How to Play Left Foot Clave

foot techniqueLearning how to play the left foot clave is a very hard thing to do. Training your left foot to play a specific pattern can be a very hard thing for any skill level drummer to grasp. However, once you can play this pattern with your left foot, you are free to add in so much with your other limbs. The clave is a Latin pattern that is can be used in almost every Latin style of music. Even rock music uses this pattern, so it is very important to understand. Check out the Latin section to learn how to play the clave pattern. Playing this on your left foot is not super important for drummers to learn, but if you have the time and patience, it is definitely worth learning!

Developing your left foot clave
When you want to develop your paradiddle, or double stroke roll on your sticks, you practice on a practice pad and a metronome at different speeds. The same goes for developing your left foot clave (minus the practice pad!). Start by simply playing the clave pattern on your left foot on the floor, hi hats, or cowbell bracket (if you have one). The hi hat is a great place to start. Make sure you are choosing a clave pattern and sticking to it; so before you start, choose either the Son clave, Rumba clave, Bossa nova clave, or the 6/8 clave.

Make sure you are practicing this with a metronome so you keep on time. Keep in mind that this is a pattern, so if you lose track of the timing, you will start playing an incorrect beat. Try this with your left foot; this is the 3:2 Son clave:

Sheet Music

Now to help develop your independence with your left foot, try playing a single stroke roll on the snare drum while playing the clave. This may sound boring, but it will develop key independence skills needed to master this technique. So try this:

Sheet Music

Now that you have a little bit of independence going on with your hands, try to add in your right foot. Start out with just your left and right feet together, this is tricky enough:

Sheet Music

Now for some added challenge, play all three together. Play a single stroke roll on your snare drum, a basic kick pattern on you bass drum and a son clave pattern on with you left foot. This looks like this:

Sheet Music

In order to develop further independence, try playing a double stroke roll or paradiddle on your sticks. Also, you can try moving around your kit instead of just playing on your snare drum. This practice is what develops the independence needed to maintain a clave pattern on your left foot. This is definitely a challenging task, so be patient when learning this!

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