The drum rudiments are part of the history of drumming. They were needed to acquire a certain level of proficiency on the snare drum and the ability to play the style of music at that time. Marching drummers played music that had these types of stickings in them, so they were standardized very early in the history of drumming.

As you can see by the images below they were first documented in 1812... Through the years other drummers came up with their version and had them copyrighted. Over time there started to be some confusion as to what was the official set of rudiments and it often ended in arguments and debates amongst drummers of that time.

On Dec 10, 1935 N.A.R.D (National Association of Rudimental Drummers) sent a bulletin to all 246 members with a list of rudiments to pick from and offer their opinions on what the standard rudiments should be. 140 members responded to the request and what you see on the final page is the official Feb. 3, 1936 list adopted by N.A.R.D

So, start practicing! Our drum fathers did this to give us all the same method for playing and developing proficiency on the snare drum.

David

For the NARD history section click here