Double-drumming is a

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

technique, developed around 1900,Hessler, Claus and Famularo, Dom (2008). ''Open-Handed Playing: Traditional Approach, Voice-variation Approach, Play-along Songs, Volume 1'', p.9. Alfred Music. . allowing the use of both a

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

and

snare drum The snare drum (or side drum) is a percussion instrument that produces a sharp staccato sound when the head is struck with a drum stick, due to the use of a series of stiff wires held under tension against the lower skin. Snare drums are often u ...

by one person, using

drum stick A drum stick (or drumstick) is a type of percussion mallet used particularly for playing snare drum, drum kit, and some other percussion instruments, and particularly for playing unpitched percussion. Specialized beaters used on some other pe ...

s, prior to the invention of the

bass drum pedal The bass drum is a large drum that produces a note of low definite or indefinite pitch. The instrument is typically cylindrical, with the drum's diameter usually greater than its depth, with a struck head at both ends of the cylinder. The he ...

(in 1909) and leading to the availability of the

drum kit A drum kit or drum set (also known as a trap set, or simply drums in popular music and jazz contexts) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and sometimes other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one p ...

. According to Len 'Hunt' Doc, double drumming allowed one player to "beat a fast four-in-a-bar bass drum, doing a

close roll The Close Rolls () are an administrative record created in medieval England, Wales, Ireland and the Channel Islands by the royal chancery, in order to preserve a central record of all letters close issued by the chancery in the name of the Crown ...

on snare at the same time," whereas before it would have taken two percussionists.Nicholls, Geoff (2008). ''The Drum Book: A History of the Rock Drum Kit'', unpaginated. Backbeat. . Accomplished through close positioning of the bass and snare heads, the cymbals were played by tapping a foot pedal called a " low-boy".Blades, James and Dean, Johnny (2002). ''How to Play Drums: Everything You Need to Know to Play the Drums'', p.19. Macmillan. . This style is best exemplified by early New Orleans Jazz/ Second Line bands, and

Baby Dodds Warren "Baby" Dodds (December 24, 1898 – February 14, 1959) was an American jazz drummer born in New Orleans, Louisiana. He is regarded as one of the best jazz drummers of the pre-big band era. He varied his drum patterns with accents and f ...

has been called the master. It has been proposed that either the bass foot pedal or hi-hat pedal was invented, or rather, standardized, first. The illustration in Blades and Dean (2002) implies that the low-boy started out as a stick laid over two cymbals ("sock cymbal") and that the positioning of the snare and bass was facing each other, nearly touching at the bottom, achieved through use of snare and bass drum stands, while Nicholls describes the snare drum as being, "tilted alarmingly close to vertical." Hessler and Famularo (2008) argue that the bass drum pedal must have come first, due to its less sensitive action. This process also contributed to the standard drum kit layout and arm position, as most drummers chose to play the bass pedal with their right foot. When the hi-hat came along, it was left to the other foot, and

traditional grip In percussion, grip refers to the manner in which the player holds the sticks or mallets, whether drum sticks or other mallets. For some instruments, such as triangles and gongs, only a single mallet or beater is normally used, held either ...

made the use of the right hand, and thus a cross-, rather than open-, handed technique, more comfortable.Hessler and Famularo (2008), p.10.

See also

References

Further reading