The Importance of Self Evaluation in Drumming

When I’m on tour, I might have 20–25 opportunities to play gigs in a month. In between those shows there’s usually no time—or facilities—to practice. We travel in a splitter van, and often drive 6–8 hours a day on the same day as a show. Bigger bands with bigger budgets may have buses that take them to the next city overnight, and massive bands might even have a practice room booked at their destination. For me, where we’re at now, there’s a lot of time that starts to feel wasted, sitting in a van on show days. After a while this can feel like stagnation, and I start to get restless imagining all the progress I could be making at home.

One of the ways I overcome this sense of stagnation is by recording video and audio of the gig every night and then playing it back in the van the next day. Through this process of self-evaluation, I renew my focus and know what I need to do to improve the show each night. Our show is 80-90 minutes, so you can imagine this is quite a time consuming task.

One of the crucial things I learnt while studying under my own drum teacher at WAAPA (the legendary Ric Eastman) was the importance of recording your own playing. The self-reflection after a performance allows you to analyse your playing far better than you can in the moment, or even in hindsight relying only on memory.

When we play in front of an audience, the adrenaline and distractions of performing can cloud our awareness of how we actually sound. Even without an audience, we might be so focused on the technical side of what we’re playing that we don’t hear the full picture. Some drum students come to me and don’t notice errors in their sound until I point them out. From that point of awareness, it becomes much easier to correct mistakes. Even something as simple as seeing yourself with poor posture can be a quick wake-up call leading to massive improvement. Self taught drummers are often amazed when they finally meet with a quality drum teacher for these reasons.

Take the example of watching a video of yourself giving a speech. You might see yourself swaying, repeating words, or mumbling. The next time you give a speech, you’ll most likely perform better. It’s the same process in music.

When I listen back to myself, I usually focus on things like:

• How is my timing?

• Am I 'flamming' my coordination?

• Am I overplaying?

  
  

• Am I underplaying?

  
  

• Are the cymbals too loud? Does the hi-hat need to be louder?

The trick is to listen closely enough to find areas of improvement, but not to beat yourself up. Typically most musicians don’t like how they sound on recordings initially. But pushing through that discomfort is what leads to real improvement, and eventually, to sounding the way you want (although the beautiful irony of music is that we’ll always be chasing that goal).

Another lesser known bonus of recording yourself is that it lets you “save” your self-criticism for later. Instead of letting that nagging voice in your head distract you during a show, you can tell yourself: I’ll review it tomorrow. This can ease performance anxiety and actually help you play better in the moment.

When I first started this process as a teenager, it was in the practice room. I’d set up an old camera by my feet, stream it to a laptop, and use two mirrors simultaneously to view my hands. These days I’m lucky enough to have better equipment and a more refined process.

At Guildford Drum School in Perth, my students get access to the same tools. I’ve built an acoustically treated room with top-of-the-range drums, cameras and audio gear so you can record and analyse your own playing in a comfortable environment. This way, you can build confidence with your drumming before taking those skills into real-world performances. Drum lessons then become a safe “simulation” for what it’s like in the studio or on stage, and I will be there to guide you every step of the way.

If you’re looking for drum lessons in Guildford, Perth, I’d love to help you through this process. Together, we’ll work on your playing, your listening, and your confidence, so you can enjoy making music and keep improving every time you sit at the kit.