MakingtheBeat:BrazilianDrumsEnvatoTuts+Music

&AudioTutorial

Welcometothethirddrumbasedtutorialintheseriesthatwillshowyouwhatthebeatsareandhow
tomakethemsoundgood.InthistutorialwearegoingtocontinuetocoverLatindrumsbutnowin
theBrazilianstyle.

BrazilianmusicisoneofthetwomaincategorizationsofLatinmusictheotherbeingAfroCuban
whichwecoveredlasttime.JustlikeinAfroCubanmusic,thedrumsareoneofthekeycomponents
andyouneedtoknowwhichbeattoinsertdependingonthecontextofthemusic.Remember,
BrazilianmusicisatitscoredancemusicjustlikeAfroCuban.

Soifyouwanttousethesegroovesinamoretraditionalsense,knowwhatbeatgoeswithwhat
danceorcontext.IfyoujustwanttoaddsomeSamba,Bossa,orBaiaogroovestoyourrepertoire,
nowisyourchancetolearntoo!Thelasttimewetalkedwebuiltbeatsfromsmallerelementsthat
whensummedtogetherformedourbiggerbeatsthistutorialwilldosoaswell.Withthatallinmind,
getreadytojam!

SettingUp:WhatYouNeed

Ifyouhavereadmyprevioustutorialsthenthissectionwillnotbeanythingnewtoyou.Ifyouhave
notreadit,thenbyallmeansdoso!Itisimportanttohaveaninitialgameplanonhowyouwantto
approachprogrammingyourdrumbeats,andthissectionwilloutlineyouroptionsforyou.

ThistutorialisaimedtobepredominantlyDAWandpluginindependentyouworkwithwhatyoufeel
mostcomfortableusing.However,sometoolswithintheDAWorpluginarenecessarytohavein
ordertoeffectivelycompletethistutorial.

Youwillneedeitherastepsequencerorapianorollinordertoplacetherhythms.

Awellroundedsamplelibraryforalldrumsandcymbals(youcanuseadrumsynthifyousochoose
butmakesureyoucancreatealotofdifferentsoundswithit).

Theabilitythechangethevolumeofvarioushitsthroughoutthedrumpattern.Makesomecymbal
hitssofterorlouderthanothers,etc.SomemaydoitviaMIDI,othermightjustchangetheactual
volumeofthehit.

SettingUp:WhattoUse

Therecanbefeaturesofaparticulareditorthatmakemoreadvantageousoveranotherwhenit
comestomakingdrumbeatsonthecomputerbutitmayhavedisadvantagesaswell.Herewewill
gooverthedifferentapproachestoconstructingdrumsonthecomputerandyoucandecidedwhich
methodologyisworksbestforyou.

IndividualSampler
Thismethodinvolvesloadingsamplesintoasamplerthatcanonlyplayonesampleatatime.Why
useit?Usuallythesesamplershavealotoftoolsthatallowyoutomanipulatethesamplefarbeyond
othersamplers.Usuallywhenusingthesesamplersyoueitherhavepianorollaccessorastep
sequencer.Thedisadvantagetothishoweveristhatmostlikelyyouwillnotbeabletoseethewhole
rhythmofthekitandwillneedtoknowexactlyhowthedifferentinstrumentsfittogether.

PreConstructedKits
Someprogramsofferprebuiltkitsandusuallyhavethekitlaidoutacrossapianorollsothatyoucan
seethewholekitsrhythm.Youusuallywillhavefinercontrolovertheplacementofeachhitovera
stepsequencer.Thedisadvantageisthatyoumayormaynotbeabletoediteachindividualsample
tothefullestdependingontheprogram.

MultiSampleSampler
Thesesamplersaredesignedusuallywithdrumsetsinmind.Theyallowformultiplesamplestobe
loadedinandsometimesmultiplesamplesperinstrument.Whywouldyouwantmultiplesamplesper
instrument?Sothatasyouprogramvolumechangesthesamplerwillloaddifferentsamples.This
wayyoudon'tneed5differenthihatschannels,5differentrides,etc.Youjustprogramvolume
changes.Becarefulthough,sometimesthesesamplerscanbeveryCPUintensiveandcaneasily
bogdownyoursystemifyou'renotcareful.Inregardstorhythmplacement,someusepianorolls
andothersusestepsequencersitwilldependontheplugin.

