Flying Cymbal Reggae drum pattern
A two-bar flying cymbal reggae groove: the hat opened on every and and closed by the foot on the beat, a kick on 1 and 3, a rimshot on 3 and a snare pickup into the top. Press Play to hear it with a sampled drum kit at 78 BPM, change the tempo or swing, and follow every hit on the grid.
How to count the Flying Cymbal Reggae
Count it as: 1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a · two bars. The pattern is a 2-bar phrase in 4/4 (two-bar 16th-note reggae with offbeat open hat).
The Flying Cymbal Reggae pattern, hit by hit
Each character is one step of the grid and each group is one beat. X is an accented hit, x a normal hit, o a quiet or ghost note and - a rest.
| Voice | Bar 1 | Bar 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Kick | x--- ---- X--- ---- | x--- ---- X--- ---- |
| Snare | ---- ---- X--- ---- | ---- ---- X--- ---x |
| Ghost snare | ---- ---- ---- ---- | ---- ---- ---o ---- |
| Open hat | --x- --x- --x- --x- | --x- --x- --x- --x- |
| Pedal hat | o--- o--- o--- o--- | o--- o--- o--- o--- |
Tempo and feel
Sizzling and lifted. The open hat breathes on every offbeat; keep each one short so the foot snaps it shut on the beat. The default tempo is 78 BPM. Slow it down until every hit is controlled, then raise the tempo a few BPM at a time.
How to practise the Flying Cymbal Reggae
Play the hat alone: stick opens it on each and, the foot closes it on each beat. Add the kick on 1 and 3 and the rimshot on 3. Add the bar-two ghost and the snare pickup on the a of 4.
Variations to try next
Play the kick on all four beats. Drop the kick on 1 for a one-drop floor under the flying hat. Leave the hat closed for the verse and open it for the chorus.
Where to hear this feel
Records in this family include Johnny Clarke - None Shall Escape the Judgement. A practice study of the mid-70s flying cymbal sound associated with drummer Santa Davis and producer Bunny Lee's Aggrovators: the hi-hat opened by the stick on every and and closed by the foot on every beat, a sound borrowed from Philadelphia soul. The hat is the defining part; the kick on 1 and 3 and the rimshot on 3 under it are one common setting, and some tracks ran the kick on all four beats. The rimshot is played by the snare voice; it is authored for practice, not transcribed.