Written Drum Music – How To Read Notation

Written Drum Music

Trying to read written drum music can be intimidating at first. Once you understand how each piece of your kit is plotted out on the staff, you can begin to read musical composition. Below is an image of a standard musical notation. Each drum piece is represented once in the following composition by a quarter note. Notes that appear as an X are cymbals. If a diamond is used instead of an X it indicates that you should play on the bell of that cymbal. An X below the staff indicates playing the high-hat with your foot.

The notes from left to right are as follows: High-hat w/foot, Bass 1, Bass 2, Floor Tom 1, Floor Tom 2, Rack Tom, Snare, Rack Tom, Rack Tom, Rack Tom, High-Hat w/stick, Ride, Crash, Splash, China, Bell of Ride, Bell of High-Hat, Bell of Crash, Bell of Splash. You may not have that many toms are cymbals, if so, you can just combine notes. For example, the two separate floor tom notes can be played on the same tom. Most compositions will have a notation legend that tells you where each drum is located on the staff.

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