JumpyTheFrog Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 Tigger (11) started drum lessons in July. He’s been using a practice pad this whole time. He doesn’t know it yet, but his drum set will be here Wednesday. I found a good deal on a scratch and dent model on Musician’s Friend. I’m glad the several month Craigslist search is over. Do those pads for lowering the volume really work? Any other advice about owning a drum set? 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 From the house of electronic music to the house of percussion I say, :lol: . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpyTheFrog Posted November 13, 2017 Author Share Posted November 13, 2017 Yeah, yeah, I'm sure people will think we are crazy. But what can I say? We want him to play an instrument and he loves banging on stuff. It was actually a book recommended here a few years ago ("The Right Instrument for Your Child") that convinced me drums are a good choice for him. I went through the questions and it came down to trumpet or drums and he was way more excited about drums. Do I get some sanity points for Little Guy (8) playing violin? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpyTheFrog Posted November 13, 2017 Author Share Posted November 13, 2017 We originally thought about electronic drums, so we could control the volume, but his drum teacher said learning to play on them isn't the same. He said you can learn on acoustic and go to electronic but going the other way doesn't work as well. DH plays guitar so I am trying to figure out how we can play as family when the kids are older. I used to play flute and have thought about starting again or maybe learning a new instrument. What would go with violin, drums, and guitar? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 Most of the set drummers I know have one sound dampened room for the drums :) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 Years ago we bought our son a drum set one year for his birthday in November and for Christmas, he received the silencer pads...yes, they work...if you can get the child to keep them on while practicing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scrapbookbuzz Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 :hurray: for the drum set! May have to look into an instrument for my son. Never did for my daughter and she graduates in May; wish I had pursued that more thoroughly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amo_mea_filiis. Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 My son’s a drummer. I personally have no issues with the sound. Probably because we have carpet, but if you’re on the first floor and he’s playing upstairs, you can still talk normal. My son had a pad and snare for the first couple of years. When I finally found him a kit, his progress went through the roof! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpyTheFrog Posted November 13, 2017 Author Share Posted November 13, 2017 I am thinking of having him also start bells (those metal xylophone-ish things) that way he can also play some classical music. (His drum teacher teaches every style except classical). Both boys play at the same music studio, so there is the possibility that he could play bells or just a snare drum in an orchestral ensemble with Little Guy in the spring. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpyTheFrog Posted November 13, 2017 Author Share Posted November 13, 2017 The plan is to loft his bed and put the drums under the bed. The room has carpet. The other three bedrooms are a school room, office (DH works from home), and my bedroom. We hesitate to put the drums in the garage because we think the sawdust from woodworking would get on or into the drums. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amo_mea_filiis. Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 Making the bed a loft sounds awesome! I wish we had the ceiling height to do that. My drummer currently has 2 rooms; his bedroom and then the drum and toy room. (He was in the master with everything, but then I needed to share with my daughter, so we had to move to the master) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrixieB Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 We originally thought about electronic drums, so we could control the volume, but his drum teacher said learning to play on them isn't the same. He said you can learn on acoustic and go to electronic but going the other way doesn't work as well. DH plays guitar so I am trying to figure out how we can play as family when the kids are older. I used to play flute and have thought about starting again or maybe learning a new instrument. What would go with violin, drums, and guitar? Electric bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 my advice... earplugs... :laugh: I am sure he'll be thrilled though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 If you loft the bed, you may want to stick acoustic tile or carpet on the underside. That will absorb the sound. Also, hopefully the instructor will talk with Tigger about wearing ear protection to practice-it's just plain a good idea. A basic bellset is very inexpensive, and is a good addition. Percussionists in an orchestra or concert band need to be able to move between instruments depending on the piece, and mallet parts are a lot more fun than, say, triangle :). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ethel Mertz Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 Drum mutes work well. As others have mentioned: carpet. We have two rules about drumming: 1. Drum practice only between 10 am and 8 pm (for the neighbor's sake). 2. No drumming before (your parents have had) coffee. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amo_mea_filiis. Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 Also, hopefully the instructor will talk with Tigger about wearing ear protection to practice-it's just plain a good idea. Yes! Mine wears earbuds for music with protective headphones over them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2scouts Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 As a parent of a drummer, you have my sympathies. :P We bought a kit for him one Christmas and he got years of use out of it. He just sold them last fall before leaving for the Army and will probably buy a nicer kit someday. As for the drum pads, we found they really didn't help at all. Siblings bought them as a Christmas gift...for themselves. :lol: Our drummer just beat the drums harder. We tried to put him in the basement, but that was LOUD. It worked better to just have him play in his carpeted bedroom with the door closed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpyTheFrog Posted November 13, 2017 Author Share Posted November 13, 2017 If you loft the bed, you may want to stick acoustic tile or carpet on the underside. That will absorb the sound. Also, hopefully the instructor will talk with Tigger about wearing ear protection to practice-it's just plain a good idea. A basic bellset is very inexpensive, and is a good addition. Percussionists in an orchestra or concert band need to be able to move between instruments depending on the piece, and mallet parts are a lot more fun than, say, triangle :). Good idea with the acoustic tile. I never would have thought of that. I was wondering about hearing protection. We always make sure to use it when mowing the lawn. My grandpa had a lot of hearing loss so I am careful about noise exposure. Will he need lessons to learn the bellset? Or more specifically, if he doesn’t take lessons for them, will he get into a lot of bad habits, or are they prett straight forward? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vmsurbat Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 I went through the questions and it came down to trumpet or drums and he was way more excited about drums. Do I get some sanity points for Little Guy (8) playing violin? Be grateful--I think trumpets and other brass instruments are even louder than drums.... Two of my kids learned to play the trumpet and sometimes I made them go outside in the backyard to practice because my nerves couldn't take it.... :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 I think I must be the odd one. Between the 5 boys, I've got piano, viola, banjo, guitar, ukulele, and drum players. By far, listening to drum practice is my favorite. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted November 13, 2017 Share Posted November 13, 2017 They're pretty straight forward and fairly self-correcting. If you get a book, it should show the correct grip, and the ring caused by bouncing correctly is enough different from the sound from an incorrect hold to make it pretty obvious (and it's much easier to adjust yourself) Some techniques for the bigger instruments are better learned from someone else (double and triple mallet holds, for example, for Marimba), but that's a long way away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpyTheFrog Posted November 14, 2017 Author Share Posted November 14, 2017 Ok, I bought a bell set for $40 off Craigslist tonight. It even came with a book, although I need to buy some mallets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PinkyandtheBrains. Posted November 14, 2017 Share Posted November 14, 2017 I think I must be the odd one. Between the 5 boys, I've got piano, viola, banjo, guitar, ukulele, and drum players. By far, listening to drum practice is my favorite. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. I prefer drums to the others too. Once the skill is there, I like them all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsmith Posted November 14, 2017 Share Posted November 14, 2017 I grew up with a drummer. It was noisy. My brother had his drums in the basement but we could hear it all over the house. He was passionate about drumming, and drums did not need to be available - he constantly tapped on everything. Still does, lol. It really irritates some people but I guess I got used to it. In fact I can drown out most annoying noises around me while my family can't. I'm convinced my brother's constant drumming made me immune to most noises that drive other people crazy, so I guess he did me a favor with all that banging and crashing. Enjoy! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted November 14, 2017 Share Posted November 14, 2017 Bell mallets are fairly inexpensive. For home practice, I suggest rubber on a soft or medium side. For orchestral use, hard rubber or even brass aren't uncommon. Marching band usually uses plastic. I prefer single headed to double headed. Making mallets can be fun, too :). https://smile.amazon.com/Shappy-Mallets-Glockenspiel-Sticks-Percussion/dp/B075LN9V1L/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1510665171&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=Bell+mallets&psc=1 https://smile.amazon.com/Vic-Firth-V240-Bell-Mallets/dp/B000EEHOJM/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1510665171&sr=8-4&keywords=Bell+mallets Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpyTheFrog Posted November 14, 2017 Author Share Posted November 14, 2017 My boys found something they could use as mallets while we find a more permanent solution. Little Guy was sick and couldn't go to gymnastics practice today. When I came home, I found out he had spent two hours practicing the bells. He is learning to play "Jingle Bells" on his violin and he spent most of that time working on that song on the bells. I'd say this instrument is a hit! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted November 14, 2017 Share Posted November 14, 2017 Pencils with eraser caps work well :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpyTheFrog Posted November 16, 2017 Author Share Posted November 16, 2017 It’s here! Tigger is banging away in his room and Little Guy is banging away on the bell set in the school room. He played it yesterday for about 1.5 hours and even started to write his own song. I need to print out some blank staff paper for him. Now it seems I have been promoted from gymnastics mom to gymnastics and music mom. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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