A drum tab, also called a tab, is a method of representing a drum line and the components required to play it. It is a real musical transcription, similar to a score, in fact it allows a musician to reproduce the drum part of a certain song.
Generally, drum tabs can be found on the internet and are created by drummers for other drummers.
Tabs are easy to read if you already know what to do, but they might be confusing for a beginner. They indicate both time and measures and are useful for getting a general idea of the piece to play.
All drummers, from beginners to professionals, use tabs to learn how to play new songs.
Steps
Step 1. Learn the meaning of abbreviations
At the beginning of each staff there are abbreviations that indicate the drum pieces to be played. Other drums or cymbals may be added during the song, but will not be indicated unless they are to be played in that staff. Among the most common abbreviations we find:
- BD: Bass drum
- SD: Snare drum
- HH: Charleston (or Hi-hat)
- HT / T1 / T - Tom-tom (the left tom)
- LT / T2 / t - Tom-tom (the right tom)
- FT - Tympanum
- RC - Laughs
- CC - Crash
Step 2. Here's what a staff looks like where you only need to play the hi-hat, snare drum and kick drum:
-
HH | -
-
SD | -
-
BD | -
Step 3. Read the time
The tablature not only indicates the instruments to be played, but also the tempo. Often the bar is divided into eighths or sixteenths, according to the complexity of the song, but it is also possible to find tablature in 3/4 or other variations. The tempo is not repeated in every measure, while dashes are present throughout the tablature.
Step 4. Here is a sixteenth measure
Since there are only dashes, it means there is no need to play anything.
-
HH | ----------------
-
SD | ----------------
-
BD | ----------------
Step 5. The tablature also specifies how to play a particular drum piece
Different letters are used to indicate which way to play. Eg:
- s: Normal strike
- O: Accent (a stronger blow)
- g: Ghost note or ghost note (a softer hit)
- f: Flam
- d: Double stroke or double stroke
Step 6. The tablature also indicates how to hit a pot
In fact, they too can be played in different ways. Eg:
- x: Normal hit (on a platter) or closed hi-hat
- X: Hardest hit (on a cymbal) or open hi-hat
- o: Opening the hi-hat
- #: Choke, which is to hit the plate and immediately stop it with your hand
Step 7. Use the example below to start reading
Here is a very simple sixteenth beat: hit the hi-hat at every eighth, while the bass drum is played on the first and third beats, while the snare on the second and fourth.
-
| 1e & a2e & a3e & a4e & a
-
HH | x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x- |
-
SD | ---- or ------- or --- |
-
BD | or ------- or ------- |
-
- Accents on the first hi-hat hit and on the second snare hit should be added like this:
| 1e & a2e & a3e & a4e & a
HH | X-x-x-x-x-x-x-x- |
SD | ---- or ------- O --- |
BD | or ------- or ------- |
Step 8. Try reading increasingly complex tablature as you become more familiar with reading:
-
| 1e & a2e & a3e & a4e & a | 1e & a2e & a3e & a4e & a | 1e & a2e & a3e & a4e & a | 1e & a2e & a3e & a4e & a |
HH | o --- o --- o --- o --- | o --- o --- o --- o --- | -------------- - | ---------------- |
SD | ---------------- | ---------------- | o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o- | oooooooooooooooo |
CC | x --------------- | ---------------- | -------------- - | ---------------- |
HH | --x-x-x-x-x-x-x- | x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x- | x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x- | x-x-x-x-x-x ----- |
SD | ---- o ------- o --- | ---- o - o ---- o --- | ---- o ------- o- - | ---- o --- oo-oooo |
BD | o ------- o ------- | o ------- oo ----- | o ------- oo ----- | o --------------- |
CC | ---------------- | x ----------- x --- | x ----------- x- - | x --------------- |
HH | x --- x --- x ------- | --x-x-x-x-x --- x- | --x-x-x-x-x --- x- | --x-x-x-x-x-x-x- |
SD | ---- o ------- o-oo | ---- o ------- o --- | ---- o ------- o-- - | ---- or ------- or --- |
BD | o ------- o - o - o- | o ------- oo ----- | o ------- oo ----- | o ------- oo ----- |
Advice
- Don't start with the hardest pieces. To familiarize yourself with tablature, read songs with a fairly simple drum line like Seven Nation Army or The Hardest Button To Button by The White Stripes. Switch to more complex tablature as you become better at reading. Survivor's Eye of the Tiger is perfect for getting started.
- When you find an abbreviation you don't know, you can try different methods to find out which piece of the battery it refers to. For example, you could listen to the song to distinguish which piece it is; alternatively, you can search for information on the internet or ask the author of the tablature directly. Generally, tablatures always include a legend at the top of the page to avoid this type of problem for the reader.
