Dragadiddle 2

Taking a look at the sheet music below, you can see that the dragadiddle #2 is just like the dragadiddle #1, but with one extra dragged 8th note right after the quarter note single on the dragadiddle #1. If you lose the drags on the dragadiddle #2, you can see that the dragadiddle #2 is basically an 8th note double stroke followed by a 16th note single paradiddle. The dragadiddle #2 naturally alternates within itself, as you can see below.

Once you’re able to play this pattern with a metronome, with control and consistent sounding strokes, you can move on to learn how to play the following exercises. They will get you playing drum beats and drum fills incorporating the dragadiddle #2.

The first pattern is a half-time drum beat incorporating a very broken hi-hat pattern. The dragadiddle #2 is scattered between the hi-hat and the snare drum. The bass drum is played on count 1. The paradiddle strokes on the snare drum are to be ghosted while the snare strokes on count 3 are played at a normal volume. This is a very cool drum beat. Take your time with it, start slow, and focus on getting everything right at a certain speed before moving on. You should have this pattern under your belt in no time.

The second drum beat on this free drum lesson is a variation on the previous one. The pattern that was played on the hi-hat is played on the bow of the ride cymbal instead. The snare strokes on count 3 of the previous exercise are moved to the hi-tom. Add a bass drum stroke on the “and” of count 1 and you’re done. If you took your time with exercise #1, this one will be a walk in the park.

With this next exercise we get into the world of drum fill applications for the dragadiddle #2. The grace notes are played exclusively on the snare drum. On the first half of the drum fill, the 8th note double stroke is played on the floor tom and the paradiddle is broken up between the snare and the floor tom. The second half of this pattern is very similar to the first one. The only thing that really changes is the placement of the floor tom strokes, which are moved to the hi-tom.

This next fill keeps the same basic idea from the previous one, but with the dragadiddle #2 being orchestrated in a different fashion. The grace notes are played exclusively on the snare drum once again. The first hit from the 8th note double strokes are played on the snare drum and the second hit is executed as a unison stroke between the open hi-hat and the bass drum.

The paradiddles are broken between the snare drum and the floor tom on count 2, and between the snare drum and the hi-tom on count 4. Don’t forget to close the hi-hat on these same counts.