Jazz · easy · 80 BPM
Brushes Ballad Swing Drum Beat
A gentle brushes ballad feel, where the left-hand brush sweeps a smooth legato circle on the snare on every beat while the right hand taps the swung ride pattern. The foot hi-hat keeps soft time on 2 and 4. This is the quiet, intimate texture for jazz ballads and slow standards.
Press play to hear it, then open the full machine to edit, loop, and play along with your own kit.
What this teaches
Introduces the brush stir: a sustained circular sweep on the snare against a swung tap pattern.
More grooves
GrooveSteps practice notes · Updated 2026-10-18 · How these examples are made
Listen for this
Use the displayed hits as timing markers for the phrase. A synthesizer's short snare attack does not reproduce a brush sweeping continuously across a drumhead. Keep that distinction in mind and practice sweep motions separately on an appropriate physical surface.
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 16 steps, with 4 steps per main beat. Count each beat as number, e, and, a. The table lists the occupied positions; every unlisted position is a rest. Start at 80 BPM or lower the control until you can follow each part.
| Voice | Count positions |
|---|---|
| ride | 1 · 1 a · 2 · 2 a · 3 · 3 a · 4 · 4 a |
| snare | 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 |
| hihat | 2 · 4 |
These positions describe the programmed example, not an artist recording. Playback uses synthesized sounds. A real performance also involves touch, dynamics and phrasing.
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