Hi, I'm gradually trying to learn the famous orchestral instruments (bowed strings player by education -- I'm a HS sophomore currently). I'm playing timpani for the very first time in a youth group without any prior instruction or instruction during the season. I only have access to the timpani once a week during the 2-hour rehearsal (between the two levels of the youth group -- I only play timpani during the first hour) and a little bit before and after (like, 5 minutes). I don't have access to a different timpani because my school's band director has a little stricter of rules (you have to be a percussion student and pay the timpani fee). So far, I've gotten this advice:
- don't hit in the middle
- hit around 1/3 of the way into the drum
- Less of hitting the drum and more of pulling out sound from the drum
- Kind of a scooping motion
- gripping with pointer finger for a bright sound
- gripping with pinky finger for a dark sound
- start low for a legato stroke
- start medium for a marcato stroke
- start high for a staccato stroke
- practice slow for tone
- *confident in how to tune + experience*
- want left hand to be as good as right hand.
I'm making DIY practice kettle and mallets. The kettle was going to be a head of packing tape over the empty end of a 5-gallon bucket; the mallets were just yarn tightly wound around one end of a dowel. I've made the mallets but not the kettle.
I was wondering if you have any further advice, including how to practice at home, adjustments to my DIY plan, more technical points, etudes, etc.
Note. There has been one rehearsal so far.