Drums Sheet Music: Learn how to read music in 5 minutes
by DrummersArt
July 27, 2018
Learning how to read sheet music automatically opens a lot of doors as a drummer and a musician. Luckily for a drummer, it is a little easier to understand the logic behind it. In drums, sheet music is slightly different from other instruments. So here is an easy and quick guide to master the sheet music reading.
.jpg)
Image by Zachary Sumners
1. The Staff
All written music is represented on the Staff or Stave. It consists of five horizontal lines with four spaces in-between.
On the Staff, we write all the information that we need in order to understand or play a musical piece, like time signature and musical notes. It usually works in two dimensions, where the Pitch is represented vertically and the Rhythm (duration) horizontally.
2. The Clef
The Clef is a symbol that determines the pitch of the notes written on the staff. In other words, the clef tells us which note goes where on the staff. However, in the case of the drum set, it is represented slightly different from other instruments like piano, guitar or a trumpet.
The drums are a non-pitched percussion instrument. Therefore the notes on the clef don't represent a definitive pitch but, rather, a specific instrument, like the snare, cymbal and hi-hat. That's why we use a neutral clef, which is a symbol that tells us that the notes written on the Staff don't have a definitive pitch.
3. Notes Values
The note value defines the duration of a musical note. An easy way of understanding note value is by using numbers. It all starts with a whole note that is equal to 1, and from here you just start dividing by two.
If we divide a whole note by 2 we have 2 half notes, where their single value is 1/2, and if we divide one of the half note by 2, we have 2 quarter notes with a single value of 1/4, and so on. An easier way of understanding the Note Value is by looking the Diagram Below, where the black bars represent a the single note value.
So, if a whole note fits in a bar, it means that there could be also 4 quarter notes, or 8 eighth note, or any combinations that fit the whole note value, like 1 half note, 1 quarter note and 2 eight notes. Is just a matter of summing up and dividing. Also as you can see each note value is represented by diferente symbols. You just have to learn the first 4, and from there you just add another flag.
4. Beaming
From the Eighth Note to shorter notes, we use flags to differentiate their note value. So the shorter the note, we use more flags.
For example, the Eighth note has 1 flag, so if we want it to be a Sixteenth note we add another flag, and so on. However, the flags are only used when it is a single note.
If we have two or more consecutive notes with flags, we use a beam to connect them. The beams are horizontal lines that connect two or more notes and have the same value as the flags. The number of beams corresponds to the number of flags so we can differentiate the note value. For example, if we have two beams, it means the notes are sixteenth notes.
In the beaming process, when you have multiple notes with different values, you just add the beams to the corresponding space of the note. For example, in the image above there are three beaming situations.
In the first image, there are 4 sixteenth notes, so we connect them using two beams. In the second image we have 3 sixteenth notes and 1 eight note, so we add two beams, one that connects the 4 notes, and other that only connect 3 of them (the 16th notes). Finally, we have a one-sixteenth note and one-eight note, so we use a beam that connects both notes, and then add the second one that in this case doesn't connect the notes but indicates that the first note is a sixteenth note.
5. Rests
The Rest is a silent pause with a determined lenght, which follows the same logic of the note value. Basically, each note value has a corresponding rest that lasts the same amount of time.
6. Measures (Bars)
It is important to understand that the staff is divided by measures or bars, which are essential for defining the pulse of the musical piece. So basically, the end (and beginning) of a measure is represented with Bar Lines.
For now, you just have to learn the Standard Bar Line, which separates each measure, and the End Bar Line, which represents the end of the whole musical piece.
7. Time Signature
It represents the number of beats that can fit in a single bar. It is represented by the two numbers on the left side of the staff. The Top Number represents how many beats can fit on the bar, while the Bottom Number shows the note value of the beat.
So, if we have a 4/4 time signature, it means that the in a single bar there can only fit 4 quarter notes (or the equivalent to it). Also, as you can see below, a 6/8 time signature doesn't mean it can only be 6 eight notes on the bar, but rather that the length of the bar has to be equivalent to the length of 6 eight notes. For more about Time Signature click here.
8. Tempo
It indicates the speed of the musical piece. In other words, the tempo tells us how many notes fit in a minute, and therefore how fast is the pulse of the musical pieces. Usually, the quarter note is used as a reference, so if the tempo is equal to 60bpm, it means that the pulse is based on the speed of 60 quarter notes in a minute.
9. Ties & Dots
Sometimes the sole nature of notes are not enough for what we want to express rhythmically, so we used other methods. Let's say you want to play a note that is just between the length of a half note and a quarter note you have two options:
Dots:
First, you can add a dot next to the note you want to extend by one half its value. So if you have a quarter note and add a dot, the note will last one-quarter note plus one-eighth note. And if you have a one-eighth note and add a dot, the note value will be one eighth plus one-sixteenth note.
Ties:
The ties follow the same logic, however, instead of adding just a dot, you add a tie that connects a note with another. So, the equivalent of a dotted quarter note is a tie that connects the quarter note with the eight note.
​
This might seem too long compared with the dots, however, the ties can be very useful. As you can see with the ties you connect one note with the note value you want to add, so it is not limited to "one half" of the original note. This means that if you have a note that doesn't fit a bar, you can connect notes between bars so they are equivalent to that original note. In the example below, if we want to add a half note we use the tie between bars.
Staff Diagram
Staff Diagram
*Use this diagram to get a general picture of how a sheet music looks like, before learning the Drum Set notation.
10. Drum Set Instruments Notation
As you know the drum set is made up of many other instruments, including different types of drums and cymbals. Also, as I said before, in the case of the drum set, the notes on the Staff don't represent a pitch but an instrument.
That means that every line and space on the Staff correspond to a specific part of the drum set. However, the Staff is not enough to represent all the possible combinations of drums that you can add to the Drum Set, so it is limited to the most important and common instruments.
Drums Notation
Cymbals Notation
As you can see, Drum's symbols (ovals) are different from the ones used for cymbals (x). This difference makes it easier to identify them and less confusing. Also, although the drum set is a non-pitched instrument, it does have some of this logic behind.
When you can have multiple variations of the same instruments within the drum set (like Tom-toms or Crash Cymbals), a way to differentiate them on the sheet music is by placing them higher on the staff depending on their sound. In other words, if one Rack-Tom have higher notes that another Rack-Tom, it will be placed higher on the staff.
Go Practice!
Now that you know the basics, try practicing. The best way to get better at reading Sheet Music is by doing over and over again. Try it out with some of the Legendary Beats we have transcribed. Or look for your favorite songs online. Either way, just practice.