How many sounds can you get from just one drum? Reuben Spyker proves that there are at least 30 sounds hidden in your snare drum – and you can access them without touching a tuning key!

The first 15 are the easiest to get:

1. Cross stick
2. Timbale (edge of rim)
3. Rim shot
4. Normal (center)
5. Snare wires off
6. Snare wires loose
7. Edge of rim
8. Wallet on snare
9. Cut out drumhead on top
10. Splash on top
11. Tambourine on top
12. Towel on top
13. T-shirt on top
14. Paper on top
15. Shell rattles on top

You probably already know most of these techniques. But you’ll have to get really creative to get 15 more, and that requires thinking beyond the regular use of the snare drum.

Try some stick-on-stick ideas. And can you use your sticks to manipulate the sound of the drum? Move your cross stick up and down the rim to get a different sound. Try some scratching effects on a chewed up stick. Pull your stick across the rim to get a cool subtle effect.

The human body counts as part of a drummer’s instrument, too! Use your bare hands on the snare drum. Use your elbow to bend the pitch of snare drum. Or use one hand to mute the drum.

Play on the outside of the shell. You can even play the tension rods!

Try flipping over the snare and using the bottom – but be careful not to puncture the head. Use the wires (lightly) to get some cool scratching sounds.

Still looking for more options for snare sounds? Here are five more weird options:

• Squeaky snare (pretty creepy)
• Drag your fingers across a wet head
• Tension rod shell rattle
• Shell buzz
• Talk into the snare

Don’t forget to watch the video for a demo. What other tricks do you have for getting even more out of your snare drum?

A ping pong ball as a guiro? A trash can as a bass drum? In this video, watch Reuben Spyker turn a bottle of toothpicks into a shaker and make the world into a percussive paradise.

Anyone can incorporate out-of-the-box drumming into their vocabulary by trying creative techniques and sound sources. You can drum on (or with) virtually anything! And you can drum pretty much anywhere.

So we want you to help us prove it.

(This contest has now ended)

Want to win the PDP kit in the video (minus the cymbals and snare drum)? Here’s how to enter the play-along contest:

• Download the track “Peppy” by Sean Lang (Click here!)
• Film yourself playing along to it and showing that rhythm is everywhere (hint: try different locations and use different sound sources)
• Title your video “Drumeo – Rhythm Is Everywhere 2019”
• To enter on Facebook, find the video ‘The World Is Your Drum Kit’ on the Drumeo page and leave a link to your video in the comments
• To enter on Instagram, tag @drumeoofficial in your video and add the hashtag #drumeojam

The contest ends October 31 and we will announce the winner November 1. We’ll also be editing the entries together to create an epic collaboration video. Good luck!

Click here for the full contest rules.

While some drum accessories are pretty affordable, not everyone has $30 or even $5 to spare when you’re in a pinch. If you need a drum accessory that’s easy on the wallet, here are five DIY options:

Fat snare sound

If you’re looking for that nice fat snare sound, you might already have everything you need at home. Take a spare drum head, flip it upside down, and place it on your snare. If the rim bothers you, you can use a knife to make a slit in the side before wedging in scissors and cutting around the shape of the head. Now it’ll fit on the snare and the rim won’t get in the way.

You can achieve a similar effect by putting a piece of paper on the head. The more pieces you stack, the deeper and fatter the sound you’ll get. Experiment with it!

Cymbal sizzle

There’s no need to drill holes in an expensive cymbal to get that cool sizzle effect. Use a bathtub chain, which you can pick up at your local hardware store. First measure your desired length of chain, and break off any extra. Then create a loop on one end of the chain with the clip it came with, and use that loop to keep it secure between the cymbal and the stand.

If you don’t want to go out and pick up a bathtub chain, there’s another cymbal sizzle option that only costs five cents! Grab a nickel and two pieces of tape (each should be double the length of the nickel). Cover half of the nickel with one piece, then stick the rest to the cymbal. Use the second piece of tape to reinforce the first piece. Now the nickel can move somewhat freely, vibrating against the cymbal when you hit it.

