The Art of Flam Drags and Developing Yourself

Flam drags were literally the hardest thing for me to learn and it's exactly why it is my favorite rudiment.  Who could've thought that an accented flam on the first partial, a diddle on the second and a tap on the third could capture my imagination in such a big way.  Maybe you are struggling with it yourself and would like to know some quick tips on how I learned flam drags and overcame its difficulty.

Well, there's a couple things I did and I can't say that one of these approaches was the singular reason why I was able to get them down pat, but it was all of these ideas in combination that helped me master this very difficult rudiment:

- I kept trying them even if I couldn't play them well...if at all

- I took things slow

- My friend who was the same age as me could play them and I used that as motivation

- I mastered tap drags until I could slowly start to incorporate the difficult aspect of adding the grace note

- It didn't matter how long it was taking me; I was going to keep trying

- I never gave up

So eventually, I got it.  But the most important lesson of all is that the process of learning flam drags, at least for me, can apply to developing yourself in this life.

Anytime you are learning a new trade, improving your health, growing your social circle or building wealth, all of the same lessons apply:

- Keep trying things even if you can't do it

- Take things slow

- Use the success of others as motivation

- Keep things simple to start

- Slow progress is ok and never give up

Because of this bigger lesson, it goes to show you how important drumming can be in your life and if you find success in drumming, I guarantee that you will find some measure of success in anything that you do!

Can you play flam drags? What is your favorite rudiment? In what ways could you use the lessons you learned in Drumline lead to lessons in other areas of your life? I would love to hear from you, so please leave a comment!