MyRecommendations
Ipersonallyamanadvocateofhavingthemostversatilityatmyfingertips,butmaintainingeaseof
use.IlikethemultisampledrumsamplerswithpianorollaccessandmixertrackaccessbecauseI
willhavethemostcontrolovermysoundwithoutoverloadingmyselfwithcontrols.Ifyouarenot
lookingforalotoffinetunedcontrolthentryforapreconstructedkit.Ifyouarelookingforglitchkit
designoralotofmanipulationyoumightneedtheutmostintensivecontrolandoptfortheindividual
samplers.Thechoiceisyours,andrememberthatthesearegeneralguidelinestherecaneasilybe
otherapproachesordifferentcombinationsoftheabove.

BrazilianConversions:TraditionaltoDrumSet

Brazilianmusicisbothsecularandreligious,butstillaltogetherdance.Italwaysseemstohavea
drivingqualitythatishardtoresist.JustlikeinAfroCubanmusic,mostoftheBrazilianbeatshavea
particulardanceorfunctionassociatedwithitoftenthebeatsrootscanbetracedtoaparticulararea
ortown.ManyofthebasicconceptstoBrazilianmusicstartedinAfrica,Portugal,Spain,andmetwith
thegeneraloriginalBrazilianNativesandbecameinfusedinBrazilandotherpartsoftheCaribbean.

JustlikewithAfroCubanmusic,thedrumsetadaptationsarenotanewconceptbutagainarenot
oldeither.AswithmostifnotallLatinmusic,manyoftheoriginalbeatswereplayedbymultipiece
ensembleswithdifferentplayersondifferentdrums.Eventothisdayyoucanstillfindtraditional
ensemblesthatplaythisway!Sinceeachbeatanddrumhadtheirownspecificpurposes,the
individualdrumsandbeatsonthedrumsetdoaswell.ThefunctionhoweverforBraziliangrooves
canbedifferentfromAfroCubaninafewways,soletsfirsttakealookatthefunctionofthedifferent
drumsonthedrumsetandhowitrelatestotheoverallBrazilianfeel.

TheKick
ThekickdruminBrazilianmusic,unlikeitsAfroCubancounterpart,isthedrivingcenterofthemusic
particularlywithSambas.Thekickgenerallyhasaconsistentpatternthatgivestherestofthe
ensembleabasetolistenform.InthecaseoftheSamba,theuprightbassorbassguitaractually
mimicstherhythmofthekicktofurthergroundtherestoftheensemble.

TheSnare
ThesnaredrumstillplaysanimportantpartinBrazilianmusicjustlikeinAfroCuban.Traditionally
referredtoasaCaixa,thesnareisabasicelementtoBrazilianmusicandisnotaconversionlikein
AfroCuban.Insomecontextsitistheentirebasisforanentirebeatparticularlywiththosethathave
moreofamarchfeel.Othertimesitwillsimplybringbackouroldfriendtheclave.Eitherway,the
snareaddsalottotheoverallgrooveandaccentpatternstoyourbeatswhichofcourseessentialto
anyformofLatinmusic.

TheCymbal
TheridecymbalandhihatgenerallyaretheirownentitiesinBrazilianmusic.Thehihatattimeswill
bereplacinganinstrumentknownasaPandeirosometimesalsoreplacingtheTamborim(similarto
aTambourine).Thehihatgenerallyisplayedwiththefootandfitsinbetweenthekickdrumhits,
actingasanotherpulsefortheensemble.Howeverthereareplentyofgroovesthatutilizethehihat
inaclosedpositionandwillactaspartofthemainbeat.Theridecymbaleitherhasitsownvariations
ormimicspatternstraditionallyplayedonotherdrums.Eitherway,theridekeepsgivesamore
modernedgetothekitandistheprimarychoiceinmostnontraditionalBrazilianmusic.

TheToms
Thetomsserveasthedrumset'sreplacementforSurdodrums.Surdodrumsgenerallycomeinhi,
mediumandlowcategorieswhichiswhytheyfitsowellonadrumset.Theytomsplayavery
importantroleinBraziliandrumsetplayingsincemanybeatscannotbedonewithoutthem.