Hearing protection

If you can’t afford swanky noise-canceling headphones, make some yourself for less than $40. Pick up cheap earbuds and a pair of construction earmuffs from your local hardware store. Put in the earbuds, cover those with the construction earmuffs, and voila!

Drum dampening

There are many cheap alternatives for drum dampening. A classic fix is tape (gaff tape leaves the least residue, but you can use duct tape or any wider tape). Just take a piece, make a fold in the middle, and stick it to the drum head. To increase the dampening effect, you can use more tape or put something under it to add weight.

You can also use those floor-protecting felt circles people put under furniture. Grab one, take off the sticky backing, and affix it to the head.

For a different sound, put your wallet on the snare – it’ll mute it quite a bit. Or you can use a T-shirt by covering half of the snare or draping it over the whole drum. Do whatever it takes to get the sound you want.

Practice pads

If you don’t currently have the budget for a real practice pad (have you seen the Drumeo P4 Practice Pad?), there’s an alternative that costs next to nothing. You might already have one at home: a mousepad!

While they’re a bit thin and floppy, they have a good enough rebound when they’re on a table. If you don’t already have a mousepad, you can pick one up at your local office supply store for around $10.

Another option is a cork pad for hot plates. If there isn’t already one in your kitchen, check the local grocery or hardware store. You can even stack this on the mousepad to find a rebound that works for you.

There you have it – five DIY drum accessories that won’t break the bank. Let us know if you try these, or if you have other tricks in your back pocket.

Believe it or not, you can pack an entire drum kit into a simple little suitcase. Sure, you might not be able to jam your 7-piece DW Collectors set with a 22″ kick drum into a suitcase, but you’d be surprised at the number of different sound sources you can keep around all while staying super portable (and, in case you hadn’t guessed, the suitcase is the kick drum).

These kits are perfect for the drummer who’s always on the go. Cafe gigs, busking in the city, and anywhere else you need to be clean and compact are the perfect situations for a suitcase drum kit. The best part? You most likely have the majority of the hardware necessary to make this project happen. In today’s video, Reuben Spyker (Drumeo’s community manager) is here to walk you step-by-step through the creation of his very own suitcase drum kit.
 

If you’re a drummer who’s shopped around for a practice pad, you know there’s a ton of different options to choose from. They can range anywhere from $20, $40, $60, or even $100.

You can get Drumeo’s two-sided practice pad for $35 if you don’t have time to DIY it.

But if you’re on a budget, you can make your own practice pad with items from your local dollar store for less than $10!

Reuben Spyker is here to walk you through the process step-by-step.

Editor’s note: The dollar amounts shown in the video aren’t the cost of each item: they’re the total of the products. So the laptop case was $4, the cutting board was $4, and the super glue was $1.25! The total cost to build the practice pad was $9.25.

How To Make A DIY Drum Practice Pad

Total Time: 1 hour

1. Visit the dollar store

You should be able to pick up a laptop case (or two large mousepads, or even a cork hot plate), a cutting board and some super glue at your local dollar store for under $10.

2. Cut the zipper out of the laptop case

Once you remove the zipper, you should have two halves of the case and plenty of material to work with.

3. Use a drumhead to trace a circle on the case

With your drumhead as a stencil, use a marker to trace around it on the fabric.

4. Cut out the circle and repeat steps 3 and 4

You should have two fabric circles when you’re done.

5. (Optional) Rip off any smooth fabric

If your laptop case or mousepad has a smooth material covering the foam inside, you’ll want to carefully remove it from three of the four sides (the top and bottom of one of the circles, and the bottom of the other circle) to reveal a rougher surface. Otherwise, the superglue might not adhere properly. Make sure you leave one side of one of the circles smooth!

6. Glue the first circle to the cutting board

Make sure this is the one where you’ve removed the smooth fabric from both sides. Apply the glue around the edges.

7. Glue the second circle on top of the first one

Make sure the smooth fabric faces up. That’s going to be your bouncy surface! Go over any spots you might have missed.

8. Try it out

You can now practice your drumming skills anywhere. Not bad for $10!

Estimated Cost: 10 USD

Supply:

• Laptop case
• Round cutting board
• Super glue
• Drum head (a bit smaller than the cutting board if possible)

Tools:

• Scissors
• Marker