Guides

Short, practical pages on charting drum parts. Every example is drawn by the app.

• How to write a drum chart
  A working drummer's method for charting a song fast: map the form, write each groove once, mark the hits and fills, and keep it to one page.
• Drum notation key: how to read a drum chart
  Where each drum and cymbal sits on the staff, what the x noteheads, accents, ghost notes, open hi-hat marks and repeat signs mean, with examples.
• Drum chart template: a one-page layout that works at the kit
  The columns a drum chart needs, a printable layout you can copy, and why section, time signature, repeats, notes and a groove per section beat a full transcription.
• Choosing a drum chart app for iPad and tablet
  What to look for in a drum chart app you'll read at the kit, how Rhythm Writer compares with Drum Chart Builder and notation apps, and what each costs.
• Charting a song for a sub drummer
  How to write a chart someone else can play from on one rehearsal: form, cues, feel, the three things subs get wrong, and a checklist.