An old musician’s joke goes “there are three kinds of drummers in the world—those who can count and those who can’t.” But perhaps there is an even more global divide. Perhaps there are three kinds of people in the world—those who can drum and those who can’t. Perhaps, as the promotional video above from GE suggests, drummers have fundamentally different brains than the rest of us. Today we highlight the scientific research into drummers’ brains, an expanding area of neuroscience and psychology that disproves a host of dumb drummer jokes.
“Drummers,” writes Jordan Taylor Sloan at Mic, “can actually be smarter than their less rhythmically-focused bandmates.” This according to the findings of a Swedish study (Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm) which shows “a link between intelligence, good timing and the part of the brain used for problem-solving.” As Gary Cleland puts it in The Telegraph, drummers “might actually be natural intellectuals.”
Neuroscientist David Eagleman, a renaissance researcher The New Yorker calls “a man obsessed with time,” found this out in an experiment he conducted with various professional drummers at Brian Eno’s studio. It was Eno who theorized that drummers have a unique mental makeup, and it turns out “Eno was right: drummers do have different brains from the rest.” Eagleman’s test showed “a huge statistical difference between the drummers’ timing and that of test subjects.” Says Eagleman, “Now we know that there is something anatomically different about them.” Their ability to keep time gives them an intuitive understanding of the rhythmic patterns they perceive all around them.
That difference can be annoying—like the pain of having perfect pitch in a perpetually off-key world. But drumming ultimately has therapeutic value, providing the emotional and physical benefits collectively known as “drummer’s high,” an endorphin rush that can only be stimulated by playing music, not simply listening to it. In addition to increasing people’s pain thresholds, Oxford psychologists found, the endorphin-filled act of drumming increases positive emotions and leads people to work together in a more cooperative fashion.
Clash drummer Topper Headon discusses the therapeutic aspect of drumming in a short BBC interview above. He also calls drumming a “primeval” and distinctly, universally human activity. Former Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart and neuroscientist Adam Gazzaley have high hopes for the science of rhythm. Hart, who has powered a light show with his brainwaves in concerts with his own band, discusses the “power” of rhythm to move crowds and bring Alzheimer’s patients back into the present moment.
Whether we can train ourselves to think and feel like drummers may be debatable. But as for whether drummers really do think in ways non-drummers can’t, consider the neuroscience of Stewart Copeland’s polyrhythmic beats, and the work of Terry Bozzio (below) playing the largest drumkit you’ve ever seen.
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Josh Jones is a writer and musician based in Durham, NC. Follow him at @jdmagness.
Terry Bozzio is a great drummer, but that kit is maybe 1/3 Billy Cobham’s.
May I present a big kit?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0PQYRXuXb8
If anyone has an example of bigger, It’d be happy to see it :)
I’d* be happy to… (see an edit button)
This one has a bigger kit and is a better solo, imho.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FpbD2F1AEQ
An interesting read, and a lot I disagree with, drummers aren’t metronomes, they are musicians, or some are, and the whole band keeps time together.
They shouldn’t refer to the drummer as some kind of conductor.
After years of playing I have concluded there are two types of musicians, one who listens to the others whilst they play, and the ones that just listen to themselves.
All (half decent) musicians have good timing as does anyone who can dance, it’s not just drummers
@ F again
That kit is ancient. His current kit is much larger.
@ Stuzz
http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/drums-percussion/278434-terry-bozzio-touring-worlds-largest-tuned-kit.html
@ tim
I agree!!
Actually that’s about a fifth of Terry’s normal drum kit.
I was gonna suggest Carl Palmers’ kit used to be big… But I think the Grant Collins one beats it.
Very well said. From my experience of having performed in various drumming/percussion ensembles, I find that the ability to listen to others is often directly reflective of their personality. I find some of my more “stubborn” and subjective friends tend to drift off tempo more often than people who, outside of musical activities, seem to be better listeners in general. Of course it’s not invariably the case, but VERY often it is. I’ve also worked with dancers and theatre folks and it’s the same, in terms of being able to follow movement, or physical pacing.
I’m sorry, has no one seen Neil Peart’s kit?
You mean like this? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nKe7JZ41GI
glen velez — paul winter consort could drum a rhythmn scheme — 2 hands in ratio 1/2 , 2/3 , 3/5, 5/8 … and where that climaxes.. bliss physics: http://www.fractalfield.com/implosionsound
“I have concluded there are two types of musicians, one who listens to the others whilst they play, and the ones that just listen to themselves.”
