One of the hardest skills to master as a drummer is improvisation. Crucially, improvisation should be more than simply ‘busking’, which often connotes playing other people’s ideas, either from memory or by musical instinct. Improvisation is about your own ideas, and how you can develop them in real time and in performance contexts. One of the world’s foremost drummers, Benny Greb, explains his own approach to improvisation in the below video. Throughout his tutorials, Greb likens music to a spoken language, in which we each must increase our native fluency. Improvisation, then, begins with an awareness of what is said and what is meant.

Benny Greb’s DVD ‘The Language of Drumming’ is considered one of the best instructional music videos of all time.

Tags: Drum kit, Drum Lessons, Drummer, Benny Greb, Drum teacher, Tuition