heels-up question

hey all. i've been lurking here for a while but never posted....so here goes...

i've been playing heels-down for the 13 or so years i've been drumming. recently, i've been practicing heel-toe'ing and, as a result, i've been trying some heels-up double bass drumming.

the thing is, i've noticed that my balance is all out of whack when playing heels up (with both feet) - i.e., i have to lean my upper body back to balance myself. is my technique ephed, or is this normal for heels-up drumming?

No, that's not normal. When I first started playing double bass I had the same problem. Then I started sitting lower, where the upper part of my legs were parallel to the floor and made a 90 degree angle at the bend of the knee. It took some getting used to, but now it's the only way I'm comfortable playing. In fact, it even helped my heel down method and my overall playing posture as well.

that's how i play too, upper legs parallel to the floor and knees at 90 degrees.

if i lift my feet up i either have to lean back a bit or really flex my stomach muscles to keep my upper body straight. it just doesn't feel 'normal'.

is playing heels-up just like lifting your feet off the ground and holding them there?...that's how i'm doing it.

the way I play heel up double bass is heel up obviously but my toes and the ball of my foot are still on the pedal, when playing fast 16ths eg 200bpm or more, I use my hip to articulate the stroke if you get what I mean (toes and ball of foot still on pedal), Im not really sure how to explain it.

if playing anything slow or slower I play a leg stroke, where you push with the ball and the toes of your foot to raise the leg and then play the stroke when the foot comes back down on the pedal, its a hopping motion.

EDIT: You shouldnt be lifting your feet for more than a second, when playing a louder stroke or your getting into a groove then maybe it might leave the pedal but it shouldnt be lifted to the point where you lose your point of balance and tense your stomach.

i think this is key. now that i'm home i played around with my technique. i think i was lifting my feet too high, causing the need to balance/tense up. i guess i need a lot of practice, because it seems much harder to play with finese with this technique.

cool...thanks for the help.

Exactly the way I play as well. Don't sweat it drumsbeloud. Keep working on it, and soon it will be as natural as walking.

I have the exact problem as described by the original poster, but I'm not sure I'll ever be able to get round it...

Problem is, I'm 6ft 5 and I already have my throne maxed, ditto for my toms too... and I cannot get my legs to sit at a 90 degree angle purely cos I have such long legs!

Thus when I try double-bass drumming, my balance is all out of whack and I have to lean backwards... which results in me not being able to double-bass drum! Which is frustrating to say the least!

No wonder most drummers are tiny! Hehe

- DM

You might try maxing out the springs and playing closer to

the heel plate. This'll give you some resistance to stand on.

Couple more things, you could always play heel down.

Terry Bozzio claims he does and because of balance issues.

Or

Can you fit into one of those drum frames? They look like

they'd solve the problem.

I have the same issue because of my height. I find myself mixing it up depending on what I am doing. If it is just a few quick tripplets I do them heals up, if it is something I play over a longer time frame I go heals down to keep balance. I realy would like to play heals up all the time and I continue to work at it. Heals up just feels so much smoother to me. I wish I was about 6 inches shorter sometimes

Yeah but then you'd get passed over for promotions,

you'd never pass for 'Rock Star' (CRITICAL!) and

all kinds of other crappy stuff.

I just recently started really getting into practicing double bass after years of not using it very much. What helped me was sitting down at my kit and playing constant quarter notes with different patterns on the other drums for about an hour straight. Eventually my legs got tired even playing at a moderate tempo, but I realized I was too tense and just relaxed. That's the best advice I know to give. Just relax your legs and try to spread out the motion of the stroke to all of your leg muscles. The stroke will come mostly from your thigh, but the calves do play a roll in kind of bouncing your leg back up for the next stroke.

I had the same leaning problem at first. It just takes a little practice to get used to the feeling of using both your feet. When playing heel up, don't be afraid to bury your beater into the bass head.. 'cause it's probably going to happen anyway.

My heel isn't up at some hugely exaggerated angle. When I play, my feet are pretty much parallel to the floor. I guess some people play heel REALLY up, but I don't.

You might try going to www.drummerworld.com and watching some double bass videos there. Jason Bittner (SP) and Virgil Donati have a few good videos that might help you out (or intimidate you).