High-quality ensemble playing requires proper rhythmic phrasing . Starting the sound at the proper moment is vital , but sustaining for the correct length of time and ending accurately are equally important — and you can ’ t just stop any old way . Good musicianship requires ending sound in a manner that suits the moment . As percussionists , we need to master several stopping techniques to adequately cover the wide variety of instruments . |
SUSPENDED CYMBAL
The ring of a suspended cymbal can last several seconds , and often it is appropriate to allow the sound to fade naturally . However , there are many occasions when vibrations must be stopped at a precise moment . The standard suspended cymbal choke method is to simply grab the vibrating plate between the thumb and fingers of one or both hands . An alternative is to lean into the cymbal and make contact with
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the upper abdominal area . Both choke types are | ||||||
Of course , many situations do not require a |
demonstrated in this short video : |
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special method to end the sound . For example : | ||||||
• Striking a series of eighths on a snare | ||||||
drum — just hit each note and move on . | ||||||
• Stopping |
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striking |
motion |
on |
a |
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suspended cymbal roll but allowing the | ||||||
cymbal ’ s ring to decay naturally . | ||||||
TRIANGLE | ||||||
Stopping techniques come into play when an instrument has a naturally long sustain needing to be controlled and / or when a roll has a specific ending point . |
In addition to holding the suspension device , the holding hand plays an important part in controlling the sustain of the triangle . The sound can be accurately stopped by closing the outside |
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two fingers and the side of the palm around the | ||||||
Check out some examples of stopping techniques on a handful of percussion instruments . |
upper corner area of the instrument . Both the holding hand grip and stopping technique are |
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demonstrated in this short video : | ||||||
PIATTI ( Hand-held Cymbals ) | ||||||
Back in an earlier century , somebody decided | ||||||
that choke should be the term for stopping the | ||||||
ring of a cymbal . The term ( or the abbreviation | ||||||
CH ) frequently appears in sheet music to | ||||||
indicate when to stop the sound . | ||||||
TAMBOURINE | ||||||
After making a crash , allow the cymbals to ring and bring the plates into your upper abdominal area to stop the vibrations at the end of the rhythmic value . This choking technique is pretty simple — until you have to make a choke quickly after a crash , followed by another crash as shown in the example below ( EX 1 ): |
The shake roll is the most common method for sustaining sound with the tambourine . When playing the shake roll , the instrument is usually perpendicular to the floor . To end the roll , stop the shaking motion as you bring the back of your hand ( along with the tambourine ) towards the floor . This will cause the jingles to fall against |
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the jingle slots . With just a little practice , you can | ||||||