Get Bored! Meditative Practice for Expressive Percussion Performance
- Nathan Coles
- 4 days ago
- 5 min read
Repetition is Your Path to Relaxed Artistry
As a driven percussionist, you know the importance of dedicated practice. You've experimented with variations, tempo changes, and maybe even interweaving different techniques. These creative methods are crucial for agility and quick execution. But what about those moments when you need pure, sustainable, and expressive control—whether executing a perfect snare roll, a flowing marimba permutation, or a shimmering triangle roll?
Today, we're diving into a powerful, often overlooked style of practice: the slow, excruciatingly repetitive kind—a method that builds deep physical and mental endurance, much like a weightlifter builds muscle mass. This approach is universally applicable across all your percussion instruments. It's time to learn how to make thoughtful musical decisions by mastering your fundamental connection to the instrument.
Table of Contents
Don't miss a post, sign up for the Black Swamp Newsletter!
Meet Your Instructor
Our insights today come from Brady Spitz, Coordinator of Percussion at Appalachian State University and a proud member of the Black Swamp Educator Network. Brady's approach is rooted in maximizing a player's physical and mental potential to achieve relaxed, expressive artistry. His expertise stems from decades of performance and teaching, offering students a nuanced perspective that goes beyond mere technique. He emphasizes that true control comes from establishing a strong, sustainable mind-body connection, a concept he demonstrates powerfully through his approach to any continuous percussion motion.
The Universal Principle: Time Under Tension
When you think about building a solid fundamental technique—be it a snare drum roll, a tambourine roll, or even a chain of marimba single strokes—don't think of it like a sprint; think of it like weightlifting. In fitness, there’s a principle called Time Under Tension. This technique uses slow, sustained repetitions to build lasting muscle mass, as opposed to fast reps designed for short bursts of speed.
For percussionists, applying this concept means:
Focusing on Endurance: Instead of fast-twitch muscle development for quick licks, you are building a sustainable foundation for long-form control.
Building a Mind-Body Connection: The goal is to perform a long, repetitive sequence (10-15 minutes without stopping) to ensure the same articulation, volume, and quality on every single attack.
The Result: Relaxed Expressiveness: The sustained muscle mass and control you gain allows you to be much more relaxed when performing. This relaxation is the foundation of genuine musical expressiveness, enabling you to make artistic choices without being limited by technical struggle.
Embracing Boredom for Deeper Focus
You're committed to your 15-minute repetitive task, and guess what? You're going to get bored. And that is perfectly okay! In fact, it’s a vital part of this meditative practice.
Boredom allows for re-engagement, both mentally and physically. When you go on autopilot and then suddenly "snap back" to the task, you are:
Practicing Mindfulness: It's similar to meditation. The moment your mind wanders, you gently bring your focus back to the physical sensations and the sounds you are creating. This sharpens your ability to focus in the long run.
Deepening Observation: Every time you mentally re-engage, you reorient your observations of your playing. You begin to notice subtle details that were invisible when you were simply rushing through the exercise.
The Art of Observation and Re-engagement Across Instruments
This continuous loop of getting bored and re-engaging is where the magic happens. Your observations deepen over time, focusing on non-technical, yet critical, elements that apply to any percussion instrument:
Instrument/Technique | Initial Observation (Technical) | Deepened Observation (Artistic/Muscular) |
Snare Drum Roll | Are my buzzes consistent? | The tension in your hands/arms; how gravity is used; the exact density of the buzz. |
Marimba Permutations | Am I hitting the right notes? | The precise mallet height consistency; how your wrist/arm joints create motion for different intervals. |
Triangle Roll | Is the sound continuous? | The angle of the beater and the subtle difference in sound quality between the up and down strokes. |
Any Single Stroke | Am I in time? | The exact length of the stroke (height); the speed of the stick after contact; the residual body tension. |
Engaging with these details on a deep level will eventually raise the floor for what is acceptable in terms of artistic quality on your instrument. The goal isn't just to play the notes; it's to play them with a deep, relaxed sense of ownership and artistry.
Student Action Plan: Applying the Concept
Ready to build control and refined artistry across your instrument setup? Here is your plan for integrating this meditative practice:
Identify a Fundamental: Choose one repetitive task essential to your instrument (e.g., double stroke roll on snare, scales/permutations on mallets, single strokes on timpani, or a sustained triangle roll).
Set the Timer: Set a timer for 10 to 15 minutes. Your goal is uninterrupted endurance.
Establish a Slow Pace: Choose a tempo that feels manageable but challenging to maintain without stopping. The slowness forces heightened awareness.
Prioritize Consistency: Your goal is not speed; it's consistency. Focus intensely on making the sound, articulation, and volume identical on every single beat/attack.
Embrace the Drift and Return: When you notice your mind wandering or your body slipping into autopilot, gently and non-judgmentally bring your focus back to one of the deepened observations (e.g., the feeling in your forearm, the quality of the attack, the equality of the sound). This is the true work of this practice.
Reflect and Record: After your session, write down three specific, nuanced observations you made about your technique, and how you plan to incorporate them into your faster practice next time.
Why Your Percussion Instrument Setup Matters
Brady Spitz highlights his use of a high-quality, nearly 25-year-old Black Swamp TC2 tambourine, noting its enduring, amazing sound. This emphasizes a key point applicable to all percussion instruments:
Consistency for Observation: Using high-quality, well-maintained equipment (a perfectly tensioned snare head, a triangle with a consistent tone, mallets with even balance) offers an incredibly consistent response. This consistency is essential because it eliminates gear-related variables, allowing you to focus entirely on the subtle physical and mental changes in your playing.
Acoustic Feedback: The beauty and resonance of a professional-grade instrument motivate you to focus on the nuances of that sound. The sound quality directly informs your 'deep observations' about stroke technique and musical expression.
By choosing high-quality equipment and maintaining your setup meticulously, you are giving yourself the clearest possible feedback loop, which accelerates the benefits of your slow, repetitive practice.
This style of deep, sustained practice offers a pathway to a more relaxed and ultimately expressive form of musicianship, regardless of the instrument. It teaches you how to maintain control not just physically, but mentally, sharpening your ability to focus and observe.
What one fundamental technique on any percussion instrument will you dedicate to Time Under Tension practice this week to begin building your foundation for relaxed artistry?
Comments