'332' Kick And Snare Placement In Grooves

In this groove concept lesson you are going to learn about a slightly different approach to constructing grooves. In level 0 we discussed at great length the idea of taking a rhythm then orchestrating it between the kick and snares, but that was done in such a way that the snares fell on either beats 2 and 4 or later on on beat 3. On this page we will be following that same approach but removing the idea of having a back beat. This will create some accents in odd places, creating a simple Syncopated rhythm where the kicks and snares don't fall into the same grouping as the right hand.

The rhythm that the kicks and snares will be following is often referred to as a '332' grouping where each number refers to a set of eighth notes. So the first two notes will fill three quavers (or a dotted crotchet) and the last two quavers (or a crotchet). This rhythm is shown below as consistant eighth notes on the left and using standard notation on the right:

The rhythm for this concept

So the first note will fall on the '1', the second on the '+' after beat 2 and the last on beat 4.

Listed below are some grooves with this concept applied, shown with both quaver and crotchet right hands. If you are struggling with the timing, remember that when quavers are used on the right hand you can 'match' the kicks and snares to these strokes.


Example 1

The first two notes on the kick with a snare at the end. This groove is quite common in ballads/power ballads. Adding a kick on beat 3 is a very common variation.

A 332 rhythmed groove


Example 2

Placing the snare in the middle. Having the kick on beat 4 leads nicely back into the start of the bar.

A 332 rhythmed groove


Example 3

A snare at the start of the bar with kicks for the rest. A 332 rhythmed groove


Example 4

Starting on a kick then playing snares, this has almost a Waltz feel to it.

A 332 rhythmed groove


Example 5

A slightly harder idea. This time you are playing both snares and kicks together for the second two notes, this is a similiar idea to the Four On The Floor but based on a syncopated rhythm.

A 332 rhythmed groove


TASK

  • Learn the grooves above up to a tempo of at least 120bpm.
  • Experiment with different placement ideas and orchestrations.
  • Use the concept as part of a phrased example.
  • Try constructing longer patterns based on this rhythm, such as two or four bar grooves.

Lessons

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