That is a WAY more meaningful distinction. Many thanks!
And jealousy rears it’s ugly head lol
Contemporary Bozzio, e.g., https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgjL81qzZMs
I knew something was afoot.
I think dancers have a unique edge too.
Cuase I can drum but surely not dance a footstep.
anecdotal yet interesting I believe
I think “the four limbs moving independently” has a lot to do with the positive impact on the brain. Dancing does the same thing. Not that it’s necessary for drummers to be good dancers, Rick Thunberg. ;)
Very interesting post. As a drummer I can truly relate but I feel that there should be more diversity in the people who participate in these tests, research.
Latino cats, African american percussionists, African griots musicians…Mix it up!
And how about Neil Peart? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWRMOJQDiLU
Nice quick conclusions on poor science. Random tests need to be done using bar bands and patrons. You supply the refreshments for cooperation. Then grab some ball players and some people from the library. We need real random tests if we want to actually try to prove anything outside of conjecture and bias.
Tim … you posted the best response so far… at least in my opinion … someone who can follow the beat of a bar band and dance well … well, they have a special brain too. And I would not be calling drummers ‘intellectuals’, when I only test the cream of the crop.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7j60WFotD8
How about Shivamani’s drum kit here (see 2:36th minute): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1-3znOxk8k
Better shot of Peart’s set during The Rhythm Method: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAWscUC1UMQ
@rick try to virtually play bass drum double pedal flat footed, you’ll dance salsa in a month.
Interesting they mentioned Copeland since his drumming was quite sophisticated for the ‘genre’. Even though Lazarus Heart drummer was Manu Katche, and that the Little Wing cover on Nothing like the sun with Kenwood Dennard is even more interesting in modulation and sensitivity IMO.
there is more here than meets the eye! new science claims that there are ways we humans can tune into the cosmic
symphony! happening all around us all the time!
Phychic? Intuitive? or ? music an people are inseperatable, so when you sing, or dance or (?) play drums (!) we are tuning into the cosmic essence, which we are a part of but now , some of us, searching for the timing an tempo,
stumbling upon it…experience a timelessness, an inclusion, an a europhic experience! an are continually looking for more!
Being drawn to the drum as an expression not completely understood but sustaining interest an inclusion for many years now…some of the mystery, esoteric? comes to light in my life…share your propensity with someone…the more the merrier! Drum your truth! such as it is…and always improving! To you all, in love and music!
clement
Back in the early 90’s I was developing a pro networked MIDI routing system. We discovered, to our surprise, that pro drummers bitch loudly if they can hear their stick hitting the pad separately from the sound of the sampler in their headphones. click — boom was a no-no. The surprising bit was not the separation itself, nor the bitching (we also found everyone on stage has big egos), but the magnitude: pro drummers are upset at a 5 msec delay. Some even at 4 msecs. I had to polish the code until I got to a 2 msec network latency before they were all happy. And on a 2 MHz 8 bit micro that was hard to do. No other musician demographic was even close — 10 msecs for pros, 20 for good amateurs, 30+ for general public. I got myself down to only 15 doing that practice.
haha, there are some monstrosities out there…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwCD9JfTpB4
Trilok Gurtu (John McLaughlin, Oregon)is one of the most amazing ever! His setup is completely unique and he’s a phenomenal tabla player as well. Check Him Out…especially with Joe Zawinul as a duo. Sorry I don’t have a clip.
Brother Cobham sure knows what to do with a set of skins, too, doesn’t he!
i completely agree with you. Drummers are musicians who need to have great musical sensitivity to fly and swim with the other musicians. I have sung for 25 years now, and have found that the best music is when we all listen to one otherand let the music take form and space.….A true artist is part of a whole body. Good timing is a singer’s business also, that s why Ella Fitzgerald was such a great artist!
since i have been drumming i have gotten to be a much better singer!
Couldn’t agree more. While there may be some physical and/or mental element that could suggest that some psychological make-up may be more suitable for percussion and drum patterns and the playing of them, I agree with Tim above completely when he suggests that all musicians have a hand in the playing of music in time, particulary in complex, multi-level composition styles such as odd-time fusion or big band or latin.
I think all too often the drummer or percussionist is pointed to with the all-encompassing responsibility of being the time-keeper at all costs. In fact, I learned a long time ago that in big band, for example, the bass player has equal if not more responsibility for time keeping and the drummer as the time ENFORCER. Ultimately, listening, collaborating, and finding the ideal common time denominator is key.
