This course is designed for beginner drummers with no experience and also drummers with minimal experience who have perhaps never taken formal lessons or instruction of any kind. This course presents some of the essential skills that every pipe band drummer should start out with.
There are 108 videos to view, 80 audio files to practice with, PDF music and exercise sheets that you can print, download or view online as you work your way through the course. A complete list of the 108 video lessons is at the bottom of this page.
Video quality is changeable from 240p all the way up to 4K, perfect for all internet connections from slow to fast. Videos can be slowed down or sped up and screen sizes can be resized from tablet to large 4k monitor or TV. We don’t recommend viewing any of the videos on a phone but it is possible.
Student support is by email with the added option of purchasing one-on-one online lessons via Zoom for any students enrolled in one of the courses. ***Please note, individual lessons are not available at the moment but will be as soon as all four courses have been released (EVC, GR5, GR4, and GR3).
If you have any questions please get in touch using the contact page for more information. The course can be purchased by visiting the course website here.
Sample Videos:
Lesson 11, Part 1. Some of the lessons begin with an explanation of the music sheet about to be learned, before playing through the sheet in detail. This example is explaining the flam sheet.
Lesson 13, Part 2. This video is working through lines A and B of the section on Single Hand Development. There are also audio practice files in MP3 format that you can use to practice and repeat the exercises at home.
Lesson 15, Part 2. This video discusses Phrase 1 of the 2/4 Cadence and talks about the unique triplet or swing rhythms that are often used in pipe band drumming music.
Lesson 15, Part 7. This is a video working through the final stages of the 2/4 North American Massed Band Cadence. Practice audio recordings and performance videos are available for each of the four scores learned.
The Essentials Video Course (EVC) Outline:
A list of all video lessons. MP3 Audio files and PDF Notation are additional.
| Grip & Position: | |
| Lesson 1_P1 | Practice Pad Setup |
| Lesson 1_P2 | Right Hand Position |
| Lesson 1_P3 | Left Hand Position |
| Lesson 1_P4 | Right Hand Grip |
| Lesson 1 P5 | Left Hand grip |
| Metronomes and Introductions: | |
| Lesson 2_P1 | Metronomes |
| Lesson 2_P2 | Setting a Tempo |
| Lesson 2_P3 | Time Signatures |
| Lesson 2_P4 | Subdivisions |
| Lesson 2_P5 | Tap Tempo Feature |
| Lesson 2_P6 | Timer Function |
| Lesson 2_P7 | Introductions |
| Point Up and Down: | |
| Lesson 3_P1 | Intro to Notation |
| Lesson 3_P2 | Lifting the Stick |
| Lesson 3_P3 | Up Stroke Timing |
| Lesson 3_P4 | Point Up Down Exercise |
| Rudiments Sheet 1: | |
| Lesson 4_P1 | What Are Rudiments? |
| Lesson 4_P2 | Sheet Explanation |
| Lesson 4_P3 | Practice Methods |
| Lesson 4_P4 | Single Strokes |
| Lesson 4_P5 | Double Strokes |
| Lesson 4_P6 | Paradiddles |
| Lesson 4_P7 | Increasing and Decreasing Tempo Gradually |
| The Double Technique: | |
| Lesson 5_P1 | The Double Technique |