Samba
Surdo,Cruzado,andParditoAlto

OneofthebiggeststylesofBrazilianmusicistheSamba.Sambasarefulloflifeandvigorand
usuallyareaccompaniedwiththecorrespondingdance.Surdo,CruzadoandParditoAltoareall
subsetsoftheSamba.TheSurdobeatsareveryheavyonthetomsandinvolveadecentbitof
syncopation.TheCruzadobeatsareverysimilartotheSurdobututilizeamoreconsistentsnareor
hihat.Cruzadomeanstocrossandifyouwereadrummeryouwouldneedtocrossyourhandsover
oneanothertohitthetomswhilekeepingthesnareconsistent.PartidoAltorhythmsaresimply
anotherforofSambawithasimilarbutdifferentfeeltotheotherformsofSambatheparticularsare
whatseparatesitfromtheotherforms.

Theformatthroughouttherestofthetutorialforpresentingtheactualrhythmswilllisteach
instrumentandwhichnotestheinstrumentplaysonina16notemeasure.A16notepattern
assumesthatyoursmallestnotesubdivisionis16thnotesinafourbeatpattern.Likeinourprevious
tutorial,two16thnotepatternswillsometimesbeusedsinceBrazilianbeatssometimesaretwobars
long.Thebarswillbeseparatedviaa|andthenrestartthenotecount.Eachpatternwillbelisted
fromtoptobottomsothatcymbalsareonthetopandkickareonthebottomjustasyouwouldseeif
readingmusicalnotation.Eachwillbeaccompaniedwithapicturetohelpvisualizethepattern.

Samba:FeetPatterns

BeforewedelvedeepintotheheartoftheSambayoushouldbeawareofthefeetpatternsbetween
thekickandthehihat.IwillnotnotatethepatternsthroughouttherestoftheSambasectionunless
theychangefromtheseparticularpatterns.Bynomeansdoyouhavetousethesefeetpatternswith
yourbeatsbuttheyoftenareandaddanicepulsetoyourmusic.

Keepinmindthatthefirstpatternisthemostcommonwiththeothersonlybeingusedinthe
appropriatemusicalcontexts.

SambaFeetPattern#1

HiHat:3,7,11,15

Kick:1,4,5,8,9,12,13,16

SambaFeetPattern#2

HiHat:1,5,9,13

Kick:1,4,5,8,9,12,13,16

SambaFeetPattern#3

HiHat:2,4,6,8,10,12,14,16

Kick:1,4,5,8,9,12,13,16
Surdo

LetsfirsttakealookattheSambaSurdoandthebasicideasthatencompassit...

BasicSnareSurdo

SnareAccent:1,4,5,8,9,12,13,16

Snare:2,3,6,7,10,11,14,15

00:0300:06
Verysimpleandkindofalongthelinesofamarch.Notetheaccentsandwheretheyoccurthis
accentpatternisveryimportantinBrazilianmusic.(Noticehowtheyaresimilartothefeet?)Hereare
twomorelongervariations...

SnareSurdo#1

SnareAccent:1,3,5,6,8,10,12,14,15

Snare:2,4,7,9,11,13,16

SnareSurdo#2

SnareAccent:1,3,4,6,8,10,11,12,14,15

Snare:2,5,7,9,11,13,16

00:0300:06
Forthoseofyouwhoaremoreonthesongwritersend,thesegroovesworkwellasgeneralintrosfor
yoursongs.Theyarebusybutdefinitelynotasbusyassomeoftheotherbeatswewillcover.

Movingon,letsnowaddsometomstothemixafterallthetomsaresupposetoreplacetheSurdo
drums!

Surdo#1

SnareAccent:4,8,12,16
Snare:2,3,6,7,10,11,14,15

MiddleTom:1and9

FloorTom:5and13

00:0200:07
Nothingtoocomplicatedbutitaddsanicecolorcontrasttothegroove.AndrememberwhatIsaid
aboutthataccentpattern?

HereisanotherstraightaheadSurdopatternforyourlearningpleasure...

Surdo#2

SnareAccent:3and12

Snare:2,4,7,10,11,14,16

HighTom:1

MiddleTom:9

FloorTom:5,6,8,13,15

00:0100:08
Trystartingthispatternonnote9andthenwrappingaroundto1through8foradifferentfeel.

FinallyIwillleavetheSurdowithamoresyncopatedversionforyoutoplayaroundwith...

Surdo#3

Snare:2,4,6,7,9,11,13,14,16

HighTom:1
MiddleTom:9

FloorTom:5,7,13,14,16

Cruzado

NextwearegoingtocovertheCruzadoandthebeatsthatcomprisethisparticularSamba.AsIsaid
beforeCruzado'sforcethedrummertocrosstheirhandssinceonehandwillbebusywithother
notes.SoifyouarelookingforsomebusyLatinbeats,thismaybeyourticket!

