Afro-Cuban · medium · 90 BPM
Afro-Cuban 6/8 Bembe Drum Beat
A compound-time coordination study using a seven-stroke bell figure on a twelve-step cycle. The ride represents the bell, with two low kick anchors and a steady hi-hat pulse beneath it. This is a programmed practice arrangement, not a transcription of a traditional ensemble performance. The BPM control counts groups of three steps.
Press play to hear it, then open the full machine to edit, loop, and play along with your own kit.
What this teaches
Teaches the 6/8 bell ostinato and feeling compound triplet time against a foot pulse.
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GrooveSteps practice notes · Updated 2026-10-18 · How these examples are made
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Learn the seven ride attacks as a single repeating phrase before adding the lower voices. This twelve-step arrangement is a study of a bell figure, not a complete traditional ensemble part. Keep the supporting pulse steady through the ride pattern's uneven gaps.
Practice the arrangement
- Start with the sparsest row. Count every subdivision, including the silent positions.
- Add one voice at a time on your kit, or listen to the full loop and clap just one part. Keep the main pulse unchanged.
- Play four loops at a comfortable tempo. Change one note, then compare the variation with the displayed pattern before adding another.
Read the final example without sound
This loop has 12 steps, with 3 steps per main beat. Each pair of numbers below identifies a main beat and its subdivision (for example, 2.1 is the start of the second main beat). Start at 90 BPM or lower the control until you can follow each part.
| Voice | Count positions |
|---|---|
| ride | 1.1 · 1.3 · 2.2 · 2.3 · 3.2 · 4.1 · 4.3 |
| kick | 1.1 · 3.1 |
| hihat | 1.1 · 2.1 · 3.1 · 4.1 |
These positions describe the programmed example, not an artist recording. Playback uses synthesized sounds. A real performance also involves touch, dynamics and phrasing.
Keep practicing
Build a practice routine · Read drum notation · Browse the lesson path
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