left leg tapping

[penko]

hi i am a new drummer to this forum XD

just learn drum for about 2 months XD got a question here, i often seen other drummers tapping their left leg on the hi hat in a constant beat when they play (though the hit hat is not palyed at all). May i know is there any purpose of this?

 

[Gr3y]

ur topic shocked me! 8O

i tot some1 juz created a new guitar skill! toe tapping! tmd.. hahaha

 

[RazrAsh]

its to keep time basically... usually seen for jazz drumers...

 

[joshie]

doesnt it contribute to the beat as well?

 

[Funkifized]

Unless you haven't realized, by stepping on the hihat pedal u can create a pretty loud and distinct 'chick' sound. And that can be a wonderful tool to color the music.

 

[penko]

oh ic. How does it exactly helps to keep time?

i try it myself but just found that my left and right leg cant work independently well XD

 

[blurred]

left leg hi hat work is pretty impt. u see what some people say is that ur legs are closer to the ground, therefore u have better time with ur feet. mostly when keeping time people either play the 2 and 4 or all the quater notes. i recommend learning to play it and to not play cause sometimes it doesn't sound so good.
take it slow first, use a metronome and try and play diff rhythms start easy nothing complex. pay attention to the sound of the hi hat closing it shld sound like a handclap. stay relaxed most importantly. also try to open the hats on the N's of the bar.
, it'll make it sound funky. ooh yeahhhhhhh

 

[daltonsim]

do you shake your leg? like when you're reading a book, or reading newspaper, or when you cross leg? if you do and the 'shake' is in your left leg then you're lucky. cos when you play your left leg will auto turn on. too bad for me mine's in my right leg, and it's hard to keep time (even though when my bass is not playing my right leg will tap) because my right leg has quite a lot of work to do. but yeah left-leg-tapping CAN be trained; when you practise rudiments (i assume you do, if not, just whenever you practise) bear in mind to shake your left leg instead of your right, and if you don't even usually shake your leg, force yourself to. it really helps. if you can't coordinate both left and right legs, firstly practise, and secondly try different common beats with left-leg-tapping. you'll find, in the same way when you practise a bunch of different beats and that makes you be able to play any other beat, when you practise left-leg-tapping (honestly, is there a proper term for this??) for a few beats after awhile it becomes natural. see Chad Smith. NO MATTER what he's playing his left leg is forever on.

cheers.

 

[Funkifized]

I shake both legs, i'm the sort who can't stay still

i don't recommend the left leg to be 'always on'. it can get pretty jarring after a while.

 

[joshie]

yea hahaha.. it becomes annoying like one of the videos of Antonio Sanchez.

 

[blurred]

well i dunno if there's really a name for left leg hi hat openings, anyhow dun make it automatic cause u want to know how not to do it. be concious of it and try to get left leg independence. which is u can do watever on top of ur hi hat leg. having a left leg ostinato is really gd when ur changing styles from lets say a blues rhumba(latin) to a full out shuffle, the tempo must be constant or the band will loose its energy. the only time keeper u have is the hi hat(of course u must have tht time in ur head already first, the HH just helps). the hats will play through the change and u can sort of feel if u've screwed the tempo up. ur bassist giving u stinky looks is another way hahhaha.

 

[TequilaSunrise]

ur bassist giving u stinky looks is another way hahhaha.

That usually happens, or it's the "WTF?!" look lol.

 

[slapadelic]

my mommy said i should not shake my legs.. if not, i will lose money and fortune...

haha... :smt030

 

[daltonsim]

haha. but my leg tapping thing comes from shaking. ah well. chad smith's is forever on. check out slane or his solo or sth.

 

[penko]

do you shake your leg? like when you're reading a book, or reading newspaper, or when you cross leg? if you do and the 'shake' is in your left leg then you're lucky. cos when you play your left leg will auto turn on. too bad for me mine's in my right leg, and it's hard to keep time (even though when my bass is not playing my right leg will tap) because my right leg has quite a lot of work to do. but yeah left-leg-tapping CAN be trained; when you practise rudiments (i assume you do, if not, just whenever you practise) bear in mind to shake your left leg instead of your right, and if you don't even usually shake your leg, force yourself to. it really helps. if you can't coordinate both left and right legs, firstly practise, and secondly try different common beats with left-leg-tapping. you'll find, in the same way when you practise a bunch of different beats and that makes you be able to play any other beat, when you practise left-leg-tapping (honestly, is there a proper term for this??) for a few beats after awhile it becomes natural. see Chad Smith. NO MATTER what he's playing his left leg is forever on.

cheers.

o.o yes i do shake my lg and its my left when lsitening to songs and stuff to the beat. but then when the right leg starts kicking into the bass, the left leg stops -.-

 

[CrispyEgg]

omg i thought it was a guitar technique too. awww!

anyway, what i've noticed is that this technique is commonly used by jazz drummers (to keep time, add to the percussion), funky bongo stuff (u know when u play like "jungle" songs with all the toms, both your hands are occupied rolling and beating away, u tap your left foot 1 2 3 4 to keep a steady tempo, whether it be for your band or yourself) and complicated drum beats, like in progressive bands where the hands are flying everywhere so the left leg pretty much solely plays the hi-hat or double pedal.

 

[penko]

ohh. may i ask if the left leg is not use to play the hit hat, just the heels tapping, how does this tapping actually keeps time?

 

[joshie]

it happens consistently? thus the timing.

 

[redjackal]

i guess u should let nature take the course.
maybe now u still find it hard with ur bass leg?

until u are playing naturally, everything comes to ur leg naturally then it would be easy for constant tapping and bass work together with ur hands as well

 

[penko]

i guess i need practice XD being able to play left and right foot independtly will sure give me an extra arm without playing the hithat XD