Cruzado#1

SnareAccent:3,6,8,10,12

Snare:1,2,4,5,7,9,11,13,14,15,16

HighTom:3and10

MiddleTom:1and8

FloorTom:6,13,14,15

00:0700:08
LikeIsaiditisalotbusierofabeat!Hereisacymbalvariationthatstillmaintainsthesnareaccent
patternjustnotaccented.

Cruzado#2

Cymbal:All

HighTom:3and10

MiddleTom:1and8
FloorTom:6,13,15

00:0700:10
IfyouarelookingtoaddalittlevarietytotheseCruzadobeats,justchangearoundwhichdrumsget
hit,butkeeptheoverallrhythmthesame.Hereisanexample...

Cruzado#3

Cymbal:All

SnareAccent:3and10

HighTom:8

MiddleTom:1

FloorTom:6,13,15

00:0600:10
ThereisonlysomuchyoucandowiththeCruzadosinceyoustillhaveaveryconsistentpatternin
thefeetandinoneofthehands.Justplayaroundwithyourtomlocationstogetthemostvarietyand
useoutofthesebeats.

PartidoAlto

ParditoAltoistheoddoneoutintheSambaworld.Whatmakesthesebeatssocoolishowthesnare
accentsplayoffofadifferentfootpattern.Withthatbeingsaid,keepinmindthatthereisadifferent
feetpatternthatIwillnotateoutforyou.HereisanexampletogiveyoutheideaoftheParditoAlto...

ParditoAlto#1

Cymbal:All

Snare:3and10
Kick:1,6,8,13,15

00:0400:10
Differentright?Itreallyoffsetsthefeelingofthedownbeat,whichcanbeverygoodifyouwantthat
effect.However,itstillgroovesdespitethedisplacedfeeling.Hereisanothervarietytotryout...

ParditoAlto#2

Cymbal:All

Snare:3and10

Kick:1,6,8,12,13,15

00:0300:10
ThesepatternsareessentiallythecoreoftheParditoAlto.Tryremovingvariousnotesinthecymbal
patterninasyncopatedmannertoaccentuatetheParditorhythm.However,ifyouwanttokeepthe
generalrhythmgoinglikebefore,butneedadifferentsoundcolor,trythis...

ParditoAlto#3

Cymbal:1,6,13,15

SnareAccent:3and8

Snare:2,4,5,7,9,11,12,14,16

Kick:1,6,8,13,15

Samba:Review

AsyouhaveseentheSambaisafastanddrivingbeatthatencompassesawidearrayofsound
options.TheSurdoandCruzadoaddatomheavyfeelwhiletheParditoAltotrystodisplacethe
listenerssenseofdownbeatwithoutsacrificinggroove.Beforeweclosethissectionandmoveonto
theBossa,letmepresenttoyouonemoreSambabeat.Thisdoesnotfitintoanyoneparticularfeel
butnonethelessisverycommon.

GenericSamba

Cymbal:1,3,5,6,8,10,12,14,15

Snare:1,3,8,10,12

BossaNovaBoss

Movingon,thisnextsectionwillfocusprimarilyontheBossaNova.TheBossastillmaintainsthekick
aspectoftheSambasinceitinfactcamefromtheSamba.Thedifference?TheSambahasamore
relaxedandslowerpace.Theonlyreasonitmaysoundfastiscauseyoutraditionallywillplay
constant16thnotesonthecymbalforBossas.Moreoftenthatnotthehihatisplayedinsteadofthe
rideforaBossa,howeverthereisnothingstoppingyoufromplayingthebeatsontheride.Infact
someactuallycallforittobedoneontheride.Whenthesebeatsarepresented,thehihatwillrevert
backtothefeetpatternalongwiththekick.

TheBossaisnotnearlyasvariedastheSambasoonlyonesectionwillbepresented.However
makenomistake,theBossaisveryimportantandisastandardinBrazilianandLatinmusic.

