The finest in writing, since 1989.

  • Fakebook Pro 3.0

    Easier to use, even better looking chord charts and a new list editor - Fakebook 3.0 is the professional choice. Great new features and more songs...

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  • The Rude Practice Pad

    The Rude Practice Pad is the perfect training tool for drum set players, percussionists, marching bands and drum lines. From student to pro, there is always something you can work on in this selection of drum rudiments and hybrid rhythms....

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  • Fakebook Pro - the Real Book

    The Fakebook Pro sheet music reader is preloaded with chord progressions for 400 rock and pop songs as well as 1200 classic jazz standards. Instantly transpose the collection or individual chord charts to suit the soloist or singer....

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  • An Actually Free Andronome+

    Thousands of pro musicians' gig go-to app! Accurate and transposable chord charts, PDF sheet music, ChordPro, ABC and lyrics; this app handles them all...

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  • Fakebook Pro Sheet Music Reader

    Thousands of pro musicians' gig go-to app! Accurate and transposable chord charts, PDF sheet music, ChordPro, ABC and lyrics; this app handles them all...

    Read More

20141207

Warm-ups and Killer exercises

When not developing software I like to play the drums. Unfortunately I must admit that flailing away at the kit to some random Spotify playlist is a lot more fun than practicing hand technique. And that shows...

However, the latest months my practice pad has seen the daylight again (figuratively speaking; a Swedish December doesn't offer much sun). The reasons for this are George Lawrence Stone, Sonny Igoe and Tommy Igoe - or more precisely the killers and great hands warm-up.

Drummers discussing drummers and drumming (nowadays most often in Internet forums) keeps recommending the Stone Killers and Igoe's Great Hands or Lifetime Warm-up, and that ten minutes a day can make a huge difference. Well, I can afford ten minutes a day, I thought. And it made an immediate difference. Not that my hands are great (yet), but I actually started to enjoy practicing rudiments again!

Now, as a developer I couldn't help but try to improve on these already great concepts. First and foremost, such sequences should always be available, in the pocket. Second, though well thought out, I found the number of repetitions and ordering non-intuitive sometimes.

So, the new version of the Rude Practice Pad contains a generic sequence feature, initially used for three different Stone Killer exercises, a Six Stroke Roll Pyramid and Longlife Warm-ups in two levels of difficulty.

And there are more sequences to come. I'll implement them if I can just leave my practice pad!

Rude Practice Pad - How to use the drum training app