Paradiddle-diddle sticking exercise for drums

Here's my favourite paradiddle exercise. It's from one of my drum teachers, and I use it all the time.

It's groupings of paradiddles and paradiddle-diddles. You play a 4 bar pattern leading with the right hand, and then repeat it leading with the left hand. Keep alternating back and forth...

Once you're comfortable with the sticking pattern, add a constant quarter-note bass drum throughout. It will alternate against the snare accents.

Leading with the right hand...

Then leading with the left hand...

Here's an annotation of the first half of the exercise (where you lead with the right hand) to show the groupings of paradiddles and paradiddle-diddles.

If you want to "hear" it, I've recreated the sticking pattern above inside Groove Scribe where you can modify it.

Check it out below -- you may need to scroll to the bottom to see the "play" button.

Remember to pay attention to dynamics! Make the ghost notes as quiet as possible.

And like any exercise, start slow and use a metronome to be consistent. Eventually increase the speed as you get more comfortable.

Enjoy!

// ka