Below is a follow up exercise to our previous post. This time, the exercise focuses on developing your left foot independence (for those playing on a right-handed drum kit) by shifting the open hi-hat by an eighth note each bar.
It is highly recommended that you practice exercises 1-8 individually first before putting it all together in exercise 9.
Key points to focus on while practicing this exercise:
Although it can be very difficult at first; make sure you are closing your hi-hat and hitting it with your stick at the exact same time. Failing to do so will result in a flam on the hi-hat, which will make the groove sound sloppy.
Make sure your speed is consistent. A lot of my students will slow down their groove right when it comes time to open or close their hi-hat due to the difficulty of coordinating their left foot. If you need to slow it down to keep the grooves consistent then definitely do it! A solid groove at a slow tempo beats a sloppy groove at fast one.
Hope that helps!