7/8 Rock (2+2+3) drum pattern
A one-bar 7/8 rock groove grouped 2+2+3: kick on the first and third group starts, snare on the second, and eighth-note hi-hats accenting each group. Press Play to hear it with a sampled drum kit at 120 BPM, change the tempo or swing, and follow every hit on the grid.
How to count the 7/8 Rock (2+2+3)
Count it as: 1 2 · 1 2 · 1 2 3. The pattern is one bar of 7/8 (14 sixteenth notes · grouped 2+2+3).
The 7/8 Rock (2+2+3) 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 | Pattern |
|---|---|
| Kick | X- -- -- -- X- -- -- |
| Snare | -- -- X- -- -- -- -- |
| Closed hat | x- o- x- o- x- o- o- |
Tempo and feel
Two quick steps and a long one. Let the third group take its full three eighths before beat 1 comes round. The default tempo is 120 BPM. Slow it down until every hit is controlled, then raise the tempo a few BPM at a time.
How to practise the 7/8 Rock (2+2+3)
Clap 2+2+3 while saying 1 2, 1 2, 1 2 3. Play kick, snare, kick on the three group starts with no hi-hat. Add the eighth-note hi-hat, then alternate one bar of 7/8 with one bar of 4/4.
Variations to try next
Add a kick on the second eighth of the long group. Put the snare on the long group instead: kick on the first two group starts, snare on the third. Regroup as 3+2+2 and compare it with the library's 7/8 Rock (3+2+2).
Where to hear this feel
Records in this family include Progressive rock 7/8 grooves grouped 2+2+3. A practice study of a rock groove in 7/8 grouped 2+2+3, two short groups then a long one, the reverse of the library's 7/8 Rock (3+2+2). The kick plays the first and third group starts, the snare the second, and the hi-hat plays every eighth with an accent on each group start, so the bar reads boom, crack, boom and a longer gap before the next downbeat. The single snare and the hi-hat accents are informed choices; a busier version might add a kick or a snare inside the long group. The BPM counts quarter notes, so the eighth-note pulse runs at twice the tempo. It is authored for practice, not transcribed.