"Wake 'n Break" Series

Today's wake 'n break is a slow samba groove with a "trailed" snare drum, meaning that there is a short decrescendo of ghost notes. Taking the feet first, our bass drum is falling on 1 and the "a" of 1, 2 and the "a" of 2, 3 and the "a" of 3, and on 4 and the "a" of 4. Meanwhile, our hi-hats are being chicked on all of the upbeats or "&'s". Moving along to our hands, our hi-hats have a simple eighth note pattern on "1&2&3" and on 4&". Next, our snare drum has an accented note on 4 as well as ghost notes on the "e" of 1, the "e" and "a" of 2, the "e" and "a" of 3, and on the the "e&a" of 4. Last but not least, we have a single tom note falling on the "&" of 3. As always, I hope you dig it and that you had a great three day weekend!

Wake n Break No. 1674 - Slow Samba Groove With A Snare Decrescendo

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is an uptempo hand to hand backbeat with a two bar bass drum phrase. Starting with the hi-hats, we have notes falling on "1e&a", the "e&a" of 2, on "3e&a", and on the "e&a" of 4, with accents on "3&" in both bars. Looking at the bass drum next, we have notes falling on 1 and the "a" of 1, the "&a" of 2, and on "3&" in both bars, with the second bar having an additional notes on 4. Last but not least, the snare drum is providing the backbeat on 2 and 4. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1675 - Hand To Hand Backbeat With A Two Bar Bass Drum Phrase

Notation available at:
 
Happy Humpday! ? Today's wake 'n break is a sparse two bar boom bap beat that utilizes a five spring Aura made by Morfbeats. Unfortunately, you can't see it from this angle because it is blocked by my high tom. Taking the feet first, the bass drum is falling on 1, "3&" in the first bar, followed by notes on 1, the "a" of 2, on "3&", and on the "a" of 4 in the second bar. Meanwhile, our hi-hats are providing the groove with its backbeat by being chicked on 2 and 4 in both bars. Looking at the Aura next, we have two pitches, with the lower pitch on the 1 of the first bar and on the "&" of 3 in the second bar. Meanwhile, our higher pitched spring is falling on the "a" of 1 in the first bar and on the "&a" of 2 and on 3 in the second bar. Moving along to the high tom, we have notes falling on the "&a" of 4 in the first bar. Last but not least, we have snare notes (with the wires dropped) on the "&a" of 1 and on 2. As always, I hope you dig it and hang in there, because we're already halfway through the workweek!

Wake n Break No. 1676 - Sparse Boom Bap Beat Utilizing A Five Spring Aura By Morfbeats

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is a two bar boom bap beat that utilizes a set of Pete Engelhart Blossom Bells which I have mounted off to the side of my kit. Taking the bass drum first, we have notes falling on "1&", the "a" of 2, the "e&" of 3, and on the "a" of 4 in both bars. Meanwhile, our hi-hats are falling on all of the upbeats or "&'s", which provides the groove with a bit of swing. Moving along to the bells, we have two different bells being struck simultaneously on the 1 of each bar, with the first bells being higher pitched than the second set. Last but not least, we have flams providing the backbeat on 2 and 4 in both bars. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1677 - Two Bar Flammed Boom Bap Beat For Blossom Bells

Notation available at:
 
Thank goodness it's Friday! :) Today's wake 'n break is built on top of a "boom chick" backbeat on the feet and utilizes an elbow lean to bend the pitch of the snare drum (with the wires dropped). Taking the feet first, our bass drum is falling on "1&" and on "3&". Meanwhile, our hi-hats are falling on 2 and 4. Last but not least, our snare has notes falling on the "trip" and "let" of 2, on "3 trip let", and on "4 trip let", and I'm leaning into and off of the snare drum with my elbow for the pitch bend. Some of these triplets are played slightly behind the beat to give an interesting feel to the groove. As always, I hope you dig it and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Wake n Break No. 1678 - Boom Chick Groove With A Pitch Bending Elbow Lean

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is a two bar phrase that is a composite of a bar of 3/4 followed by a bar of 5/4. Taking the bass drum first, we have notes falling on 1 and the "a" of 1 in the first bar. Meanwhile, we have notes falling on 1 and the "a" of 1, as well as on 4 and 5 in the second bar. Looking at the hi-hats next, we have a note on 1 as well as a chicked note on 3 in the first bar. In the second bar, we have notes falling on 1 and 4 as well as open hi-hat notes on 3 and 5. Last but not least, we come to the snare drum. In the first bar, we have an accented note on 2 as well as ghost notes on the "e&" of 1 and finally, we have accented notes on 2, the "e" of 4, and on 5. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1679 - Broken Feeling Groove Comprised of A Bar of 3/4 And A Bar of 5/4

