes, meaning with my left hand. i did it at various tempos starting out real slow and going fast.

then another thing i did, which might be quite extreme for some, was to play open handed and lead with left. i shifted my ride over to the left side, and forced myself to play open handed.

imo, you shouldn't do crazy exercises or use metal sticks to train up your weaker hand... everything boils down to technique, so it'd be better to stick to normal sticks, but engineer your exercises for right hand to suit your left hand.

on a lighter note, check out gordon campbell and carter beauford. both of them are excellent open handed players.

when i'm playing on the drumset, i realise that my right hand's usually american, whereas my left hand tends to drift towards a semi-american/german grip. when i rimshot, its more or less always german grip. but when i'm filling in on the toms, or practicing on my practice pad, both hands are usually american grip.

 

[nazdrummer]

hey i do have the same problem man...
and since i'm left handed my left arm seems to be more stiff than the right....
but i play the normal way as alot of drummers do.

and i use the same technique as metzalx.....practice doing single strokes on my left hand everyday....but after a while my arm gets a little numb....i guess too tired after all those strokes....

 

[metzalx]

hey i do have the same problem man...
and since i'm left handed my left arm seems to be more stiff than the right....
but i play the normal way as alot of drummers do.

and i use the same technique as metzalx.....practice doing single strokes on my left hand everyday....but after a while my arm gets a little numb....i guess too tired after all those strokes....

I actually have this problem of the left hand getting more tired easily than the right hand...Somehow I think I tend to use more energy with the left hand. Reversing sticking order like alvyn is another thing to note, I always find that it's harder to do stuff like rolls if you're starting with the left hand. I guess its because my brain is too much accustomed to using right hand first haha.

 

[caijunlong]

No matter how you practice, your master hand will be better. You practice rudiments with both your hands. Thus, it's only possible that both gets better at the same time and your master hand, which is already better, will be become even better. haha. I hope that make sense. So long as you try to practice rudiments driving with your weaker hand first, you should be alright.

E.g.
RLRR LRLL
LRLL RLRR

RLRL RLRL
LRLR LRLR

RRLL RRLL
LLRR LLRR

I practice this way because I'm left hander on a right handed kit. So I have to practice the right handed way at times.

 

[alvyn]

I actually have this problem of the left hand getting more tired easily than the right hand...Somehow I think I tend to use more energy with the left hand. Reversing sticking order like alvyn is another thing to note, I always find that it's harder to do stuff like rolls if you're starting with the left hand. I guess its because my brain is too much accustomed to using right hand first haha.

yes definitely.. your non-master hand will always be weaker, and you will be accustomed to starting off your rolls, or anything with your right hand.. so you gotta work to overcome it.

 

[sidmontu]

i've got hardly any control over my left hand, at least i think so. more power for right, more control, more comfort. i'm quite frustated with my left hand in fact. my ghost notes with left hand are really weak, i don't get the proper effect when let's say playing a paradiddle groove with accents on the singles n ghosts on the doubles. i also notice one thing that if i train my left hand alone, i can pretty up match my right hand's speed up to like maybe 90% when doing single strokes... but when both hands do single strokes, my left hand goes way slower than it can actually go and breaks beyond that point. i also notice that the stick in my left hand tends to hit the skin sideways rather than vertically when trying to play fast. what a useless left hand -.-

 

[plainsman]

sid, i have the same useless left hand.

it took a long time, of patience, discipline, understanding, acceptance and perseverence to get it up to decent level.

don't give up.

take some time off, come back... sit down, clear your mind....listen to what you play, feel your body & especially observe the left hand in terms of motion, where wrist is snapping, fulcrum, fingers.

practice slowly at first... take your time... speed up eventually, be patient, eventually it will be fine, just as long as you stick to it and don't give up .... think of waves crashing the shore for centuries and millenium

 

[alvyn]

sid, i have the same useless left hand.

it took a long time, of patience, discipline, understanding, acceptance and perseverence to get it up to decent level.

don't give up.

take some time off, come back... sit down, clear your mind....listen to what you play, feel your body & especially observe the left hand in terms of motion, where wrist is snapping, fulcrum, fingers.

practice slowly at first... take your time... speed up eventually, be patient, eventually it will be fine, just as long as you stick to it and don't give up .... think of waves crashing the shore for centuries and millenium

i would <3 u if i could because you spoke my mind bro.

but just to add on, practicing for very long hours doesn't always mean effective practice. personally i practice in short bursts, kinda like i'll decide on what i want to practice, and really just focus practicing these stuff. then i'll stop, and do it again later.