Bossa#1

Cymbal:All

SnareClick:1,4,7,11,14

Kick:1,4,5,8,9,12,13,16

00:0600:10
ThisisthemostpopularbeatfoundtheBossastyle.Theclickpatterninthesnareisdesignedto
mimicouroldfriendtheclave.However,thispatternisknownastheBossaClave.Tryreversingthis
patterntogetanothervarient...hereisanexample.
Bossa#2

Cymbal:All

SnareClick:3,6,9,12,15

Kick:1,4,5,8,9,12,13,16

00:0400:10
ThisnextexampleisanothercommonBossathattakesthepatternoftheTamborimandplacesiton
theclicks.Havealisten...

Bossa#3

Cymbal:All

SnareClick:1,3,5,6,8,10,12,14,15

Kick:1,4,5,8,9,12,13,16

00:0200:10
Movingforward,wecantryandaddaParditoAltoelementtotheBossaintheclicks.Canyouhear
it?

Bossa#4

Cymbal:All

SnareClick:1,3,5,8,10,12,15

Kick:1,4,5,8,9,12,13,16

00:0200:10
ThatisessentiallytheBossaNovainanutshell.However,beforewewrapthissectionupletme
presentyouwithamoresyncopatedversion...

Bossa#5

Cymbal:1,3,5,6,8,10,12,13,14,15

SnareClick:1,3,5,8,12,14,15

00:0700:08
NotehowIdidbroughtbackboththekickandthefootcontrolledhihatforthisbeatsinceitwas
basedontheride.Youdidnoticeright?

BossaNovaBoss:Review

IfyouunderstoodtheconceptsoftheSamba,theBossaNovashouldhavebeennoissue.Just
rememberthatitisamorelaidbacktypeofBrazilianbeatandshouldbetreatedassuch.Also,ifyou
writefillsfortheBossamakesuretheyalsoreflectthelaidbacknature.

BaiaoOhYeah

ThisnextsectionrevolvesaroundthebeatstothedancemusicknownasBaiao.ANorthernBrazilian
dance,theBaiaounitlizesadifferentbutsimilarkickpatternthatgivesthemusicitsuniquequality
nottomentionthefocalpointbeinganaccordionmelodically!Keepingthisinmind,letsfirsttakea
lookatthebasicBaiaobeat.

Baiao#1

SnareAccent:4,7,12,15

Snare:1,2,3,5,6,8,9,11,13,14,16

HiHat:3,7,11,15

Kick:1,4,9,12

00:0000:03
SeewhatImeanaboutthatkickpattern?ItisjustastrippeddownversionoftheSambakickbutit
hassuchadifferentfeel.Youalsomayhavenoticedthatthisbeatasamarchlikequalitytoit.Ifyou
wantthatmarchfeelbutneedsomevarietyjustfilltherestofthesnaredrumbeatsinandletthe
accentsthemselvesspeaktherhythmicallymelody.

Nextletsfindawaytothehihathatindifferentlytothisbeat.Tryforexampleaddingthehihattothe
accentslikeso...

Baiao#2

Cymbal:1,7,12

SnareAccent:4,9,15

Snare:2,3,5,6,8,10,11,13,14,16

Kick:1,4,7,9,12,15

00:0300:06
Whilethisisallwellangood,anotherideatoplayaroundwithistoaddthetomstotheaccentsas
welltogetarhythmicmelodygoingbasearoundtheaccentpattern.Herearetwoexamplesthe
secondoneissimplyaflippedaroundversioninwhichthehightomandfloortomlocationsare
swapped.

Baiao#3

Cymbal:1and7

SnareAccent:4

Snare:2,3,5,6,8,10,11,13,14,16

HighTom:9

MiddleTom:12

FloorTom:15

Kick:1,4,7,9,12,15
Baiao#4

Cymbal:1and7

SnareAccent:4

Snare:2,3,5,6,8,10,11,13,14,16

HighTom:15

MiddleTom:12

FloorTom:9

Kick:1,4,7,9,12,15

00:0400:07
Notallofusneedtheseverysnareheavybeats.Sometimesyoumayneedamoremodernsounding
beatthatismorecymbalsoriented.HereisanexampletoshowyouwhatImean...

Baiao#5

Cymbal:1,3,4,5,7,8,9,11,12,13,15,16

SnareClick:3,7,11,15

HiHat:3,7,11,15
Kick:1,4,7,9,12,15

00:0300:09
NowbeforewewrapupthissectionupletmeshowyouoneverymodernapproachtotheBaiao.
NowIwarnyou,thiswontevensoundlikeaBaiaoatfirst,butlookatthefeetpattern.Ithinkyoumay
likeit...