Notation available at:
 
After a usual hour long trip home turning into a three hour long trip home, today's wake 'n break is finally up. Today's groove is comprised of sixteenth notes broken up between the bass drum, hi-hats, ride cymbal, and snare drum. Looking at the bass drum first, we have notes falling on "1e&a". Next, our ride cymbal is falling on 1 and on the "&" of 1. Moving along to the hi-hats, we have notes falling on the "e" and "a" of 1, the "&a" of 2, on "3e&a", and then an open note on the "&" of 4. Last but not least, our snare drum has accented notes falling on "2e" and on 4. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1680 - Backbeat With Sixteenth Note Bass Drum & Cymbal Unisons

Notation available at:
 
I've been having internet trouble all day but today's wake 'n break has finally loaded. Today's groove is a halftime backbeat in 6/8 where we have a cross rhythm being played on the hi-hats. Taking the bass drum first, we have notes falling on "1&", the "&" of 2, and on 3. Looking at the hi-hats next, we have notes falling on "1&", "3&", and "6&". Last but not least, our snare drum has an accented note on 4, as well as ghost notes on "2&" and on "6&". As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1681 - Halftime Backbeat In 6/8 With A Cross Rhythm On The Hi-hats

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is an aggressive two bar boom bap beat where the snare and ride cymbal are almost always falling in unison. Taking the feet first, our bass drum is falling on "1e&" in both bars, as well as on the "&" of 3 in the second bar. Meanwhile, the hi-hats are being lightly splashed on all of the downbeats. Moving along to the snare drum, we have notes falling on the "a" of 1, on "2e", and on 4 in both bars. In the second bar, however, we have additional notes on the "a" of 2 and on the "e" of 3. Also, there is a short little ruff leading into the 1 of both bars. Last but not least, the ride bell is falling in unison with the snare except for on the 4 in the first bar. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1682 - Aggressive Two Bar Boom Bap Beat With Snare & Ride Falling In Unison

I hurt my hand taking nasty spill this morning, so no notation today. Hoping it starts to feel better tomorrow.
 
Today's wake 'n break takes the traditional partido alto rhythm and applies it to a funky sixteenth note groove. Taking the hi-hats first, we have a steady stream of sixteenth notes on "1e&a 2e&a 3e&a 4e&a" with barked notes on the "e" of 2 and on the "e" of 3. Looking at the bass drum next, we have notes falling on 1, the "e" and "a" of 2, on the "e" of 3, and on "4&". Last but not least, our snare drum has accented notes on the "&" of 1, the "a" of 2, and on the "a" of 3, as well as ghost notes on the "a" of 1 and on 2. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1683 - Funky Sixteenth Note Groove Voicing The Traditional Partido Alto Rhythm

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is a halftime backbeat that is stripped down as much as possible. It's an incredibly simple and sparse groove in which the focus is on the touch and dynamics. Looking at the feet first, our bass drum is falling on 1 and on the "a" of 4 while our hi-hats are keeping a quarter note pulse on 1, 2, 3, and 4. Moving along to the ride cymbal, we have notes falling on "1e&a, 2e&a" with the first note being the loudest and then a decrescendo of ghost notes afterwards. Last but not least, our snare drum has notes falling on "3e&a, 4e&a" with an accented note on 3 and another decrescendo. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1684 - Incredibly Sparse Halftime Backbeat That Is All About The Dynamics/Touch

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is a boom bap backbeat that has a sixteenth and thirty second note snare lick starting on the 1. Taking the bass drum first, we have notes falling on "1&", the "&" of 2, and on the "e&" of 3. Looking at the snare next, we have a short flurry of 32nd notes starting on 1, followed by notes on the "&a" of 1, on "2&", and on 4. Last but not least, our hi-hats have notes falling on the "e&" of 2, "3e&a", and on "4e&", with openings on the "&" of 2 and on the "&" of 4. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1685 - Boom Bap Backbeat With A Short Snare Lick Starting On The One

Sorry, but I didn't have time to notate this one!
 
Today's wake 'n break is a four on the floor backbeat with a lot of flam action played on the hi-hats. Taking the bass drum first, we have a steady quarter note pulse on 1, 2, 3, and 4. Looking at the snare drum next, we have accented notes falling on 2 and 4. Last but not least, our hi-hats have notes falling on the "e&a" of 1, on "2&", on "3e" and the "a" of 3, and on the "&" of 4, with flams on the "e" of 1, the "&" of 2, on 3, and on the "&" of 4. As always, I hope you dig it and that your weekend is going well!

