I've already posted an identical thread on gaiaonline, but it seems like theres usually more knowledgeable musicians here, so I figured I'd better try posting one here as well.

Me, my older sister, and my older brother are currently going to a weekly bagpipe band practice, but my sister is the only one learning the bagpipes. I find the band quite interesting, and I really want to play in it, but I currently only play the fiddle.
After considering all (even the bass drum) of the instruments, I've decided that I'd like to play the tenor drum the most. (I don't feel like taking on another high maintenance/high difficulty instrument.) The band is really great because theres free lessons right before the official band practice, so I can partially learn there, but I'd like to get as much of a head start on this as I can.

And so I guess my questions are...
1. Where do I start?
2. What can I do to prepare?
3. Any drum recommendations?
4. What about the drum sticks?
5. What about practice pads?
6. Is drumming on a hard surface (E.G.a table) just as affective as using a drum or a practice pad if its just for practicing?

Thanks in advance.

LOL! bagpipes are so cool! ^_^
It's really good that you're interested in joining the band as a tenor drummer!!! Hmmmm, i guess i dont have too many advice but i once played the snare and the bass drum so i guess tenor drum would kinda be similar to these drums :) ummm... i'll try to answer all of your questions but there might some question i'm not too sure about :heh:

Where to start and how you can prepare:
-If you have the drum with you, fiddle around with it and try play some simple rhythm, while you do this notice how different sounds can be produced by the drum if you use different techniques. Also, practice in how you hold and control the drum sticks since its really important.

Ways of practicing:
- Of course practicing with the actual drum is the best thing you can practice on but if you don't have it with you then a practice pad is fine! :)
Umm, you can practice on a hard surface like a table i guess but it's kind of different compared to the drum because you're hitting on a softer surface and tit's hollow... so the feeling is a bit different. But you could always practice on the table to get the rhythm right! :)

Wells, that all i could think of for now! Hope this kind of helps you a bit! :) I might also post anything else i know a bit later when i remember them :sweat: Anyways... i hope you enjoy the tenor drum :D

Alrighty then. ^^ Yes, that did help a little.

But no, I don't have the drum right now. I would have to buy one, and my sister was looking at them online and I think they were roughly $300 on average, plus the sticks which average $40, and I'm not sure if I could even persuade my parents to pay that much for a drum. ^^; They're not big drum fans.

But anyways, thanks. Feel completely free to add anything else you can think of later on.

hi,
practicing drums on a wooden table worked out on me. I stick 6-7 rubber pads on my old wodden table that helped me out. practicing on table is very diffrent as Mr happy_smiles suggested but sticking rubber pads on the table is good idea for me and for rhythm it is also easier just concentrate and play it many times. actually i have octopad and drumset both so percussion instruments are almost similar so it dosent matter.