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Rafa Cajón
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Level 1 · The Three Sounds · 1-3

First snares

The crack. Technique over volume - protect your hands.

What you play

B bass · S snare · g ghost · rest
1
S
2
·
3
S
4
·
60 BPM
startpass

How to play it

  1. 1Put a hand at the top edge: base of the palm resting near the edge, fingers relaxed and slightly cupped.
  2. 2Whip the fingers down so the fingertips snap against the plate. The crack comes from the whip, not from force, so keep the fingers loose like a wet towel.
  3. 3Aim for the top 2 to 3 cm of the plate. That is where the crack lives.
  4. 4Play one snare every two beats , alternating hands. Slow and deliberate.
  5. 5Record about 45 seconds.

Listen forEvery snare a bright, sharp crack clearly different from a bass, landing on the beat, with the quality holding steady from first to last; volume does not matter yet.

start 60 · pass 70 BPM · take about 45s

Record a take

I start the click at 60 BPM, count one bar, and stop after about 45s. Phone about a metre away, facing the front plate. You get my notes within a minute of sending it.

Watch out for

  • • Hitting with a stiff flat hand. Dull sound, sore hand.
  • • Chasing volume before the sound is clean
  • • Drifting toward the centre of the plate, where snares die
  • • Hands that sting a lot. That is arm force instead of finger snap.

Read about this