Snare drum technique

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Snare technique is the technique used to play a snare drum.

It is studied as an end to itself by snare drummers, and as a way of developing stick control skill by kit drummers and players of other auxiliary percussion instruments.


Main article: grip (percussion)

There are two categories of grips used in snare technique: matched grip, in which both hands hold the sticks in an overhand grip, and traditional grip, in which one hand uses an overhand grip and the other an underhand grip. Traditional grip is almost exclusively used on snare drum, and concert bass drum, while matched grip is used on all percussion instruments. Traditional grip is also primarily used in drum corps style marching environments, such as Drum Corps International.


Main article: drum rudiment

Snare drum technique is learned mainly by learning specific sequences of drumstick strokes, each of them known as a drum rudiment and most of them short. Examples of rudiments are the paradiddle and the drum roll.

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