Baiao#6

Cymbal:3,7,11,15

Snare:5and13

Kick:1,4,7,9,12,15

BaiaoOhYeah:Review

AswehaveseentheBaiaoasalotofvigorandalotofvarietytohowitcanbeused.Ifyoueverhear
thatkickpatternrememberthatthebeatisBaiaobased.Tryplayingwiththeaccentpatternand
addingdifferenthitseitheronoroffthataccentpattern.

SoundColor

Nowcomesthepartwherewetalkaboutthesamplesandwhatworksandwhatdoesn'tforthestyle.
SincetheBrazilianstyleandAfroCubanstylearebothLatin,thissectionwillmirrorcloselytothe
previoustutorials.However,somematerialwillbedifferentbutitwillnotbenecessaryifyoureadthe
previousone.

UpuntilnowwehavefocusedoncreatingthebeatsintheBrazilianstyle.However,weneedtomake
surewearegettingagoodsoundoutofeachdrum.Ifyoureadmyprevioustutorialthenyouknow
thatsomepeopleareonaperpetualquestfortheperfectdrumsound.Onceagain,ifyouareoneof
thesepeopleletmetellyouthatitdoesnotexist.Whendealingwithprogrammeddrumstryingto
soundreal,youneedtohavethebestsamplesyoucangetaholdofendofstory.Processallyou
want,butgoodsamplesarekeytogooddrumsound.
Now,youstillwillneedsomeprocessingregardlesssodonotcountyourselfoutyetifyoursamples
arenotgodly.Whatwewillfocusonismakingthekitasawholesoundmoreliveandrealandwhat
youneedtodoinordertoachievethatend.AsIsaidinthebeginningofthistutorial,youwillneeda
lotofsamplesinordertogetagoodfeeloutofyourprogrammedkit.Nowwewillgoindepthonhow
tousethem.

TheKick

Agoodkickiskeytothecreationofaqualitydrumsoundregardlessofgenre.Thekickisonceagain
thecenterofthegenrewhendealingwithBrazilianmusicsomakesureits.Youhaveafewchoices
topickfromwhenworkingwiththekickhowevernotasmuchtherockgenrelikelasttime.Youmost
likelywillhavekicksthatsoundnatural,full,orcushionedsometimescrossbreedsbetweentwoof
thembutnotveryoftenHowdoyoudecidewhichtouse?Thinkofhowyouwantyourkittosound.

Atraditionaljazz/Latinalbumwillhaveaverynaturalsoundandyouwillwanttohearthesoundof
thedrumitself,notsomeprocessedpoptone.Keepthismindaswell,sometimesthissortoftone
willremovesomeattackfromthekickandgiveitthatcushionedquality.Generallytheseare
consideredmoretraditionalforanBraziliansound.

IfyouwantafullermoreHollywoodstylesoundthenyouwillwantakickthathasanicebottom
endwithsomeattack.Itshouldnotbecompletelypopsounding,butnotthenaturaltoneeither.

Theseofcoursearejustguidelinesbutithopefullygivesyouasenseofdirectionwhentryingto
figureoutyourkicksound.

Whenactuallyprogrammingofthekickyoushouldprobablyhavetwo,butdefinitelynomorethan
threekicksounds.Thekicktonallystaysthesamemostofthetimewhenbeingacousticallyplayed.
Youwillprobablywantakicksoundforquietpassagesandanotherforlouderpassages.

Likealways,ifyoueverhavetwokicksinrapidsuccession(two16thnotesforexample)makesure
theydon'tsoundexactlyalike.Asawhole,itisdifficultforadrummertokeepthem100%thesame
thatfast.

TheSnare

Thesnareisthecenterofsyncopationmostofthetimesomakesureitsoundsgood!Clickswillneed
aclearknocksoundandthesnarewillneedaopenhollowtone.Thesnaremaintainsalmosta
constantvolumeandtonesinceusingthesnarerequiresthesamebasicstrokethatshouldbeeasy
foradrummer.Thisinterngivesessentiallythesamevolume.However,makesurethereisenough
differencesoitdoesn'tsoundlikeadrummachine.Alsopickoutagoodrimshotsoundthatworks
withyourhollowtonesincerimshotsareakeypartoffillsinaBrazilianorLatinfeelingeneral.Keep
inmindhowever,therimshotsshouldnotbeabusedeither!