But, if it makes people feel better to consider drummers as intellectually superior, who am I to argue? :-)
Lol terry bozzios kit makes Neil pearts look like a trap kit and he makes use of all of it in much more creative fashion imo. Why does everyone always gotta cite Neil peart?
what about hand drumming is it the same thing congas bongos dejimbe?
There are two kinds of commenters — those who want to talk about the ideas in the article, and those who want to know who has the biggest drum kit.
Interesting article, however if this is correct drummers brains are different even before they start playing drums? I would say the very act of playing and learning to play drums changes your mind, not the other way round.
I enjoyed the article. In my own decades of research as a percussionist I discovered an interesting fact about my own music making as heard by others: The farther away they got, the better it sounded!
lol do you play the drums? no? then booooo.….and drummers aren’t musicians anyway.……we just hang out with them…(-:
sorry albert .…but no.…(-:
lol…so clearly you aren’t a drummer either…but look, if it makes you feel better to refute this wonderful study…sell ya’ bass guitar and buy a drumkit…you too can perhaps rewire your brain.…or.…pick up a six string and become a lead guitarist.…that way you can just let your fingers do your talking.…(-:
Thanks, this underlines my essay “The Drummer‘s Drama” ( in German). Too many people, especially other musicians do not appreciate what we ( drummers ) contribute to the music growing in colaboration. The spine of dynamics, tempo and density lies in what we do.
Even though I dare not to put me ( in a scale of 1 to 10 ) above a medium 6, most musicians who played with me, appreciated what I did/do. The drummers who inspired me unfortunately have passed away : Keith Moon, John Bonham, Jeff Porcaro, and especially Richie Hayward. Why did they leave the stage so early ??? Yo ‘Hannes, right now playing with Nursery Cryme.
Rex explained in drummer speak, that Eno (of the huge drum kit) is using every limb in a rhythmic pattern independently of each other limb and, instead of keeping time with his base-drum or the rim of his snare-drum or cymbals etc. he is holding it together independently of his limbs with his brain.
He also explains with one band that the musicians were so in sync that he could play complicated cross-patterns (whatever?) because the other members held together.
Apparently, it is extremely rare to find a band whose individual members are not only good, experienced musicians but also share the same feel or bond with one another.
Believe me when I say drummer’s brains are very different.
I to didn’t really love the band ‑but Pert was the Man!!!!!!
Terry B. Lol… Try Buddy, The man with the world’s fastest left hand. Did more on his 5 piece then these mega kit performers out there.. Just saying is all..
years ago i set up the drum set that was the guiness book of world records — had chad smith playing it for the record moment. Dont have the vid anymore but i have a photo, i will try to post it — traveling now
It seems like there really are “three” types of drummer reading the comments… those that discuss the article and those obsessed with kit size… compensating for something lads ? 😀
Too bad Buddy Rich isn’t alive to have Mr. Gazzaley analyze his drumming brain!
I am hungry:3
Some mention of the role of drumming in shamanism seems appropriate here. Drumming is a central element of the shamanic journey in shamanic cultures all over the world, more common even than psychedelics.
Drumming sessions should be introduced to rehabilitation centers
Drug rehabilitation..stroke rehabilitation…anything to do with mental recuperation
The size of your kit is personal and has nothing to do with your chops or playing ability. In fact the smaller kits are more challenging because there are fewer sound choices so you have to be more rhythmic in order to sound interesting. Drummers who use the mega kits seem to be less rhythmic and less syncopated because they rely on the sound of the different drums too much..and the patterns suffer. I think the most awesomew players use 4 or 5 piece kits…that being said Neil Peart is an exception to the rule.….
As a drummer, I fell each group of people together respond or interact with timing differently. I’ve played with a band that was near impossible to keep at a steady tempo. The rest of the band could drift so far from me, I was out of sync, even though in this particular band, it was decided that I was the one to (try) to hold the tempo steady. As Tim states, some musicians don’t listen, but ultimately it’s my job to to watch out for tempo drift, which can be positive in some situations but typically a bad thing. Arrogance plays a big part in some of the musicians willinn7to be part of the band or hover above it .
*I think Neil Peart might have the biggest drum kit… and he absolutely uses all of them!
Well I just happen to be a self taught drummer . I have excepted the fact that I will never be the best in the world . I love spontaneity ! Inspiration that I can enhance or exaggerate . I make all things appear as If , It was a part of the show.
