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Topic: Drum Roll (Read 4218 times) previous topic - next topic

Drum Roll

How do you do a drum roll?

Re: Drum Roll

Reply #1
On a drum staff (a staff set to channel 10) put a base clef and use the note just below the first ledger under the clef (it would be a D). Make the duration 32nd notes and if you want vary them a little so it sounds more realistic

Re: Drum Roll

Reply #2
BASS clef!


Re: Drum Roll

Reply #4
How would u do it on a timpani?

Re: Drum Roll

Reply #5
With both feet on the floor and holding on to the handrails.

Re: Drum Roll

Reply #6
Sorry I'm so late... To do it for a timpani, DO NOT use channel ten use a regular channel, and select timpani from the instrument tab in the staff properties. Use the pitch of the note to select the pitch of the timpany.

Re: Drum Roll

Reply #7
Many people also use two different pitches, say a B and a C for a rolling B.  I avoid this because it sounds like an out-of-tune timpani to me.  I also use a sustain pedal (yes, as is used for piano parts) to help achieve a more realistic sound.

Re: Drum Roll

Reply #8
Depending on your soundcard/font, sustain or just plain legato/slur over the repeated notes can make things sound better. Another tip is to accent the first one or two notes in a roll (particularly a loud one) to emphasise the attack. Where there is a roll followed by a rest, or at the end of a piece, you may also have to replace the repeated notes with one or more rests so that the timp. stops playing when everyone else does; this applies to string tremolos also.

 

Re: Drum Roll

Reply #9
>>How do you do a drum roll?<<

Depending on your sound card, one single note can play the whole roll.  In my case, it's the F waaaaay down on the staff.  Start from the normal F, then go down two octaves.  That's where my drum roll is.

As for timpani, I just write what sounds good.  I usually use sixteenth triplets, or thirty-seconds.