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DubiousDubs « with you for your life, bei it jazz, rock, the like. »
Published on 11/04/11 at 13:10Ah, the classic American drum stick. Every beginner is given a pair of these to start off with, as well as a drum pad. I was the same. These sticks stuck with me for the first 5 years of my playing. As I perfected my paradiddles, my rolls, and focused on gaining a better understanding of rhythm as a concept within, I found myself focusing on the most important extension of me, my drum sticks.
As a young player it is important to have a firm, yet light stick. This is to help make up for speed issues with regards to lack of muscle strength in arms and hands. As the lessons increase, the recognition of loudness requires one of two things:
1. Stronger hits and faster rebounds –Arm strength increase
2. Bigger, heavier sticks
If you are focused on jazz, I recommend a lighter, thinner stick. 7A would be perfect. These 5A sticks are perfect for a young drummer to take with him or her for the remainder of their life. As they move from a snare alone, to a full set, the 5A will remain invaluable as they roll along the set for a fill. I find that the 7A sticks I use for Jazz time, tend to break too easy. I’m partial though, because I am a drummer who doesn’t like to beat the drum too loud, I prefer to know my place behind the bass player, and hold time. For me, 5A’s will always be my stick of choice.
The one bad aspect of these sticks are out of every batch of say 10, 4 will have a grain crack. I find that most times this is not an issue, but when my sticks fail, it is always along the grain. Which with these Vic Firths, happens to be along the length of the stick. Splintering is something that will occur given time, and so when I purchase a new Vic Firth 5A set I spend a few minutes following my hand along each stick tto feel for the grain and look for any weak spots. This combats any future early terminations.
As a young player it is important to have a firm, yet light stick. This is to help make up for speed issues with regards to lack of muscle strength in arms and hands. As the lessons increase, the recognition of loudness requires one of two things:
1. Stronger hits and faster rebounds –Arm strength increase
2. Bigger, heavier sticks
If you are focused on jazz, I recommend a lighter, thinner stick. 7A would be perfect. These 5A sticks are perfect for a young drummer to take with him or her for the remainder of their life. As they move from a snare alone, to a full set, the 5A will remain invaluable as they roll along the set for a fill. I find that the 7A sticks I use for Jazz time, tend to break too easy. I’m partial though, because I am a drummer who doesn’t like to beat the drum too loud, I prefer to know my place behind the bass player, and hold time. For me, 5A’s will always be my stick of choice.
The one bad aspect of these sticks are out of every batch of say 10, 4 will have a grain crack. I find that most times this is not an issue, but when my sticks fail, it is always along the grain. Which with these Vic Firths, happens to be along the length of the stick. Splintering is something that will occur given time, and so when I purchase a new Vic Firth 5A set I spend a few minutes following my hand along each stick tto feel for the grain and look for any weak spots. This combats any future early terminations.