Definitivamente estoy deacuerdo contigo. El tiempo es algo que todos los músicos desarrollan; sin embargo el drummer es el encargado de “marcar el beat”; aún así, hay un punto muy interesante que has remarcado y me resulta más interesante que lo compartamos en dos puntos diferentes del globo, y es que los músicos se dividen en aquellos que escuchan a los demás y los que no. En mi experiencia como drummer he podido observar que esa habilidad es MÁS importante que solo llevar el tiempo; así como el tiempo filmico es diferente al tiempo real; en un Gig, el tiempo real puede diferir, debido al factor emocional, pero si la banda se escucha, y se interconectan, eso define un buen gig a un simple tocar dentro del tiempo fijo.-
https://youtu.be/F6KB5WmB0_w
Two things:
— Hearing a large percussion ensemble perform in concert is an incredible experience — - am thinking of the revered Phil Faini heading the percussion department at West Virginia University’s Creative Arts Center for decades, then served as Dean — - such a dear man and a tremendous teacher. The percussion department’s annual concerts in that era were held on two consecutive nights and always to a packed house. The finales were a crescendo building from the lightest sound, such as a broom sweeping across the stage floor, then to more brooms, then more and more instruments, etc., etc., etc., ending often with the marching band’s horn section charging in from the rear of the auditorium, with six trap sets lighting up on each side of the auditorium, each trap set in raised individual cubicles, and all musicians igniting the crowd into a frenzy of appreciation and gratitude. Unforgettable — -
- The brain changes with training. Neurologist and lead researcher Dr. Barry Seemungal has studied a training-related phenomenon in ballet dancers to further understand dizziness in improving treatments for patients with chronic dizziness. Ballet dancers were the ideal subjects to study, due to the lack of dizziness experienced by ballet dancers when they spin. These brain researchers found that the area of the brain called the cerebellum was smaller in dancers than in non-dancers, and the more experienced the dancer, the smaller the cerebellum. Hearing Seemungal discuss how the brain changes in response to experience is fascinating. Here are two interviews with Seemungal http://www.cbc.ca/news/ballet-dancers-brains-adapt-to-cope-with-dizziness‑1.1871576
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzCeDLYqB1E
I can agree with what you say Tim…but, it can get even more technical then just drumming. For instance there are drummers that just keep a Beat, and there are drummers who are precision players and there are also drummers who are musician drummers and then there’s some kind of like I am, a master of all of them which people call a prodigy… And no we’re not a metronome some of us are even better than a metronome and there are some they can’t keep their steady rhythm and shouldn’t play at all but give them credit for trying
“Less rhythmically focuses band mates” !!??
It’s irritating how so many “uneducated” writers say it’s the drummers job to keep good time. It’s EVERYONES! Definitely my pet peeve.
I was born in 1971 with a massive brain AVM that caused me to stroke 15 times. Before my 15th stroke, I had been taking private drum lessons was becoming quite astute at drum set.
After my craniotomy, it took two or three or four years; however, I was able to retain my ability to maintain even better perfect rhythm, metrically, then I had been able to, before my final stroke.
I switched from using my right foot to my left foot for my bass drum pedal, begin to play with other musicians, and, soon, begin to play publicly, for money.
Resuming the act of playing my drums was 20000 times better than any other physical and occupational therapy than I’d ever been apprised of, previously. Then, in 2003, I discovered voice recognition software and use that to substantially re-strengthen my short-term-memory.
I work, currently, as a freelance writing tutor and tutor of higher education writing at the University of Maryland.
Please contact me at: http://www.facebook.com/mattramzzz1971 and check out my writing at: mattramzzz.wordpress.com/about.
Thanks for the interesting article. One of the best drummers and total musical geniuses I’ve ever witnessed is Phil Collins who seamlessly moves from playing original drum fills as well as singing complex lyrics at the same time to moving to the microphone and singing lead. He played every instrument including Bagpipes on his album Both Sides. His ear for music and wonderful musical pieces originated with Genesis are unsurpassed. He never learned to read music either but uses his own shorthand when communicating with other musicians!
Love this — someone shared this with me recently.
I have been doing a ton of drumming with senior citizens and found the benefits for them to be amazing.
Here is a clip of some seniors drumming with djembes while I’m playing a kit with playalong music. Average age is 86!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMwa_0DjRVI
This isn’t Vinnie C at Ronnie Scotts obviously, but you the fun they have is amazing to experience.
I started respectfulbeats.com to help seniors play drums.