Wake n Break No. 1686 - Four On The Floor Backbeat With Heavily Flammed Hi-Hats

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is a shuffle groove where the shuffle is broken up between the snare drum and ride cymbal. Taking the feet first, our bass drum is falling on 1, the "let" of 1, and on the "let" of 4. Meanwhile, our hi-hats are keeping a quarter note pulse on 1, 2, 3, and 4. Moving along to the ride cymbal, we have notes falling on 1 and the "let" of 1, and on 3 and the "let" of 3. Last but not least, our snare drum has accented notes "2 trip let" and on "4 trip let", with ghost notes on the "trip" of 1 and on the "trip" of 3. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1687 - Shuffle Groove With Single Strokes Broken Up Between The Ride And Snare Drum

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is a 6/8 groove that utilizes the see saw technique to pull off a short flurry of 32nd notes on the hi-hats. Taking the bass drum first, we have notes falling on 1 and the "a" of 1, the "&" of 2, the "&" of 3, the "e" of 4, and on the "&" of 6. Next, our cross stick is keeping a steady pulse on 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. Last but not least, our hi-hats have notes falling on "1&2&3&4&", our short 32nd note flurry on 5, and then a final note on the "&" of 6. As always, I hope you dig it and my apologies for no notation, but my dog passed away this morning and am shocked I was even able to get behind the drums and play. Music is truly therapy.

Wake n Break No. 1688 - 6/8 Cross Stick Groove With Short Single Handed Flurry of 32nd Notes On The Hats
 
After yesterday's events, I was barely able to get myself behind the drums this morning for the first time in almost five years. Today's wake 'n break was more therapy for myself than anything else. When I say that this groove has a "pulled out" feel, it refers to the way the groove sounds as if it has had the rug pulled out from underneath it. Taking the bass drum first, we have notes falling on 1 and the "let" of 1. Looking at the hi-hats next, the first note we have is actually a ruff that leads into the first bass drum note, followed by more notes on the "trip" and "let" of 2, on 3 and then an open note on the "let" of 3. Last but not least, the snare drum is falling in unison with the hi-hats. As always, I hope you dig it and much love.

Wake n Break No. 1689 - Unique Halftime Shuffle With A Pulled Out Feel
 
Happy Humpday! ?Today's wake 'n break is a fat linear backbeat where all of our hi-hat notes are anticipated. We also have what feels like a quick skip played between the hi-hat and snare drum. Taking the bass drum first, we have notes falling on "1&" and on "3&". Next, our hi-hats are falling on the "e" and "a" of 1, the "e" and "a" of 2, the "e" and "a" of 3, and then an open note on the "e" of 4. Last but not least, the snare drum is falling on 2, the skip snare right after the "a" of 2, and finally on 4. Notations will be be back tomorrow. As always, I hope you dig it and hang in there because we're already halfway through the workweek!

Wake n Break No. 1690 - Linear Backbeat With Anticipated Hi-Hat Notes & A Slight Hi-Hat/Snare Skip
 
Today's wake 'n break is a dirty and slinky sixteenth note groove in 6/4. Taking the hi-hats first, we have a steady slew of sixteenth notes on "1e&a, 2e&a, 3e&a, 4e&a, 5e&a, 6e&a", with the "&a" of 4 and "5e&a" played as open notes. Next, our bass drum is falling on "1e", "2e", and "3e". Last but not least, our snare drum is falling on 2, on "4&", and on 6. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1691 - Slow And Slinky Sixteenth Note Groove In 6/4 With A Plodding Bass Drum

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is an eighth note waltz utilizing two sets of hi-hats. Taking the foot ostinato first, we have our bass drum falling on "1&", our main set of hi-hats falling on 2 and 3, and our auxiliary hats falling on the "&" of 2. Next, we have a steady slew of eighth notes on the hi-hats, counted "1&2&3&". Last but not least, we have a single cross stick falling on 3. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1692 - Cross Stick Groove With Dual Hi-hat Waltz

My hotel's wifi is absolute shit, so I haven't been able to load and edit the notation for this groove. I have it notated, so as soon as I'm back from my weekend vacation, I will add it.
 
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I'm in a hotel and it has the shittiest internet connection known to man. Today's wake 'n break utilizes a five spring Aura made by Morfbeats. The first bar and a half of this two bar groove voices the traditional bongo bell pattern while the last half of the second bar utilizes a guiro or reco reco technique. The entire time, I'm moving the cup of the bell cup away from and towards my body. This groove almost even sounds like a didgeridoo at certain points. I hope you dig it!
 
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