The 1/8th Note Backbeat

This is one of the first videos any true beginner should watch. You will learn the basics of keeping time on the drums as well as how to play an 1/8th note backbeat which is the first beginner beat pattern that you need to learn. This is the foundation for playing most grooves (also known as beats) that we hear in popular music today. 1/8th notes are a rhythm that are two notes per beat and that’s what you will be playing on the cymbals. The backbeat is the sound of the Snare Drum played on beats 2 and 4. This basic hand-pattern is the most widely played by drummers in most styles of music.

As you progress on the drums, you sill see just how important the backbeat is. You learn many new rhythms and skills, but they will all be layers that you add on top of something fundamental. The backbeat is like the cake. Everything else is the icing on top.

Keeping Time On The Drums

In this lesson you will learn how important it is for you to count out loud when you practice. This beginner beat pattern will help you learn how to keep time in music, which is the main responsibility of a drummer in music. This is the key to your success as a drummer. Don’t go any further until you can easily play the examples along with me in this video. Download the PDF and you will see the notation for four variations of the backbeat. Practice each one without the Bass Drum first, then add the Bass Drum to it. Don’t forget to count the rhythm out loud when you practice.

Download The PDF: 1/8th Note Backbeat

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  1/8th Note Backbeat

• When you see two notes grouped together like this, we call these 1/8th notes (eighth). Notice how this rhythm is counted 1, and, 2, and, 3, and, 4, and.

  

• The notes written with an "x" above the staff are the 1/8th notes you play on the Hi-Hats. The regular notes that you see on beats 2 and 4 are played on the Snare Drum.

  

• The notes written with an "x" on the top line of the musical staff are the 1/8th notes you play on the Ride Cymbal.