I spent a whole summer in college thinking about this very topic...which as I look back seems sad. Apparently I had no life...nonetheless, a whole summer of flip flopping, asking fellow skinbashers, finding out how my drumming idols gripped their sticks...it was a fierce war...much blood was shed, many tears were cried, countless sleepless nights spent worried that if I picked the wrong grip certain death would ensue...
Maybe it wasn't that dramatic, but I lived in a small town in south Mississippi...I had to create my own drama.
All joking aside, there does seem to be a steep divide between proponents of Traditional grip and the supporters of Matched grip. Is one better? Does one provide more finesse? Is one easier? If I'm not going to play marching snare or jazz, is there a reason to learn traditional? Will Simon Cowell ever get a better haircut?(Sorry, that one slipped in...but really, it's time Simon.)
The reason I was pondering this question was strictly for practical reasons. I found that my right hand was vastly out playing my left. Reason: I was constantly switching between traditional and matched grip in my left hand, depending on the gig. If I was playing a jazz standard or a ballad, it was traditional grip. If it was a pop, rock, or funk tune, I played matched. If I was studying my rudiments, traditional. If I was playing orchestral percussion, matched...and so on and so forth. It was driving me mad. I had better finesse with traditional but a stronger backbeat with matched. I could play certain things with traditional grip that I couldn't play with matched grip, and vice versa.
If I had been playing one type of gig consistently, no worries. I would have picked the most useful grip and gone with that. Problem was, I was playing with anywhere from 9 to 12 different groups. Big Band, Orchestra, Rock, Latin, Early Jazz, Indie Rock, Gospel, Funk, Reggae...
So I picked them apart and here's what I came up with...
Traditional
Traditional grip originally came about the same way most other innovations do, through necessity. Drums were originally slung around the right shoulder while marching, making it impossible to hit the drum consistently without modifying the grip...and so the hand was turned over and traditional grip began.
The two areas that employ this method the most are rudimental (marching) snare and jazz. That's not to say that there aren't any rock or pop drummers that use this grip...Glenn Kotche, Stewart Copeland, Brian Chase (Yeah Yeah Yeahs), Vinnie Colaiuta to name a few.
I think that it's a carryover in the rudimental world. It's just been passed down as a sort of tradition (no pun intended). Drums are no longer slung over the shoulder...they're carried on both shoulders, so it's definitely not a necessity issue. No other percussive instrument is played with this grip, they're all played with matched or a variation thereof.
The motion in the left hand is not a real natural movement for the hand (i.e. you wouldn't pick up a stick and naturally grip and swing it that way). When learning the basics of the grip, it's definitely harder for a beginner to grasp the fundamentals of getting the fingers to move in that way...it's kind of cumbersome to be honest. Playing hard hitting backbeats requires more practice (it can be done, I'm just saying it takes longer). That being said, after it's learned it's every bit as useful and effective as matched.
In the jazz world I believe it's partially a carryover and partially a finesse thing. If you'll allow me to get a little philosophical on you, I believe the grip itself creates a "cradling" type effect (at least it does in my mind). That's the main reason I would use it for ballads, I could play softer and with more finesse (feeling) easier than I could with matched grip. And on a side note, I actually think it looks cooler and way more sophisticated to play traditional...but that's not what this is about...
Matched
There are three different "grips" within the matched grip category...German, French, or a compromise of the two called American grip (I lean heavily towards American grip). Matched grip is how my 21 month old son picks up the sticks...it's just natural. I actually put the stick in his left hand this morning in the traditional grip position...he hit the drum a couple of times, made a face, and turned the stick around. Although alot of the true "jazzers" use traditional grip, it seems the new school of jazz drummers are embracing matched just as much as traditional (Check out progressive drummers Bill Stewart, David King, and Ari Hoenig for instance).
Matched is by far the most popular within the pop and rock categories...Travis Barker (he seems to lean towards German matched grip), Carter Beauford (seems to prefer French matched grip), and Will Champion (mostly American grip) just to name a few. This particular grip is also the most transferrable to other percussive instruments, as I mentioned earlier...Concert snare, bass drum, quads, timbales, xylophone, etc.
The one drawback I came across was the finesse factor. I found if I was playing a jazz gig or a groove that required alot of ghosting on the snare, I was more comfortable with traditional. My comping in jazz with matched grip was awful.
Conclusion
As you may have guessed, all of this deliberation helped me come to my decision at the end of the summer...and matched grip won.
I knew that I would eventually be playing mostly pop gigs and it just seemed more practical. I also thought that if I could become better at finessing my left hand through working on my snare "chatter" in jazz and working on my ghosting in pop grooves, it would deepen my feel and groove.
And it did.
I no longer have to worry about keeping my left hand up to speed between traditional and matched, I just focus on playing everything with a matched grip. I prefer the neutral, or American, form of matched grip. German is a little stiff for me and French puts your wrists at a disadvantage when hitting the drums hard (I learned this the hard way and had to spend a few hundred dollars for a Doc to straighten my wrists out...more on that later).
I've also found it works better with the students I teach. If they're not in marching band, there's really no reason for them to put the time and effort into learning the grip....except for passing on the history of the instrument...so I always give them the choice. Seems we can start focusing on learning the drums quicker and not spend quite so much time on learning an unnatural feeling grip.
At least that's what I think...and that's what matters in my world...
What type of grip you use is completely up to you, your style of playing, and your goals. I don't care which one you choose as they're both equally useful. I do, however, encourage you to concentrate on one or the other. I know the ins and outs of traditional grip and can play it just fine, as well as teach others the fundamentals, but I no longer use it (occasionally with brush work, but I'm trying to re-learn my patterns with matched).
