San Diego Modern Drum Lessons: How Do I Improve My Double Bass?

This is a difficult question to answer because there are so many different variables involved that affect our footwork. In my years of teaching and experience, I have found 5 key fundamental ideas that will help you improve your footwork.

1. Seat Height

Most drum teachers I know will recommend that you adjust your set height such that your thighs are parallel with the ground. As I describe this next part about seat height, I encourage you to try it for yourself! My advice is to set your seat slightly above the normal recommendation such that your thighs are slanted towards the ground. If you try this you'll see that when your legs are parallel you have to work to get your thigh to move up and then down onto the pedal. Now adjust your seat up and you instantly feel less pressure on your thighs, almost as if they are dangling slightly. This allows for more comfort when playing double bass as well as increasing speed and endurance.

2. Heel Up or Heel Down?

In general, I have seen heel up work better for most of my students. I am absolutely not saying that heel down is not worth anyone's time (because it totally is), but rather I feel the matter is situational. Fortunately or unfortunately however you prefer to look at it, most of the time we are drumming our bass drum dynamics stay fairly constant. That being said if you are looking for a loud bass drum, which we all know how much everyone loves bass, then I have found that heel up delivers the most power. Heel down is great alternative for playing a quiet bass drum, especially in genres like jazz. The reason heel up is so much stronger than heel down has to do with muscle groups. When you use heel down (please try it for yourself!), you are accessing muscles that make your shins burn. That muscle group is great for control and soft dynamics, but it is no mach for the power house your thighs are. The weight of your thighs alone adds a ton of power. Once you move your seat up so that your legs are slightly pointing downwards, you have the potential to deliver a full kick of your leg per stroke. Now that's power!

3. Where do I put my foot?

For general purposes (RLRLRL), it is best for the foot to not be moving around. You want to find the "sweet spot" on the pedal which is usually about 3/4ths up the pedal. The "sweet spot" is where you are not so low that you don't have control, and not so high that you are choking each hit (or getting your shins hit by the beaters, ouch!). It is also important to note that once you have found the desired "sweet spot", you want to make sure that as your speed increases you make sure to train your foot to hug the pedal. The more space that you create between the pedal and your foot, the more limitations and complications you are going to run into. There are cases in which you may want to move your around in a controlled manner, one case is the "slide technique".

-The Slide

This technique involves positioning the foot around 1/4 -1/2 the way up the pedal and sliding it to about 3/4ths to obtain to hits per one thigh stroke. Here is how it works: You strike the first hit at the 1/4 - 1/2 mark and while sliding your foot up the 3/4ths mark, you have to let up pressure on the pedal to let the beater come back. By the time your foot moves up to the 3/4ths mark the beater should be far back enough to get a second powerful strike. This technique is very beneficial for those without a double bass pedal and for situations where you need two quick hits in a row. (I often try to compare this to the double stroke mentally.)

4. Spring Tension?

There is always a lot of talk on this subject for the speed demons. No matter your opinion, until you have tried all the settings on your pedal you will never know what may work best for you. Now, I'm not saying you have to up your spring tension 2,000 times to test every last setting, but I would suggest at least 3 different settings. It's as simple as low, medium, and high. Once you find which of those you prefer, you can zoom in a little further and narrow it down to what you really want. You should be observing how the speed of the beater swinging back at you affects your playing. Some guys swear by high tension, others medium, not so many low. You may also want to look at your beater height, if you lower it, you will choke the hit more. If you extend it, you will add lots of leverage and get a more powerful stroke, but it may take longer to get there. Only by experimenting will you truly find the best settings for you!

5. Thigh or ankle?

This question is pretty similar to asking if you use your wrist or your arms when drumming. The answer of course is: both! I like to think of the thighs being the main engine and the ankles are like hyperdrive. Your thighs are a huge muscle group and perfectly ideal for holding out heavy double bass for long periods of time. Your ankles are that extra push once you start to break 180 16th notes or higher. Just like a spaceship doesn't turn off the main engine to go into hyperdrive, your thighs don't "turn off" when you "turn on" your ankles. The ankles are extension of the leg and when used properly in combination, it will provide the power and speed you need. I would suggest that beginners to intermediate focus heavily on thigh work over ankle work.