Simple Fills Around a BeBop Kit

This is just an easy set of fills over two beats, moving from left to right around a bebop kit. I often think of fills as a weak point and not something I have focused much on, so I wanted to generate a few more ideas.

The first set of fills [A] is just on the toms ending on a crash. Although it is written onto beat three for convenience, really we are playing to beat one! We are dividing the eight sixteenth notes into 2:2:4, then 2:4:2, and finally 4:2:2.

In set [B] we are adding the bass drum on the last beat of the group of four sixteenths.

And, in set [C] we are adding two pass drum beats, so it is more like variations on 2:2:2:2.

Once you are comfortable with the movement, practice playing these with time, making sure all the transitions are smooth.

For jazz playing, these can become one-bar fills of eighth notes - swung eighth at slow tempos, straight at faster tempos.

At slower tempos and half-time feels, you can play them as one-beat thirty-second note fills.

There are more possibilities here. The most obvious is to play the bass drum on beat one of the four-note groupings. Experiment and see what else you can discover.

Have fun. Make music.