And writing this assured me that I am in fact in need of more friends to fill up my free time...
Maybe it wasn't that dramatic, but I lived in a small town in south Mississippi...I had to create my own drama.
All joking aside, there does seem to be a steep divide between proponents of Traditional grip and the supporters of Matched grip. Is one better? Does one provide more finesse? Is one easier? If I'm not going to play marching snare or jazz, is there a reason to learn traditional? Will Simon Cowell ever get a better haircut?(Sorry, that one slipped in...but really, it's time Simon.)
The reason I was pondering this question was strictly for practical reasons. I found that my right hand was vastly out playing my left. Reason: I was constantly switching between traditional and matched grip in my left hand, depending on the gig. If I was playing a jazz standard or a ballad, it was traditional grip. If it was a pop, rock, or funk tune, I played matched. If I was studying my rudiments, traditional. If I was playing orchestral percussion, matched...and so on and so forth. It was driving me mad. I had better finesse with traditional but a stronger backbeat with matched. I could play certain things with traditional grip that I couldn't play with matched grip, and vice versa.
If I had been playing one type of gig consistently, no worries. I would have picked the most useful grip and gone with that. Problem was, I was playing with anywhere from 9 to 12 different groups. Big Band, Orchestra, Rock, Latin, Early Jazz, Indie Rock, Gospel, Funk, Reggae...
So I picked them apart and here's what I came up with...
Traditional
Traditional grip originally came about the same way most other innovations do, through necessity. Drums were originally slung around the right shoulder while marching, making it impossible to hit the drum consistently without modifying the grip...and so the hand was turned over and traditional grip began.
The two areas that employ this method the most are rudimental (marching) snare and jazz. That's not to say that there aren't any rock or pop drummers that use this grip...Glenn Kotche, Stewart Copeland, Brian Chase (Yeah Yeah Yeahs), Vinnie Colaiuta to name a few.
I think that it's a carryover in the rudimental world. It's just been passed down as a sort of tradition (no pun intended). Drums are no longer slung over the shoulder...they're carried on both shoulders, so it's definitely not a necessity issue. No other percussive instrument is played with this grip, they're all played with matched or a variation thereof.
The motion in the left hand is not a real natural movement for the hand (i.e. you wouldn't pick up a stick and naturally grip and swing it that way). When learning the basics of the grip, it's definitely harder for a beginner to grasp the fundamentals of getting the fingers to move in that way...it's kind of cumbersome to be honest. Playing hard hitting backbeats requires more practice (it can be done, I'm just saying it takes longer). That being said, after it's learned it's every bit as useful and effective as matched.
In the jazz world I believe it's partially a carryover and partially a finesse thing. If you'll allow me to get a little philosophical on you, I believe the grip itself creates a "cradling" type effect (at least it does in my mind). That's the main reason I would use it for ballads, I could play softer and with more finesse (feeling) easier than I could with matched grip. And on a side note, I actually think it looks cooler and way more sophisticated to play traditional...but that's not what this is about...
Matched
There are three different "grips" within the matched grip category...German, French, or a compromise of the two called American grip (I lean heavily towards American grip). Matched grip is how my 21 month old son picks up the sticks...it's just natural. I actually put the stick in his left hand this morning in the traditional grip position...he hit the drum a couple of times, made a face, and turned the stick around. Although alot of the true "jazzers" use traditional grip, it seems the new school of jazz drummers are embracing matched just as much as traditional (Check out progressive drummers Bill Stewart, David King, and Ari Hoenig for instance).
Matched is by far the most popular within the pop and rock categories...Travis Barker (he seems to lean towards German matched grip), Carter Beauford (seems to prefer French matched grip), and Will Champion (mostly American grip) just to name a few. This particular grip is also the most transferrable to other percussive instruments, as I mentioned earlier...Concert snare, bass drum, quads, timbales, xylophone, etc.
The one drawback I came across was the finesse factor. I found if I was playing a jazz gig or a groove that required alot of ghosting on the snare, I was more comfortable with traditional. My comping in jazz with matched grip was awful.
Conclusion
As you may have guessed, all of this deliberation helped me come to my decision at the end of the summer...and matched grip won.
I knew that I would eventually be playing mostly pop gigs and it just seemed more practical. I also thought that if I could become better at finessing my left hand through working on my snare "chatter" in jazz and working on my ghosting in pop grooves, it would deepen my feel and groove.
And it did.
I no longer have to worry about keeping my left hand up to speed between traditional and matched, I just focus on playing everything with a matched grip. I prefer the neutral, or American, form of matched grip. German is a little stiff for me and French puts your wrists at a disadvantage when hitting the drums hard (I learned this the hard way and had to spend a few hundred dollars for a Doc to straighten my wrists out...more on that later).
I've also found it works better with the students I teach. If they're not in marching band, there's really no reason for them to put the time and effort into learning the grip....except for passing on the history of the instrument...so I always give them the choice. Seems we can start focusing on learning the drums quicker and not spend quite so much time on learning an unnatural feeling grip.
At least that's what I think...and that's what matters in my world...
What type of grip you use is completely up to you, your style of playing, and your goals. I don't care which one you choose as they're both equally useful. I do, however, encourage you to concentrate on one or the other. I know the ins and outs of traditional grip and can play it just fine, as well as teach others the fundamentals, but I no longer use it (occasionally with brush work, but I'm trying to re-learn my patterns with matched).
And writing this assured me that I am in fact in need of more friends to fill up my free time...
