That’s a Wrap: Summary of Learning Project

This is my last official post on my learning project. I have appreciated the push that this assignment has given me to learn the drums! I wanted to learn the song “Creep” by Radiohead by the end of the semester. I was not able to do so, but I am proud of the strides that have made throughout the semester. Throughout the semester I have used all sorts of online resources to help me learn and improve on my skills.

Run-through of my Project:

Week One: Drum Roll, Please

This week was my introduction to my learning project. I outlined my reasoning behind choosing the drums and my goals for the semester. I also mentioned some potential online resources that I might use throughout my learning project.

Week Two: Beats me!

In this post, I covered what I practiced throughout the week. I wanted to practice everyday, for twenty minutes, but I had to set a goal for four days a week. I relied on one youtube beginner video to learn from this week.

Week Three: Changing Rhythm

This week I decided to change which resource that I used to learn drums. This resource lead me through learning my first song, “Do you wanna Know ?” by Arctic Monkeys. I also provided a walkthrough of all of my drums and cymbals.

Week Four: Rocking on!

I posted my first video for this week. I covered the iconic Queen song, “We Will Rock You”. I used the same online resource as last week. To make the video I used iMovie, which is a free resource for apple products.

Week Five: Tuning it to the Limit

I learned from my roommate that my drums needed tuning. He was kind enough to help me tuning my drums. I implemented two apps to help us tune. I also covered the process of what tuning a drum set requires.

Week Six: Electric Change

For this week, I compared both my acoustic drums and my new electric drums. I used a resource that gave me information about each set and considerations to think about when choosing which set is best for you. I included a walkthrough of the electric drum set.

Week Seven: Bringing it Together

I challenged myself this week by using three parts on the drums. For the last few weeks, I focused on the only beats with the bass and snare drum. I completed drum exercises that involve the bass, snare, and hi-hat. I recorded audio of myself doing the drum exercises.

Week Eight: A Little Side Tracked

Although, I did not state in my learning project goals, I always wanted to learn how to do drumstick tricks. I worked on two tricks, but only learned how to do one. I posted a video of myself doing the AWESOME toss trick. If you want a good laugh, I included a blooper reel as well.

Week Nine: Intro to Creep

Since this was my last learning project post, I thought I would take a whack at learning the intro to “Creep” by Radiohead. I really surprised myself by actually being able to learn a slowed-down version of the intro. I tried out a few different resources to learn from, as well as edit my video.

My Five Top Resources:

I thought I would also include a list of the top online resources that were beneficial to my learning progress.

  1. Youtube

Youtube has to be one of the best online resources to date. The various resources available are outstanding. Throughout my learning project, I ended up using four videos from youtube. Not only did I use youtube for learning, but I was also able to use Youtube as a resource to post my drumming videos. I will continue to use Youtube as a resource to continue my skill development.

2. Drum Tuner- IDrumTune Pro

Drum Tuner- IDrumTune Pro was a very cheap and reliable tool that I used to help tune my drums. I did use another tuner app to compare the difference and I found that this one gave more accurate readings then the other app. If you are needing a drum tuner, and cannot afford an actual drum tuner, I strongly recommend this app!

3. iMovie

iMovie became a great backup and resource for me in my learning project. I have used it many times to complete videos. It was easy to use and had various titles and backgrounds. However, this video editor is only available to people with Apple products, such as MacBooks.If you want more options for titles and backgrounds, I would also suggest Filmora. Warning premium needed to create videos without a watermark.

4. Audacity

Audacity is a very easy to use audio recording and editing tool. The only problem, I ran into was not being able to post the audio clippings on my blog.

5. “How To Play Drums For Beginners (Learning Online Made Easy)”

This blog by James Kitchin allowed me to learn two well known songs. It was greatly detailed and included easy to follow videos. I would recommend this resource to any beginner!

Looking to the Future

I will continue on this learning journey as I hope to one day a great drummer! I actually found a free four weeks online drum lesson. I hope that now with my schedule starting to slow down, I will be able to put more of a focus on playing drums. Keep your eye out on my Twitter to see any updates!

I want to end my summary by thanking anyone who followed along, commented, and supported my learning project. I also want to thank Katia Hildebrandt for giving me the opportunity and a push toward a dream that I have had since I was a child! Overall, I enjoyed this experience and am overwhelmed with all the wonderful resources that I have now.

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