The Maxwell's "Improve Your Buzz Roll Quality" Mini Course

The buzz roll is the secret weapon in the rudiment arsenal of the Pipe Band Snare Drummer and the one rudiment that sets the Scottish style of snare drumming apart from all the other drumming styles.

This Monster Mini Course will guide you through the steps you need to take to improve the quality of your buzz rolls, and who better to put you through your paces than the legendary J. Reid Maxwell and his son Grant Maxwell.

Number of Classes: 7

Objective: Achieve better quality sounding and more consistent buzz rolls.

Perfect for: Mini Monsters & Middle Monsters

Instrument: Snare

After this course, you'll: Possess the tools necessary to use during your personal practice sessions to improve the quality of your buzz rolls.

Monster Instructor(s): Reid Maxwell & Grant Maxwell

Class 1: Why are buzz rolls so important?

 

Buzz rolls are probably one of the least practiced rudiments by Pipe Band Snare Drummers. The reality is that they are actually one of the most important rudiments for Snare Drummers to master. 

Before we get into learning about the correct technique behind achieving better quality buzz rolls, let's hear from J. Reid Maxwell and Grant Maxwell about why this rudiment is so important. 

Class 2: Strengthening your weaker hand

 

Something drummers of all levels can work on is to focus on your strengthening your weaknesses.

During this class make sure you are focusing on the quality of the buzz sound being produced by each hand.

Monster Tip: Get into the habit of recording yourself so that you can listen back to your progress during practice sessions and hear if you need to make adjustments. 

 

Class 3: Evenness of buzzes 

 

Following on from Class 2, let's hear from Grant Maxwell about his technique for achieving even buzzes. 

Assignment: Before moving on to Class 4 record yourself playing a continuous buzz roll for 30 seconds and upload it to the Monster Forum for some Fierce Feedback from our resident pros.

 

Want even more info??? Then check out the following classes from the Scottish Pipe Band Snare Drum Tutor on Buzz Rolls:

The Buzz Stroke

The Multiple Bounce/Buzz Roll

Class 4: The introduction/25 stroke rolls

 

Arguably the most well-known buzz roll in Pipe Band Drumming, the 25 stroke or introduction roll is something all Pipe Band Snare Drummers need to master.

Assignment: After watching Class 4 grab a metronome and practice your 25 stroke rolls to a metronomic beat. This will help you to get used to the spacing and timing of the buzzes to a set tempo. 

Set the metronome to a tempo that is comfortable for you. As a starting point try a tempo of 60bpm and then slowly increase the tempo.

The more you practice this the easier it will become and you will be able to play them at faster tempos. Remember to never sacrifice your technique for speed. 

 

 

Before moving on to Class 5 check out the following classes from the Scottish Pipe Band Snare Drum Tutor:

The Seven Stroke Roll

Level 2 Multiple Bounce/Buzz Roll Rudiments

Class 5: Reid's exercises to improve your buzz roll quality

 

Now we're ready to look at some of the other common buzz rolls that we can use in drum scores. 

Let's join Reid as he looks at 25, 13 and 7 stroke rolls.

Assignment: Again using a metronome, set the bpm at a comfortable tempo for yourself and play through the exercise sheet 10 times before moving onto Class 6.

Focus on the evenness and spacing of your buzzes for all the rolls. Remember that the end goal is to be able to consistently produce good quality buzz rolls.

Class 6: Implementing various rolls in a tune

 

Scotland the Brave is a classic Pipe Band tune and is frequently used for street parades, tattoos and the massed bands performance at highland games.

Let's have a look at Reid's score and how he's implemented various rolls within the score.

Assignment: After watching Class 6 move on to Reid's PadLab Class below for this score and work through it at your own pace. 

Please note: This score is meant for Middle Monster drummers but can still be worked through slowly by Mini Monster drummers.

 

Check out Reid's PadLab Class for Scotland The Brave where you can control how you learn this score.

Class 7: Grant's common roll phrases for various time signatures

 

Let's now join Grant again as he runs through some more common buzz roll phrases used within tunes and in different time signatures.

Assignment: Using a metronome set to a comfortable tempo, work through the exercise sheet 10 times concentrating on your buzz roll quality when integrating buzz roll rudiments with other rudiments. 

For the 2/4 and 4/4 time signatures try using a starting tempo of 60bpm and for the 6/8 Jig exercise a tempo of 90bpm. Slowly increase or decrease the tempo until you find one that is comfortable for you. Make a note of these tempos for future practice sessions. 

You should aim to find a balance between of when your buzz roll quality is at it's best and the tempo you are comfortable playing at.