In this lesson you will be learning an idea that is taken from music that uses lectronically sampled drum parts. This is something that is very common in pop, rap and hip hop but can also be found in many other genres. On this page I will be exploring the idea of simulating the sound of this electronic part being stopped by pressing a button, leaving a gap in the music. This may sound like a slightly odd idea but it can be incredibly effective in highlighting certain lyrical or melodic phrases and is applicable across many genres.
In theory, this concept is incredibly simple as you will just stop played for a certain number of beats. However, this can sometimes be quite uncomfortable in terms of timing and may require a little work. On this page I have given a few examples of this concept applied to a drum part. Three different lengths of stop are discussed: 1 beat, 2 beat and 3 beat. For each a single bar example is shown along with a second example within a longer phrase. For the shorter stops a couple of different placements within the bar are shown also.
One Beat Stop
A one beat stop is only a very short break in the pattern and is useful for highlight certrain words or very short melodic motifs. In a bar of 4/4 there are four points at which this could occur. I am going to provide two examples and from there the other placements should be obvious. First of all, let's look at breaking on beat 3 of the bar.
So all you need to do is literally just stop for one count on beat three. Below is that same idea applied to a slightly more complicated groove within a four bar pattern. Note that the break doesn't occur as a fill, it is at an almost random place early on in the phrase.
I like breaking like this on beat 3 as the having the backbeat snare on beat 4 gives it a bit of a kick coming back in. You could emphasize this further by adding a cymbal accent over the snare.
Let's have a look at a second one beat example, this time using a break on beat 2. You will do exactly the same thing, just one beat earlier. Here's an example:
So as you can see, this time a backbeat snare is missed off. Here's that same idea applied within a four bar pattern. 
Two Beat Stop
This time the same concept will be applied but the break will last over a minim instead of just a crotchet. It is very important you keep a count going in your head so that you come back in at the right point or things could end up messy! There are three different positions this could occur in within a 4/4 bar, on beat 1, on beat 2 and on beat 3. I will give examples of two of those here. Let's start with beat 3:
Then the same idea applied within a four bar pattern.
Next, a two beat break on beat 2. This is an interest one because it cuts over the middle of the bar. Here it is applied to a one bar groove.
Then same concept applied within a four bar pattern.
Three Beat Stop
Finally, the three beat version. This idea takes out almost all of the bar and there are really only two ways you can apply it within a 4/4 bar. Either so the start of the bar is played or the end of the bar is played. Let's have a look at the later.
Then same concept applied within a four bar pattern.
TASKS
- Learn the given examples above up to a tempo of at least 130bpm.
- Experiment with different placements of break within your groove.
- Try carrying some of the longer breaks over the bar line. So for example, a two beat break over beat 4 and beat 1.
