Here’s groove of the week #13, things are gonna get pretty tricky this week!

This is one of those grooves that just kept evolving and growing, I kept finding more fun things to add to it. Let’s get to work on our 4-way co-ordination.

Get The Groove

First, let’s look at the basic groove. Here’s what I built upon to create this groove:

Hopefully that looks pretty easy to play, but, if it causes you problems, check out Groove Of The Week #11 because it’s almost the exact same beat and I break down how to play it in that post.

Now we’ll look at the 3 elements that we’ll add to this to create the final groove. We’ll look at them separately first before we start combining them.

The first element is the ghosted 16th note triplets. When I play these, I don’t count them, I just feel them between the 8th note triplet pulse and I count the 8th note triplet. Here’s the basic groove with the ghost notes added:

Play this beat until you can do it without thinking. Once you’ve got it down, then you can try the next two elements.

The next element is the quarter note ride bell pattern. Here it is with the basic groove.

Once that is comfortable, try adding the ghosts back in:

You may want to stop here, this sounds like a pretty good groove already, but, if you want the 4-way co-ordination workout then proceed.

The final element is the displaced quarter note triplet hi-hat. Here it is with the basic groove:

Once you have that try it with the other two elements. I suggest doing it separately at first. Here’s the first combination:

And the next combination:

Finally, add it all together to get the complete groove.

Take things slow with this groove. It’s an advanced groove with 4-way co-ordination. Take it step by step, practice it slowly, and eventually you’ll be able to amaze your friends and family with it.

Take It Further

As I was developing this groove, I had a few other ideas before I arrived at the final one. Here’s a few you can try.

First up, start the hi-hat quarter note triplets on beat 1:

Secondly, play quarter note triplets on the ride cymbal bell – alternating with the displaced quarter note triplets on the hi-hat.

Finally, switch the hi-hat foot and ride bell from the previous example:

I hope you’ve enjoyed the challenge of this groove. Working on your 4-way co-ordination will benefit your drumming no end will allow you to play more complex ideas.

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