Abidextrous drumming...

Ambidextrous

Junior Member
Hello guys! just joined this forum, nice to meet u guys! I started this thread to discuss about the topic AMBIDEXTROUS DRUMMING. I have seen many ambidextrous drummers like Mike Mangini, Randy black and Simon Philips. Well assumed by the way they set up their kits, Mike Mangini and Randy Black's drum kits are symmetrical on both sides... I am ambidextrous too so i really wanted to follow the way they set up. But i have this one important question... Why do we need to set up both sides the same? they produces same sounds! to show that u are ambidextrous? or there are different things u could do with them? anyway. One more thing to clarify... Is it the way u set up ur kit that shows which side u are dominant with? I personally think that DRUMS & Percussions are all "Center handed" as it does not show which side like a guitar does... so yeah its the way u hit it that shows ur handedness right?
 
Re: Ambidextrous drumming...

I can't speak for anyone else, but personally I have found that I started with a very typical right hand set up and tried different things for a few weeks at a time until I came up with what just "felt right", although I still try out new things from time to time.

Fair warning however, if your setup is too radical you may run into trouble when/if you are going to use another kit (recording for instance). My last experience in the studio put me in a time crunch and as such I did not want to transport my kit back and forth. This left me with the only other option which was to use the studio's kit. Luckily, it was setup very similar to my kit and I did not need to move things around too much.

For the record, I am ambidextrous by nature also, and I have found that you just need to find out where you are most comfortable and go with it. If you see something new or interesting, try it. If it feels good, keep it; if not, change it back.

In the end, you are the one that needs to be comfortable when you sit down at your kit, no one else.
 
I play open (left hand hats and ride, right hand on snare) and many people confuse that will ambidextrous playing. It's not! I am just as set in my ways as someone who crosses their right hand over to play hats.

I have never pursued ambidexterity. It seems like it would be nice to have but I have a limited amount of time to practice so I just focus on what I know.
 
I have always found open style of playing really interesting, but could never get into it.
 
Hey man, welcome to the forum.

If you do a search, you will find that we have already had some really intense discussions about this topic...you may find it interesting to read them.
 
The term 'ambidextrous' is used alot in drumming.. but without truly meaning it.

Ambidexterity around the kit has been manifested in many ways
-Open handed playing
-Lefty vs righty setups
-Lefty playing right hand lead
-righty playing left hand lead
-etc etc

There are so many things that resemble 'ambidexterity'. Not sure exactly which one you're talking about. Simon Phillips is predominantly right handed, but he plays open handed. Apparently he said he used to play trad even but switched to open handed.

The term 'dominant hand' is also one used very loosely. Which hand is dominant anyway? The one you use to play your hi hat? The one you use to play your ride? The one you brush your teeth with?

I guess a good way to start your answer finding is to search up old threads regarding open handed playing.
 
yeah its the way you hit doenst have to be open handed however doing that means you are leading with your left essentially. dave lombardo is naturally ambi.. which accounts for the great accents and things in his fills. really just practise everything left hand lead however from experience with other instruments you will always be weaker on one side unless you are naturally ambi


cant be arsed spelling that damn word!
 
Oh thx for ur opinions! KEEP THEM COMING!!! love to hear from u guys... btw, Do u guys think that drummers (Not ambidextrous) train to be ambidextrous? Does ambidextrous skills help in drumming?
 
Hello guys! just joined this forum, nice to meet u guys! I started this thread to discuss about the topic AMBIDEXTROUS DRUMMING. I have seen many ambidextrous drummers like Mike Mangini, Randy black and Simon Philips. Well assumed by the way they set up their kits, Mike Mangini and Randy Black's drum kits are symmetrical on both sides... I am ambidextrous too so i really wanted to follow the way they set up. But i have this one important question... Why do we need to set up both sides the same? they produces same sounds! to show that u are ambidextrous? or there are different things u could do with them? anyway. One more thing to clarify... Is it the way u set up ur kit that shows which side u are dominant with? I personally think that DRUMS & Percussions are all "Center handed" as it does not show which side like a guitar does... so yeah its the way u hit it that shows ur handedness right?

This is the first time I've seen ANYONE use the term "center handed" in the wild and for that I'm very proud. I've always considered myself "center handed"; it's a term I learned from playing Quake II back in the late 1990's and from that point on I started to call myself that.