-Steve Benedetto
There’s a bunch of drummers out there that have a big cat like Billy Cobham used to Posey is one of them Mike Portnoy Neil Peart and Mike Mangini and I’m sure there’s other guys out there that have bigger kids but having a big kid is one thing to be able to play it and make it work is another
Neal Peart is a machine. He plays perfectly, which doesn’t excite me. I never hear any soul or feeling in his playing. The guy can’t swing.
Drummers,as well as other musicians, can count, but I think drummers affect the TEMPO more than the other members of bands, specifically 3–4pc/5pc, Rock and roll or country,metal,bar bands etc.. if the drummer’s tempo fluctuates throughout each song,it stands out more than say a guitar or bass would.Especially in a bar band setting. The punch of a bass drum is the pulse of the room,unless the sound man sucks of course.It is what people on the dance floor shake their asses to.Have you ever watched a live band with a drummer that has horrible tempo? If so I am willing to wager the dance floor was empty most of the night. You see folks,ironically,people that can dance,or “cut a rug” if you will, can also usually count at least to 4 pending on weather they joined Ludwig Von Tama Zildjian during his pregame “warmup“So, if our knight in shining drums has had one too many pulls off the one-eye, or maybe has been sipping on a little bit of grandpa’s cough medicine,his tempo may fluctuate a little or even drastically in some cases! As a result,our horny heat seekers might not be able to feel that solid beat pulse through their cologne soaked sternums all the way down through their tight, overevealing faux leather pants. Being a drummer myself,I would have to say that the whole intellectual advantage they claim to prove, is maybe a bit bogus. I’m pretty much the typical maniac drummer that is no smarter than your average bear.Maybe a little more daring or less likely to be embarrassed by my own ridiculously immature public antics, but not any smarter than most. Fortunately for me,I possess an instant self redemption quality which makes my rowdie and childish behavior seem to at least be tolerable by most of the patrons who witness it,along with my band mates of equally comparable intellect.“What is this secret super power?” you ask…I am a bad ass,well rounded drummer with killer groove, feel, and tempo. And yes I can count 3/4,4/4,and hell even 11/8 TIME.. But time and tempo are 2 totally different things. As far as big drum sets go,the guys who show up with the basic kick drum, snare, rack tom, floor tom, hats, and a couple of lonely cymbals,set up and then blow the place up like they are sitting behind a wall of drums when they play are the ones that are most entertaining in my opinion. Sometimes less is more I guess.
I like how you said that a drummer’s ability to keep time actually gives them an intuitive ability to understand rhythmic patterns that happen all around them. It’s interesting that learning to keep time could have an effect on someone’s constant perception of things that happen around them. I’m glad I read your article because it gave me a new appreciation for drummers and the beats and rhythms they make. http://alectackmann.com/
Spot on. A guitarist playing a complex number while singing and playing the stomp box just blows my mind
I honestly don’t know why people are getting so worked up about this, I thought it was very good
I sort of agree with this article but…as far as intelligence…ask our wives!
Not one mention of Danny Carey? Quite possibly the best drummer on the planet? Tools main source of viberations come from danny. Im really blown away. A guy spends 40 plus years evolving percussion and not a mention. Thats ok Danny is a percussionist. There are 3 types of drummers and then there is Danny Carey from Tool. Not a drummer. Percussionist. Say it.
The West African Jembe is king. DunDunBa! Bangoura
Keita Sylla Camara Turre . Kissidougou, Bamako, Boke,Fountan Joli, Guinea Mali Ivory Coast Senegal
Boca Fode Mangue Abduli Abubacar Laurant Ishmael.
Latvia Bonfice Faxine I love you Guinea.
In my life you play what it’s in your heart
It’s called back bone and your bassist should be there
Actually, the best drummers dance very well. I hold out the example of Buddy Rich. Not only the best drummer to ever have drawn breath, but a dazzling tap dancer as well. His kick work and hi hat precision are evidence of that.
I had no clue about the therapeutic value of drumming. Maybe I can pick it up to help me through my therapy. Doing it online seems like it would be easier to start with.
I wish there was research on HOW to better teach drum set playing. Methods have changed through the drum set’s short history. I’ve been teaching drum set since 1978. Every few years I get one student who cannot predict a pulse. It’s bizarre-arhythmia is some kind. Would love deep insight into those kind of brains.
I’m also not a Peart (or Rush) fan and I’m bloody Canadian AND a drummer.
Here here! I agree.
Sorry, but Billy cobham is drunk. It is not near as big as TERRY bozzio Drum Kits trust me.
That came out wrong. Billy cobham drum kit is not even as big as terry bozzio’s drum kit. And he has two of these drum sets.