Irecommendstartingwithagoodopensnaresoundthatcomplimentsthekickanddoesnotconflict
withthehihatorcymbals.Wheneveryoudopickyoursnaretone,makesureyoustartwithyour
primarysnaresampleandbuildoffthat.IfyouhaveaharmonicallyrichsnareyousometimescanEQ
offotherpartstocreateyouradditionalsnaresoundsinsteadofsamplehuntinghoweverhollow
soundingsnaresgenerallyarealittleweakintheharmonicsingeneral.Generallythesofterhitsare
slightlyhigherinpitch/tonethantheheavierhits.Youshouldhoweverhavemorecontrastinyour
snaresamplesthanyourkicksamples.

TheCymbals

Cymbalstendtofallintotwocategorieswhenitcomestothecymbalsactualtimbredarkorbright.
Darkcymbalstendtohavearounder,warmer,andheavytonetothemwhilethebrightcymbalsare
cutting,sharper,andhighertonedthantheirdarkercounterparts.Also,youcanhaveacombination
ofbothdarkandbrightcymbalsandgetwhatsomecallarichcymbal.Thisappliesnotjusthihats
andrides,butcrashesaswell.Whilethesemightbethewaywecategorizetheactualcymbals,we
alsohavetoconsiderhowthecymbalisplayed.

Youaregoingtowantatightsetofhihatsthatwhenclosedtogetherwillnotleaveanyextraringing
andleaveyouguessingonthebeat.Yourridecymbalsshouldhavealittlebitofsticknoisefromthe
initialimpactifyouwantaslightlymoreauthenticsound.

Howdoweusecymbalsamples?Thiswillbyfarbethebiggestpainintheentiretutorialbutoneof
themostessential.Yourcymbalsamplesshouldbefairlysimilar,closertothewaywedidthekick.
Why?Becausemostpeopledonotactuallysitthereandintentlylistenonthetoneofthecymbals.
Thereisalwaysvarietybutitisusuallysubtleandsotoshouldyoursamples.

Youusuallyhavetorandomlyassignyourcymbalsamplestogetthatpsychoacousticeffectof
knowingitistherebutnotnoticingit.However,ifyouareluckyenoughtobeusingamultisample
sampler,thenseeifyourplugincanrandomlyplaybackyoursamplesforyouinyourcymbalchannel
(seewhatImeanwhenIsaidIlovemultisamplesamplers?)Yougenerallywillneedabout34
samplestogettheeffect.

Toms

TomsaremuchmoreimportantinBrazilianandotherLatinfeelsthanmostotherformsofdrumset
music.Sincetheyareintegraltothebeats(theSurdoandCruzadoespecially)youneedtopicka
goodsetoftomsthatfitwellinyourkit.

Regulartomhitsshouldbefullandroundwithaclearattack.Youwillalsowantagoodrimclick
soundforthefloortomifyouwishtocontinuetheauthenticroute.Also,youwillalsowantagoodtom
rimshotsoundincaseyouwishtoaccentaparticulartomhitwhetheritingrooveorfill.

Iwouldnotworrytoomuchabouthavingdifferenttomsamplesforcontrastasagooddrummer
usuallycankeepthetoneevenonthetomhits.Instead,usethelowpassfiltertricktofakesofter
tomsbyremovingsomeofthehigherharmonicswhenthemusicgetssofter.

SoundColor:Review

Asaholeyouwillaboutthesameamountofsamplesinthistutorialasyoudidinthepreviousone.
However,ifcompletedthelastoneyoucouldprobablyusetheexactsamesetupsincetheyareboth
Latin.Makesureeachsamplefitswellwiththeothersandifyouhavetooverprocesstomakeitfit,
getabettersample.Ifyouhavetheoptionofbeingabletorandomlyassignsamplesfromamulti
samplesamplerthenbyallmeansgoforititwillmakeyourlifealoteasier.

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Fills,Fills,Fills

Iliketorepeatmyselfsoonceagainwefindourselvesinthefinalsectionofthetutorialfills!Asa
drummerIhavetoldyourandwilltellyouagainthatfillsareyourchancetobeexpressive,andthat
thepossibilitiesarebeyondwhatyoucouldwriteinwords.Therefore,tomeitisprobablyleastmost
importantsectionforprogrammingdrumsalsoinmyexperiencemostpeopledon'twanttobe
botheredtowriteoutadrumfillsoIwon'tfloodyouwithlongwindedfillsthatyouwouldhaveto
painstakinglyrewrite.Instead,IbelieveforAfroCubanmusic,ifyoufollowafewbasicconceptsyou
caneasilystartcreatingyourownfillsintheBrazilianstyle.