Make sure you brush your teeth with your left hand too, as well as your right!

If you wanna further it, you have to become "involuntary" on either side. When I do a certain casino gig here in my neck of the woods I will put my computer next to me where I can reach it and I actually write code with my right hand as I'm playing with my left hand. It's an exercise in bilateral division of the right & left brain.
 
I worked a few years on being less "right hand" leading in my drumming.

As I got more fascile with it I started to find my compositions to range into places i didnt like...I was more hesitant and less likely to find unique ideas.

i ended up training myself back to dominate hand lead.

it was great...as it developed some left hand side abilities i didnt have before...but be aware of its effects on what you have to say musically...might give you more...it took away from mine even once i stuck it out and got comfortable.

The basics of nerology have alot to say about this...equal competition does not allow as much stronger inervation as limited strong competition(my source comes from monoccular deprivation studies in felines back in the 80's).

Whether that is in play in my experience is a question.
 
Ride horses. They are as one-sided as we are, and have to be helped to become straight and even - which is when the magic happens. It takes strength, feeling and intuition. Job done!
 
I'm wondering: Why would anyone be obsessed about being totally ambidextrous?
If we assume that one needs as much technique as is required to play the music that is in
one's head, or that fits the musical situation - what would be some situations you feel the
need to be ambidextrous?

If it's just the thought that maybe it could help a drummer, it could lead to a lifelong obsession
with practicing and technique neglecting actually making and practicing music, I guess.
 
I'm wondering: Why would anyone be obsessed about being totally ambidextrous?
If we assume that one needs as much technique as is required to play the music that is in
one's head, or that fits the musical situation - what would be some situations you feel the
need to be ambidextrous?

If it's just the thought that maybe it could help a drummer, it could lead to a lifelong obsession
with practicing and technique neglecting actually making and practicing music, I guess.

I was just about to post this /\.
There is such a thing as too much choice.
 
I was just about to post this /\.
There is such a thing as too much choice.


That's true, but for me learning to use my left side (almost) as equally as my right was all about being flexible. Also, there's a certain feel that comes with playing something unfamiliar, a "seat of the pants innocence" that sometimes is called for.

Can't tell you how many sessions I've done where the producer said "I want you to sound like a 15 year old kid in the garage" and in order to accommodate that sort of janky, angsty feel, switched to left hand lead on the hats.

So aside from giving one more command over their instrument it's also giving one command over the textures and lines that are to be drawn.
 
Freaky, I had no idea about horses have a dominant side. What do they do that shows it?

They tend to bend slightly to one side, rather than being completely straight, which is fine if you're riding a circle in the direction of the bend, but if you're riding one in the other direction you have to create the right amount of bend on the other side of the horse, and if you're riding a straight line you have to compensate for the bend in order to achieve straightness. Also, they will favour one foreleg when they strike off in canter, which is also affected by the horse having a preference as to which hind leg s/he prefers to take the weight on. Young, unbalanced, inexperienced horses usually have to be taught to strike off with the correct leg if it isn't the one they favour.
 
Billy Cobham is big on this. Being even both ways. There is a fellow out this way who is truly ambidextrous, Bryant Mills. He plays left hat and ride like Cobham does, with the hat down low (which makes it really difficult to sit in on his kit). But he also plays other rhythms on his right hand. He's fairly notorious for playing a regular pattern with his left hand and then playing cowbell and conga parts on the toms with with his right. As with most gospel/church drummers he leads fills either way depending on the voicing he wants. That's about as ambidextrous as I would think someone would want to be. I suppose you could reverse the use of your feet, but I'm not sure there's an advantage there.
 
Specifically regarding Mike Mangini's reasons for his "apex" setup, he can play a chromatic scale using alternate single strokes. This is not possible with a "normal" kit.
 
Hello! for years I'm learning drums equally to the right and left (hands and feet)
Your video was very cool, but I couldn't help thinking you were making choices based on displaying your centre handed skills rather than nailing the groove. Now, if showing those skills is the intent of the video, then great. If not, I'm picking up a slightly mechanical feel to your playing that doesn't allow the groove to settle.

Please bear in mind that this is not a criticism of your chosen path, I think it has huge merit, especially in the context of applications highlighted by Bill. Also consider that my comments are coming from a player who's left hand skills are a joke TBH, so please take them for what they're worth ;)
 
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