A Fresh Approach to Snare Drum

Mark Wessels

General Info

Year: 1994
Edition: 1st Edition
Publisher: Mark Wessels Publication
Level: Elementary
Cost: $16.95
ISBN: 978-0-9714-7841-1

Overview

• All-Inclusive Beginning Snare Method Book
• Grip & Stroke Technique
• Setup Instructinos
• How To Tune
• Easy To Read and Understand
• Includes Link to Play-Along Video

Chapters

There is no table of contents.

Reviews

Student Reviews

The book begins with several pictures of Mark Wessels showing how to hold sticks in matched and traditional grip and hitting the drum. Along with the anatomy of a stick and snare drum, there are also several sticking mutations, and then the nomenclature of notation including barlines, notes, time signatures and double bar line. He then goes into explanation of notation including diversions of eighths and quarters and the introduction of the roll. The book is set up in a way where the lessons proceed to getting harder and harder including 'graduation tests' to show the students improvement. The book also includes differing time signatures, as well as exercises that include multiple drums. The exercises also include small 'cadences' that the student can learn. At the end of the book, there is an appendix that covers the ending of each lesson covered. After the appendix, there is a section that covers accessory percussion along with how to play the instruments, including tone production , dampening or muffling, and special techniques for the accessory instrument covered. Each instrument also includes pictures of the author demonstrating how to play the instrument. There is also a progress chart for each lesson and how the student should be progressing in terms of metronomic acceleration, and a technique exercise that covers several different notation and technique builders. At the very end there is a list of the PAS 40 rudiments, the book includes a poster chart of rudiments and two discs, a CD-Rom and DVD. The CD-Rom includes mp3's of each final exercise in the book so the student can listen to how the music sounds away from the lesson. In the DVD, Mark Wessels covers setup of the drum, tuning, changing heads, (including snare tension) he then goes over the grip of the sticks, and then rolls, (including rebound stroke, single/double stroke roll) he also goes over the sticking exercises and musical terms. - Trevor Landreth; Emporia State University

Works for Percussion by this Author

A Fresh Approach to Mallet Percussion
A Fresh Approach to Snare Drum
A Fresh Approach to Drum Set
A Fresh Approach for the Beginning Percussion Class (Book 1)
A Fresh Approach for the Beginning Percussion Class (Book 2)