 

[Bor]

Just to add on to what Plainsman said about feeling how the body works and about paying attention to the motion of the hands, I feel its absolutely crucial to pay attention to your technique. I was initially self-taught and picked up a lot of bad techniques and it really impeded my progress for several years until I started going for proper lessons and doing research on the net about these stuff. It was really hell trying to unlearn all the bad habits and to cultivate good ones. My advice is to always relax and use as much of rebound as possible from the sticks. When I started doing that, every else just flowed from there. Dont ever compromise proper technique for wanting to acheive results faster. Patience is the key as Plainsman pointed out.

Anyway, an exercise that i found useful to train up the left hand is the "doubling up" exercise. Basically you start by playing quarter notes (1,2,3,4) for one bar. Basically both hands are playing the quarter notes together, much like flams except without the grace note.

Next you double your left hand speed to play eighth notes while the right is still playing quarter notes. In other words left hand is playing at twice the speed of the right. Play this for one bar, then repeat the cycle all over again. Try to use your right hand as a guide to ensure that the left hand is flowing in sync with the time and not slowing down (as is the tendency especially when playing the eighth notes). I've noticed after doing this with a metronome for 5 to 10 mins a day (or while watching tv) has helped my control speed and stamina for left hand increase tremendously. Just make sure you're staying relaxed throughout and using as much rebound as possible.

Hope this helps

 

[sidmontu]

cool thanks guys. at the moment i'm just continuing the rudiment practice.. not really concentrating on left hand more but i think now i will... hopefully it'll work better in a month or two 'coz i've got a performance coming up ^_^

 

[jesperz]

Hey guys, thanks for the info!

I will try to practice hard until i achieved the perfect stroke on my left.

 

[MassageParlour]

1. Yes. you got to practice. Got to make sure our weaker hand is as strong or below par to the stronger hand. Can try to play open handed, hit your cymbal with your left hand.

Play Stairway to heaven 1st, then Kashmir and then Immigrant song, then Rock and Roll, with an opposite setup. I tried that and it's fun too.

2. Ditto to feet too. Cause once 3 months ago I sprained my right ankle playing badminton. And I played my bass drums using my left feet. And it gets better and better.


Mike mangini is an example of an ambidextrous drummer. His drum set up is a somewhat mirror image. He can do drum roll normally, (from left to right and vice versa). I like him

 

[shaneypants]

I'm a lefty playing on a right-handed kit. I play open-handed but for floor tom-snare grooves, I don't have a choice but to play with my right-hand. So I practice grooves with my right-hand leading. But my left hand is still WAYYY stronger than my right.

A 16 beat with one hand at 125bpm is very fast. I can't even keep a 16 beat with my left hand at 110bpm. Embarrassing.

 

[jenocide]

i play openhanded, so i am not so sure, but yea, its true that your master hand is indeed stronger than your other hand. (i am a right hander btws, i learnt some wrong technique in my early days as a noob drummer so i am stuck with openhanded style, but apparently, its more of an advantage than a disadvantage. i wonder what to believe sometimes)

i figured this after i read earlier posts. since my left hand is INDEED weaker, it is used to hit high hats. constant practice CAN HELP alleviate the weakness but IT WILL NOT COMPLETELY MAKE YOUR HAND STRONGER, JUST HELPS IN COORDINATION. i did that, and my left hand does not feel that bad (but i figured if i went to play cross hand, i might get the same problem.who knows? lol)

 

[blurred]

hey man, find a gd teacher. as much knowledge as u can get here by all these gd players. u need someone to show u wat to do. u need to see my man, just reading it will only be 70 percent. and as they say the devil is in the details.