IfyoureadmyAfroCubantutorialthenyoushouldalreadyknowafairbitofthissection.However,
readthelastpartforsomemoreinsighttoLatinfills.Inaddition,listentoallaudioexamplestotry
andgetsomemoreideassincetheyareallnew.

TheAccent

ProbablythemostimportantaspecttofillsandsolosintheBrazilianstyleistheaccentednotes.
Whenyoulookatthegrooves,weaccentcertainaspects(liketheclavepatternforexample)todraw
attention.Bycarefullyplacingaccentsinyourfillsyoucanmakethemmoremelodic.

AsageneralruleofthumbwithLatinmusic,offbeataccentsareking.Theoffbeatiswherethe
syncopationcomesinandishowyourfillscansoundlesssquare.However,thisdoesnotmeanyou
canabuseoffbeataccentsallthetime.Addsomevarietybetweenonbeatandoffbeataccentsand
donotforgettoaccentthe16thnotesbetweenthebigbeatsandoffbeatsaswell.

Hereisaquickfillbasedaroundaccentstogetyourcreativejuicesflowing...

00:0000:10

FillMeIn:AndLeadMeIn

Notallfillsarelongintricateideas,somearesimpleafewnoteslong.Theseshortquickfillsusually
leadintoabighitbytherestoftheband.Mostofthetimetheyarenotflashyandusuallyareplayed
ontheirownwithoutanymovingnotesfromtherestoftheband.Essentiallythebandplays,cutsout,
thequickfillisplayed,andeveryonecomesbackinfullboardonthelastnoteofthefill.Thereisn't
muchmoretosayaboutthesefillsotherthanlookatwhatIhavecomeupwithandgetsomeideas.
Youwillhearonebarofgrooveandthelast2beatsofthesecondmeasurearetheleadinfill...

00:0600:11
Patchwork

Thereisnorealtricktocreatingtheseotherthanexperimenting.Theonlymethodologyyoureally
haveistotakeonebeatfragmentsandpatchworkthemtogetheruntilyougetafillyoulike.Again,
breakyourfillideasdownintoonebeatfragmentssothattheyareeasiertomanageandvarywhere
yournoteslandonthedifferentdrums.

Anothertrickistomimicthemelodyofthesongbutintheamongstthetoneofthedrumset.Ifyougo
thisroute,tryaddingvariousrhythmicflourishestothemelodyandinterjectsectionsthatarenotthe
melodyandarestrictlyjustdrumfill.

Hereisalongerfillthatencompassesdifferentideassothatyoucanhopefullygetsomeideas
yourself...

00:0000:15

BeatBase

Thelastconceptyoucanuseisacompilationofsortsofthepreviousideas.Youtakethebeatyou
justwereplayingandusetherhythmicmelodyandflowofthebeatasthebasistoyourfill.Youcan
mimethebeatverbatimoryoucanaddflourishestothefill,eitherwaywillwork.Takealistenandtry
topickoutthebeat...

00:0000:08

Fills,Fills,Fills:Review

ThereisnotmuchtosayaboutBrazilianfillsotherthanbecreativeanddon'tbescaredtotry
somethingnew.Ifyouareamoremethodicalpersonthentrygoingthemelodicmimicroute.Either
wayshouldexpandyourmindandbecreativethinklikeamusician!

BrazilianinReview

Repeatingmyselfonceagain,thatisanawfullotofmaterialtocover!Brazilianmusicistrickytosay
theleastandisnotnormallysomethingyouheareveryday.

RememberthatsyncopationandthekickarethekeyconceptstoBrazilianmusicandyouwillbeable
tobuildanythingfromthere.ThedrumsetismerelyareductionofafulldrumsectioninBrazilian
musicsoitshouldsoundlikeafulldrumsection.Rememberalsothattheoffbeataccentisintegral
toanBrazilianflavoraswellasAfroCuban.

IfyouhavedonebothmyAfroCubanandthistutorialthenyouarereadytogoforLatinmusic.Try
fusingbothifyourintocomposingandseewhatyouget!Ihopeyouhavelearnedalotfromreading
thistutorialandnowhavemoremusicalchoicesatyourdisposal.Thanksforreading!

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