I also slowly shift where the cymbals are in my preparation so that the cymbals are more vertical the softer I get. The crash still needs a flam but the angle is smaller, the softer you get.
The soft crash is slightly different than a mf crash or louder because all of the movements are minimized. Just like with snare drum, I spend specific time practicing soft. I do all of this at a mf or louder dynamic. Once I have consistent crashes I work through his exercises on page 33 & 34 to start controlling the cymbals with a specific tempo on the metronome. Keith Aleo‘s book Complementary Percussion, is a fantastic resource for exercises and etudes to work on all complementary instruments. My focus is on sound and my hands executing the same motion every time for a consistent crash.
#Suspended cymbal roll sibelius ultimate series#
I play a series of crashes at no particular tempo with the goal of them all sounding the same. Not an easy task! So this is how I start my practice routine. You should be able to play 10 crashes in a row and they all sound the same. Consistency is a huge part of cymbal playing. Now that we have a basic crash, we need to be able to repeat it. When the top hits first (my personally feeling is) the hands and arms have to do more work to get the cymbals apart. The video below shows how gravity can help the cymbals come apart. When choosing which end of the cymbal should hit first in my flam I prefer the bottom hitting first because the natural weight of the cymbals and gravity cause the cymbals to come back apart. This is an often forgotten part of the crash and can lead to the dreaded air pocket. Once we find a nice comfortable angle at which the cymbals can come together, the cymbals have to come apart. I’m not worried about the sound so much right now as I am finding a comfortable flam between the two cymbals. I also practice the cymbals coming together in super slow motion to find the best angle in which they like to come together. All percussionists are more familiar with the air pocket than they would care to admit…
This will prevent the air in-between the cymbals from ever being totally trapped and compressed, which causes an “air pocket”. You can have the top hit first or the bottom hit first. The first thing we are all taught is that the cymbals need to come together with a flam. This should cover the mf and above dynamic. So how should we practice cymbals? Learning a good basic crash should be the first item on the to do list. Scheduling regular practice time on cymbals in vital to having a good, consistent crash. Just like your soft snare drum roll, if you don’t spend dedicated time to practicing it, chances are it isn’t going to be very good. I also think that cymbals can be one of the most intimidating instruments to play especially for younger students. We sit in the back of the orchestra for so long, waiting for a chance to play, that it is nice to be creative when given the chance. The color palette is extremely wide and the opportunities for experimentation are just as many. They can define a huge climax or color a soft, delicate passage. Cymbals are one of my favorite instruments to play in the orchestra.
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