147 [#AskRuffini] – Increasing speed, soloing and effective practice

I get a ton of emails, messages, tweets, etc asking all sorts of questions ranging from “How can I practice better?” to “What’s your favorite food?” and everything in between.  Rather than replying to the messages individually I want these answers to benefit everyone in the Drummer’s Resource Community, so I decided to add them to the podcast.

“Never, never, never give up.” – Winston Churchill (Tweet this)

Have Questions?  There are a few ways to submit them:

1. Send a message on the Contact Page or email me: Questions[at]DrummersResource[dot]com
2. Send me a message on Facebook
3. Tweet me and use the hashtag #AskRuffini

Now, the questions…

“What are some of your recommendations for soloing over medium/medium slow swing tunes? I played a gig the other day and soloed over a couple of the tunes with those tempos and I could not get the solos grooving. Hoping you could guide me to your favorite tunes with those tempos so I can steal some ideas.” – Matt R

“I need good tips on how to get the most out of practice time. I do not have a very good system, mostly just messing around on the kit, what I lack the most in is utilizing rudiments into my playing. – Tim P.

“One obvious problem is hand/foot independence..and the other one is the hand technique. As soon as I try to accelerate, the rhythm goes away.” Krausz T 

My biggest struggle with drumming is finding the time to practice. Working full-time PLUS, it seems that I always am pushing my practice time off my schedule. What do other adult student ‘beginner’ drummers do to maintain their practice time? Would love to hear your thoughts on this!” – Katie G. 

Resources and Links Mentioned:

• Benny Greb conversation about practice
• Jojo Mayer’s principles for practice (he told me these YEARS ago):

1. Practice what you CANT do
2. Be aware WHAT you’re practicing for. And then again, be aware WHY you believe you need to accomplish that. Start with the end in mind.
3. Don’t practice for hours….practice for RESULTS. Practice as short as necessary not as long as possible.
4. Observe yourself carefully. Practice with the same attitude you’d like to see yourself perform.
5. If you get stuck for too long with one thing…leave it, relax…try a different viewpoint.
6. Practice like raising children or growing plants: you cant force it to grow…all you can do is CARE. Challenge yourself but be patient…have trust…have fun.
7. Practicing is not a means to an end. If you’re not sure why you’re practicing , its sometimes better to stop and do something else. Perhaps stop practicing for a while, and then pick it up again once you’re certain WHY you want or need 8. to practice.
8. Don’t focus on practicing the drums…focus on playing music!
9. Accept and surrender.

Want more from Jojo? Listen to the podcast I did with him HERE. 

Have Questions?  There are a few ways to submit them:

1. Send a message on the Contact Page or email me: Questions[at]DrummersResource[dot]com
2. Tweet me and use the hashtag #AskRuffini
3. Ask me on Instagram – film a video and tag me in it (use the hashtag #AskRuffini

PS – Are we friends on Snapchat?  You can find me at DrummersRsource