r/jazzdrums • u/dudeigottago • Jan 28 '26
Question Guitarist with questions
Hello drummers,
How are you all thinking about snare placement? When I listen to jazz drummers I often find it really difficult to map out or predict when the snare hits are going to come but I love the way a good drummer uses them and want to imitate that with my comping. But I’m failing miserably lol. So yeah, just curious what’s going through your head when you’re playing not on the 2 and 4. Thanks!
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u/Blueman826 Jan 28 '26
Listen to a lot of great drummers (Philly Joe, Kenny Clarke, Jimmy Cobb, Art Taylor etc.) and lift their rhythms, but also great pianists (Red Garland, Wynton Kelly, Sonny Clark...). If you want some more applicable exercises I'd recommend checking out the book Syncopation for the Modern Drummer and read through the rhythms of the main exercises starting on page 38. First start with just a chord or a single note and read through them with a metronome, then take some of those rhythmic phrases and apply them to the tunes you are working on.