Learn How To Play the Paradiddle Rudiment
The paradiddle pattern is one of the most popular drum rudiments out there; and there are many reasons for this. The paradiddle is a mixture of single strokes and double strokes, giving you practicing on alternating between the two in one pattern. This is great practice for developing control on your drum sticks between your singles and doubles. Also, the paradiddle is an eight note exercise, meaning it takes a bit of coordination and muscle memory to be able to play it at faster tempos. It is unlike the double stroke roll which repeats fairly quickly. Another great benefit to the paradiddle is being able to incorporate it all over the kit to create unique sounding grooves and beats. These reasons alone make the paradiddle one of the most powerful and popular rudiments to learn and play. So let’s learn how to play the sticking pattern for the paradiddle rudiment.
The pattern is fairly basic, and repeats after eight notes. Like I said above, the pattern utilizes both singles and doubles so make sure you are fairly comfortable with these first. The best way to explain the sticking pattern for this rudiment is by simply writing it out. Follow along with your wrists slowly:
Right Left Right Right Left Right Left Left
The paradiddle rudiment is played the same way it is said, meaning if you say the word aloud as you play it, you say the pattern aloud. In the rudimentary language, a diddle is a double stroke, so if you look at this pattern, you play para – single single diddle – double. Now make sure each note value is the same, you do not want to play eight notes for the singles and throw in a fast 16th note drag for the double. The result of this rudiment should be a consistent roll.
Once you start developing this pattern at faster tempos, you will notice how much your overall drumming will improve. The paradiddle is an essential rudiment to practice, as it helps control your sticks, and further your endurance. Since you now know the basic structure to this pattern, you will be able to figure out the paradiddle-diddle. This is another rudiment that acts the same as the single paradiddle. If you look back at the rudimentary language, you should be able to talk this one out: para – single single diddle – double diddle – double. So this looks like this:
Right Left Right Right Left Left Right Left Right Right Left Left
Both of these patterns are great ways to increase your speed, endurance and control with your wrists and drumsticks. The best thing to do is to take a practice pad, a pair of sticks, and a metronome and practice these exercises for about 15-20 min a day. Within a week you will see a drastic improvement with your overall drumming! Good luck with this new and powerful rudiment!