I am currently the section leader at my high school and i was wondering if it was worth it to switch from the matched grip style to traditional. i really like the look of traditional but it seems a difficult thing to learn and we have always played matched grip since i can remember. If you think it is a good idea please let me know how i should go about teaching the rest of the line. thank you for any opinions.

Try backsticking with the left hand. That will give you the idea. Then keep the stick in that position and turn the bead side to the head. Now that is traditional. For wrist action act like you are opening a door with your left hand. You know turning the door knob with your left hand.

Thumb should line up with your arm(--)not(-/). Thumb crosses index finger at 1st line(segment) on index finger. 4th finger under stick with 5th and curved slightly. 4th finger balances stick on the 1st line (segment) of the finger also.

Action is a turn of the wrist and then the arm follows, don`t restrict the arm from movement but it is after the wrist starts then arm follows if higher strokes are played.

Do you have an instructor who's proficient at it? Someone who can evaluate the details of the grip and stroke, identify problems as students are playing, and help fix them? If not, I'd strongly suggest not going to traditional grip. There are too many technique things that can potentially be learned wrong.

There's nothing wrong with sticking to matched grip. In fact, there are plenty of reasons it makes musical and technical sense to play matched. You're really not gaining much other than the perceived "cool factor" by switching to traditional, but if you don't do it well, that coolness just went right out the window. Dirty beats and poor technique aren't cool no matter what grip you use.

{EDIT} One more thing... If you and the other guys in your line want to work on traditional technique, check out the articles on SnareScience, particularly the one titled Snare Drum Technique - A Baseline Approach to Playing the Snare Drum. Ryan Wold does a great job of explaining and demonstrating good technique. If you guys really want to do it, learn this stuff and practice it on your own, then revisit the question about whether your line should switch.

I say if you have someone with the knowledge and time then absolutely make the switch. The only downside is I have been on a line where technique was never discussed and the snares would have been much better off if they had played match grip.

First I would say "Welcome to the Brotherhood"!

Next is do not listen to any Nay Sayers and people with a negative attitude. This will be a challenge for your snare line and will only be accomplished with dedication from ALL.

If you and the rest of the snare line want to switch, then do it. This is a great idea and some on DLO are behind you 100%. But keep in mind not to neglect your match grip just in case you and your snare drummers are not ready and need to switch back to it.

As stated above, on the different drum sites, you will have many explanations on the Moler Grip. Study them constantly and daily and make sure that every one has the same information to study by. If you intend to take on the role of instructor then pay close attention to the other instructors and how they teach you the technique so that you can pass along correct information. Also, you will have to be at least 2 steps ahead of what you are teaching the rest of the line.

Do not forget YouTube, you will find several videos there on what to do. Make copies or send the exercises to each student to look at and use. This is not impossible to do. A fellow instructor did this very same thing for his line and through determination and LOTS of practice they were able to use the traditional grip the next season.

Besides, if you intend to march DCI, most lines use traditional grip. If it's not possible for you to travel to the corp that uses match grip then you better start now to get the grip down.

Here is the best place for peer advice as there are several very accomplished traditional grip players. One certain one comes to mind, but I will let him speak for himself. But at any time ask questions and they will answer.

Have fun with this. Don't get discouraged with progress, it will come in time. Just never give up even if a decision is made later not to switch in time for this summer. If you have a winter line then it might be ready and what a surprise to everyone who saw you with match grip and now you're not using it but using traditional. Just might be the mind game that will un-nerve another line and give you an edge.

When your left hand hurts, give it a short break for a day but do not stop chopping. A day wasted is two days lost. Work hard, stay calm, and mostly keep a good attitude throughout this.

Hey drumkid,

I cannot emphasize enough what a previous poster said: Make sure to get a qualified instructor.

In the meantime, check out Jojo Mayer's "Secret Weapons for the Modern Drummer" DVD. He does a pretty good demonstration of not only traditional grip, but Stone Strokes and Moeller Strokes as well.

The only part I disagreed with is the right hand using the middle finger in the fulcrum instead of the pointer. I think it comes down to a matter of personal preference.

Let us know how the transition goes

Drumkid,

Not sure on what your off season is like with shows and such, but assuming this is for fall marching band, now might be the perfect time to take that switch. If you try to do this during band camp, or even a month before, I believe the line will suffer. If you start now, you should be comfortable by summer time and it would be a much easier transition.

Tan

drumkid,as someone who marched matched grip in high school, i say DO IT. we begged for someone to teach us back in 1991, but no one was listening. so nearly 20 years later, i hired a teacher and had him teach me traditional grip. it's challenging, but it is so worth the effort. best of luck. keep us posted on how it goes.

this year my drumline switched to traditional and my snares were able to pick it up easily. they loved it because it just looked better and made them feel better about drumming. so it kinda is a mental thing too or at least in my case it was.

Hey guys thanks for all your input. it helped me a lot. i think i will try to find an instructor to teach us. I'm going to start working on it right at the start of the 4th quarter. thanks again

It isn't necessarily a good or bad idea. Neither grip is really ultimately better than the other. What you need to decide is if you ever going to audition for any ensembles that will require it. Is it just because you think it's look cool? etc... It is better to have total control over one grip than a little control over both grips.

I am the section leader within my high school as well, and I'm thinking/planning of doing the same thing. From my experience I would ask around to see what everybody thinks of the idea and then go from there