Dotted Eighth Notes
A dot after a note means that the note lasts for as long as it normally would plus half again. An 8th note usually has equivalent value of two 16th notes, so a dotted 8th note is worth three 16th notes.
For this rhythm here, we have a dotted 8th note on 1 and so the next note will fall on 1a, and that happens to be a 16th note. When you first play this rhythm, still count "1 e + a" to ensure you are leaving the correct space after beat 1.
This rhythm uses dotted 8th notes and 16th notes the other way around.
This combination of 16th notes and 8th notes means that nothing is played on the ands (8th note off-beats), but every other 16th note is played.
The following three examples have the hi-hats playing simple quarter notes with the snare drum and bass drum (or kick) dancing around. It may seem counterintuitive, but once you feel comfortable with the over-all rhythms, focus more on the hi-hat than the other drums; it needs to be right on to anchor the whole groove.
Rhythmic inaccuracies in the snare and kick are actually somewhat desirable in a pattern like this, but it will sound awkward if the hi-hats are not solid.
Be careful with the rhythm of this pattern. It contains bits of everything you have learned so far.
Know Your Drums…
Double Kick Pedal
Double bass drum pedals present a much more portable and cheaper alternative to twin bass drums by having two beaters operated by two pedals on the one drum. Double bass drum technique is used in an extreme form in metal music but is present in many other types of music. Drummers ranging from Mike Portnoy of Dream Theatre to Dennis Chambers of P-Funk and Santana have used double bass drum pedals.
