The bossa nova drum beat definitely is a musical gem you will love:
This Brazilian groove not only is fun to play, but also really smooth sounding as well.
In addition, it can be a motivating challenge for drum beginners.
That’s why in today’s step-by-step guide, I’m sharing a favorite bossa nova drum beat.
We’re starting with the bass drum pattern in eighth notes as it is the fundation of our groove.
Playing The New Beat On The Drums: The Bass Is Our Basis
Table Of Contents
For drum beginners, it makes sense to lay down the basis of the bossa with the following kick pattern:
As you can see in the drums sheet music, you constantly repeat it.
You can also here the repetitive pattern in this MP3:
The fundation of our bossa drum groove includes
- quarter notes,
- eighth note rests
- and eighth notes.
Instead of the rests, I could have also written down dotted quarter notes.
They are equally as long as a quarter and a eighth note rest.
The numbers below the rhythm indicate a way my preferred way of rhythmic counting.
Please note, that some drummers like to play the second kick a little louder than the first one.
If you want to, you can give this a try, too.
Also, you can add the hi-hat when the initial kick pattern runs smoothly.
You don’t have to do so, but stepping on the hi-hat will add another great sound nuance to the bossa:
Here’s what it would sound like:
See why I chose the rests instead the dotted quarter notes?
Yes, we simply replaced the rests with the hi-hat.
Neat, isn’t it? 🙂
Adding The Ride To Our Bossa Nova Drum Beat
The next step of learning our bossa is to add our ride cymbal.
You add it to our kick basis laid down in eighth notes.
Have a look at our drums sheet music:
Just like the bass drum, the ride pattern stays the same.
Listen to it:
And this is the basis of kick plus hi-hat and the ride pattern:
Finally: The Complete Beat With The Clave
Our bossa nova drum beat isn’t complete yet.
We definitely need to add something more:
The clave played as a rim-click.
Rim what?
That’s the clicking sound you get when putting your drum stick horizontally on your snare drum head and playing it.
You might also heard of the rim-click as being called
- sidestick
- or cross-stick
In this video by Mike Barnes, the rim-click is well explained:
In addition to the rim-click, we do need something else for learning a full bossa nova on the drums:
It’s the so-called clave, a rhythmic key.
Here’s what the clave pattern looks like.
As you can see, we have a two-bar rhythm.
Not only for this reason, it’s important to know how to play the clave.
Make sure to count it!
And – if you really want to feel it – listen to some bossa nova music.
You understand the clave pattern?
Now it’s time to add it to our groove basis made of
- the kick,
- ride cymbal
- and (perhaps) the hi-hat.
Including the hi-hats:
And here’s a complete summery of the guide for the sheet music folder:
More Tips For Learning The Bossa Nova Drum Beat
The bossa nova is a wonderful drum rhythm.
However, you have to understand it to be able to play it.
Also, feeling the rhythm is crucial.
For this reason, I highly recommend
- learning the bass drum pattern first,
- adding the ride and
- then take your time learning the clave.
When you’ve mastered each of these steps, you can combine them.
But take it sloooow in the beginning.
I highly recommend:
Practice so slow, you can’t get it wrong.
If a slow tempo works out for you, add some more bpm to your metronome.
Sooner or later, you will be able to play our lovely new beat.
Have fun doing so!
And also, make sure to listen to the music you’re going to play on the drums.
This helps you feel your art on a much deeper level.
Oh, and feel free to ask any questions down in the comments below.
Cheers,
PS
How do you like the bossa nova drum beat I shared in this step-by-step guide?
PPS
If you’re wondering, the MP3s in this guide are made with MuseScore.
