In this free fill construction lesson you will be learning patterns that combine toms and hi hats. The two voices have very different tonal qualities and when combined have a nice full sound. The examples on this page all follow a three note eighth note triplet block that uses a kick followed by a flat flam followed by another kick. It is important the flat flams are played exactly in time, there are further free fill construction lessons at the bottom of the page that will help with this movement. When repeating blocks you will get two kicks in a row, at higher tempos this can get tricky so make sure your technique is good.
Listed below are six examples of this movement applied in half and full bar variations. You could also use the block as a quarter and three quarter bar fill or as a break in a fill using a different concept. It can sound particularly good when combined with a more straight rhythm.
Example 1
Using just the floor tom in a half bar version to familiarize you with the movement.
Example 2
Moving from high tom to floor tom over half a bar.
Example 3
A half bar version of the fill construction idea moving from floor tom to mid tom. 
Example 4
Moving clockwise around three toms in a full bar version.
Example 5
A free fill construction lesson where the hands move anti-clockwise around the kit in a staggered movement.
Example 6
Moving between the floor tom and rack toms over a full bar.
TASK:
- Learn all examples up to a tempo of at least 130bpm.
- Apply different orchestrations to create your own parts.
- Extend the fill to being a full bar pattern.
- Add groove into the part and create some longer phrases.
- Explore further free fill construction lessons.
