3 Part Groove

For over 100 years, this cross-genre rhythm has been one of the most universal beats, second only to the downbeat! 🎶 Jazz first introduced it on the hi-hat, Blues moved it to the snare, and soon, Rock ‘n Roll took it even further, influencing classic rock, disco, pop, EDM, and hip-hop. 🌑🌕🌑🌕 Today’s rhythm highlights the backbeat on beats 2 and 4. Many people instinctively clap on 1 and 3, but it’s the backbeat (2 and 4) that brings the laid back groove. Check out this clever move by Harry Connick Jr., who gets the crowd to clap on 2 and 4 without them changing anything! Feel how the energy shifts. Example Songs with a Backbeat: September - Earth, Wind & Fire: The kick drum starts on the front beat (1 and 3) at 8 seconds, then moves to the backbeat (2 and 4) on the snare at 12 seconds. Listen here Queen Bee - Taj Mahal: Notice the backbeat on the kick drum in this reggae tune. Listen here Try It Yourself: Pick a song you’re working on in 4/4 time. Record yourself playing and clap along on 1 & 3 (the front beat) for 4 measures. Then clap…

The fourth-grade students at Metz Elementary School in Austin, Texas performed a creative version of bucketdrumming.net’ s La Bamba for their 2019 Cinco De Mayo performance, throwing in a little tambourine and air guitar to spice things up. https://youtu.be/OkEVSV_Wcq8 Music teacher Kayla Juarez, who teaches at Metz Elementary and Menchaca Elementary in Austin, said she loved the practicality of bucket drums: students didn’t have to share and the buckets were easy to replace if damaged or broken. “I thought would be really cool and affordable,” she said. “My students are having a lot of fun with it.” The biggest challenge was getting 20 fourth-graders to hit a bucket at the same time, Ms. Juarez said. To prepare for the performance, she split the students into groups so she could give more personalized attention to students requiring extra support, she said. “The first time they tried to practice you can imagine how that went with different skill levels and abilities,” she said. “But the lightbulb finally clicked.” Ms. Juarez said she knew she wanted to be a music teacher ever since she joined her school band in sixth grade. She said that, as a student, music and band were a place…

Led by music teacher Derek Currier, the 5th grade class at Discovery Academy of Science in Dunedin, Florida played not one, not two, but three bucket drum pieces for their school Music Fest on May 7.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glqrqZcqiFA&feature=youtu.be The group had been practicing their bucket drumming skills since January and performed Can’t Stop the Feeling, Come Together and Rolling in the Deep for their classmates and families.  “ the excitement from the students and the parents at the end of the show,” Mr. Currier said. “And they had fun. That’s what it’s all about.” Mr. Currier has been teaching music since he was 19-years-old and started the music program at Discovery Academy three years ago. He said bucket drums were the perfect way to teach hands-on lessons about percussion and rhythm.  “I was starting a program so I needed something cheap and fun. And all I needed was buckets and sticks,” he said. “My goal in music classes is getting instruments in the kids’ hands. We aren’t going to just talk , we are going to play; we are going to do something.”  The bucket drums were not only inexpensive (Mr. Currier purchased them for $1 each at a local bait…