DRUMSSTUDIO

How do you keep a click track from making your playing feel stiff?

itsruss1Soundcheck

Playing to a click is useful, but I sometimes find it makes my drumming feel cautious. The timing might be more accurate, yet the part loses some natural push and pull.

How do you practise with a click in a way that improves time without making the performance robotic? Do you use gap clicks, different subdivisions, or record yourself and check where the feel actually sits?

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Replies

kavali2696Soundcheck

@Musician Put the click on fewer beats. If it is only on beat four, you have to carry the time yourself.

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johnkirschSoundcheck

@Musician I practise grooves with the click quiet enough that it disappears when I am locked in.

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plastiqueboutiqueukSoundcheck

@Musician Record both ways. Sometimes what feels stiff in the moment actually sounds solid, and sometimes the opposite is true.

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plastiqueboutiqueukSoundcheck

@Musician Reducing the click can help. Once the tempo is comfortable, try hearing only beats two and four, or even one click per bar. There is more responsibility on the player to carry the subdivision, but it feels less like following a metronome and more like playing with a very dependable percussionist.

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