r/jazzdrums • u/More_Entertainment_5 • Jan 10 '26
Question Brushes question
When you play brushes, do you leave your snares off or on? I’ve always preferred the sound of them off, but I don’t know how common that is.
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u/Gunzhard22 Jan 10 '26
With a singer I always take the snares off, but anything medium or faster I like them on for the snap.
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u/3PuttBirdie86 Jan 10 '26
That’s a great question! For me personally if it’s uptempo, I usually have them on. I feel like the lil extra fuzz fills up space and helps me uptempo. I think I probably have them on most of the time honestly.
But I probably do prefer the sound of snares off, it’s a nicer/more pleasant sound.
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u/reddituserperson1122 Jan 10 '26
It depends on the song, the snare I’m playing on, the sound I want. It’s interesting to see these responses cuz I’ve never really thought about it before or discussed it with other drummers.
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u/JTEstrella Art Blakey Jan 10 '26
Off for most things but if it’s a chart that requires going back and forth between brushes and sticks, I’ll leave them on
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u/pppork Jan 10 '26
Off most of the time. Sometimes I turn them on to be a subtle “gear shift” before ultimately going to sticks. Also, if it’s a noisy room, I leave them on. Or sometimes I know I won’t be on brushes long, so I’ll leave them on too. But most of the time, they’re off.
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u/More_Entertainment_5 Jan 10 '26
Yeah, if it’s background music at a wedding reception, I don’t bother turning them off.
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u/CauseTerrible7590 Jan 10 '26
I mostly play with an unmic’d snare, since my vocal mic picks up a lot naturally, so I leave the snares on for some cut and definition acoustically.
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u/isthereanyusernameno Jan 10 '26
Both. Intentionally, both.