| Lesson 5_P2 | Sticking Patterns Sheet 1 |
| Lesson 5_P3 | Lines F, G and H |
| The Buzz: | |
| Lesson 6_P1 | Open and Closed Rudiments |
| Lesson 6_P2 | Intro to Buzzes |
| Lesson 6_P3 | The Sound of a Buzz |
| Lesson 6_P4 | Buzzes Sheet 1 |
| Lesson 6_P5 | Buzzes Sheet 2 |
| Highland Laddie & Black Bear: | |
| Lesson 7_P1 | Introduction to Highland Laddie |
| Lesson 7_P2 | The Structure of a 2/4 March |
| Lesson 7_P3 | Rhythms & Rudiments |
| Lesson 7_P4 | Form – ABAC |
| Lesson 7_P5 | The 2 Bar Phrases |
| Lesson 7_P6 | The Whole Score |
| Lesson 7_P7 | Introduction to The Black Bear |
| Lesson 7_P8 | The 2 Bar Phrases |
| Lesson 7_P9 | The Whole Score |
| The 25 Stroke Buzz Roll: | |
| Lesson 8_P1 | Buzz Roll Numbering System |
| Lesson 8_P2 | Roll Abbreviations |
| Lesson 8_P3 | Notation |
| Lesson 8_P4 | Line A |
| Lesson 8_P5 | Line A & B |
| Lesson 8_P6 | Line C |
| Lesson 8_P7 | Line D |
| Lesson 8_P8 | Intro Rolls with Command & Metronome |
| The 13 Stroke Buzz Roll: | |
| Lesson 9_P1 | Notation |
| Lesson 9_P2 | Line A |
| Lesson 9_P3 | Line A & B |
| Lesson 9_P4 | Line C |
| Lesson 9_P5 | Line D |
| The 7 Stroke Buzz Roll: | |
| Lesson 10_P1 | Notation |
| Lesson 10_P2 | Line A and B |
| Lesson 10_P3 | Line C & D |
| Lesson 10_P4 | Lines C & D with metronome |
| The Flam: | |
| Lesson 11_P1 | Notation |
| Lesson 11_P2 | Line A |
| Lesson 11_P3 | Line B |
| Lesson 11_P4 | Line C |
| Lesson 11_P5 | Line D |
| Lesson 11_P6 | Lines E to H |
| Rudiments Sheet 2: | |
| Lesson 12_P1 | Notation |
| Lesson 12_P2 | Line A |
| Lesson 12_P3 | Line B |
| Lesson 12_P4 | Line C |
| Lesson 12_P5 | Line D |
| Lesson 12_P6 | Lines E, F and G |
| Single Hand Development: | |
| Lesson 13_P1 | Notation |
| Lesson 13_P2 | Lines A & B |
| Lesson 13_P3 | Line C & D |
| Lesson 14 | The History of the NA Massed Band Scores |
| The 2/4 Massed Band Cadence: | |
| Lesson 15_P1 | Notation |
| Lesson 15_P2 | Phrase 1 |
| Lesson 15_P3 | Phrase 2 |
| Lesson 15_P4 | Phrase 3 |
| Lesson 15_P5 | 2/4 Cadence, Part 1 |
| Lesson 15_P6 | 2/4 Cadence, Part 2 |
| Lesson 15_P7 | 2/4 Cadence with metronome |
| The 4-4 Massed Band Cadence: | |
| Lesson 16_P1 | Notation |
| Lesson 16_P2 | Phrase 1 |
| Lesson 16_P3 | Phrase 2 |
| Lesson 16_P4 | Phrase 3 |
| Lesson 16_P5 | 4/4 Cadence, Part 1 |
| Lesson 16_P6 | 4/4 Cadence, Part 2 |
| Lesson 16_P7 | 4/4 Cadence with metronome |
| The 3-4 Massed Band Cadence: | |
| Lesson 17_P1 | Notation |
| Lesson 17_P2 | Phrase 1 |
| Lesson 17_P3 | Phrase 2 |
| Lesson 17_P4 | Phrase 3 |
| Lesson 17_P5 | Phrase 4 |
| Lesson 17_P6 | 3/4 Cadence, Part 1 |
| Lesson 17_P7 | 3/4 Cadence, Part 2 |
| Lesson 17_P8 | 3/4 Cadence with metronome |
| The 6-8 Massed Band Cadence: | |
| Lesson 18_P1A | The 6/8 March Rhythm |
| Lesson 18_P1B | Notation |
| Lesson 18_P2 | Phrase 1 |
| Lesson 18_P3 | Phrase 2 |
| Lesson 18_P4 | Phrase 3 |
| Lesson 18_P5 | Phrase 4 |
| Lesson 18_P6 | 6/8 Cadence, Part 1 |
| Lesson 18_P7 | 6/8 Cadence, Part 2 |
| Lesson 18_P8 | 6/8 Cadence with metronome |
| Performance Videos: | |
| Lesson 19_P1 | 2/4 Performance |
| Lesson 19_P2 | 4/4 Performance |
| Lesson 19_P3 | 3/4 Performance |
| Lesson 19 _P4 | 6/8 Performance |
The course can be purchased by visiting the course website here.