DRUM CHART BUILDER SUPPORT
GETTING STARTED USING DRUM CHART BUILDER
Details on Using Drum Chart Builder
How to Keep Organized, The Drum Chart and Setlist Manager and Options Page
The Blank Chart and How to Use It
The Drum Pattern Library and Editor
How to Make Your Charts Look Their Best.
How to Use the Setlist Maker at a Gig
Quick Tips on Using Drum Chart Builder
Hide and Show Bar Labels and Title Field To Make Space
The Options Page
Add Lyric Cues
Use the Viewer Mode Before You Head Out the Door
How to Chart a Sound Change (Rim Or Snare) on Beats 2 & 4.
Short Video Tips on Using Drum Chart Builder
Quick Tips Ideas for Teachers
Quick Tips on How to Hide Bar Labels
Quick Tips on How to Move Bars Up and Down .
Quick Tips Adding and Adjusting Measures to Your Chart.
Drum Chart Builder 2.0, The Progressive App
How to Use the New Update
Video Demonstration on How to Count a Simple Drum Chart
How to Write In Time Signature Changes
How to Notate 2 Two Bar Patterns and 1 Bar Patterns In My Chart.
How to Add the Drum Chart Builder Icon to
Your Mobile Device and Computer
Drum Chart Builder is a Progressive Web App.
You can add an icon to your mobile device so you have access without going online.
Progressive Web Apps download information to your device so you can work online and offline.
How to Use the Features in Drum Chart Builder
Learn About the Main Features
In this video we will discuss the main features of the program and how to use them to build a simple chart.
Learn How to Create a Setlist
In this video we will discuss the main features of the program on how to build a setlist after your charts are built for your performances
Learn About Song Form and How to Create a Map of a Song.
In this video we will discuss what is a verse, chorus so you will understand how to count and identify the different parts of a song and use it as a map. This will help you play a song correctly from start to finish.
Learn How to Count Out the Song Form, Add Fills and Drum Patterns.
In this video we will discuss how to listen to a song and identify the song form of a song. We demonstrate how to add fills and drum patterns to create a simple one page drum chart of a song. This method is very popular with working drummers and teachers.
Learn how to use the auto count to help you count out the song form.
In this video we will discuss and demonstrate how to use a feature to count out the measure automatically. We discuss how to use the metronome to tap out the tempo.
Learn how to use the looper to repeat a musical phrase.
In this video we will discuss and demonstrate how to use the looper feature to help with counting and listens to drum patterns.
Instruction Books on Charting
Need Instruction?
Purchase the Best Book to Learn How to Write Your Drum Charts
Select image to purchased separately in the Easy Drum Chart Store
HARD COPY
$24.99 Plus $3.00 Shipping
PDF
1 Year Subscription to Drum Chart Builder/17 Charts
$59.99
HARD COPY
1 Year Subscription to Drum Chart Builder
$59.99 Plus $3.00 Shipping
Details on Using Drum Chart Builder
How to Keep Organized, The Drum Chart and Setlist Manager and Options Page
Use the main page to view, organize and build new charts and setlists. Select Options button to set global setting such as changing chart and setlist fonts, setting metronome clink to stop after 1 to 2 to 4 bars in the viewer mode and more.
The Blank Chart and How to Use It
After selecting new chart from the chart manager you will be able to start charting using the blank chart template.
The program was designed to look just like the charts in the book, How to Write a Fast and Easy Drum Chart.
Book is available at easydrumchart.com
We have released the How to Write a Fast and Easy Drum Chart Course, Click Here to Read More and Enroll
The Drum Pattern Library and Editor.
Use the preset library and pattern editor to add patterns to your charts. The quick preset library has all the basic and advanced patterns to add to your chart. The fast pattern editor makes it easy to change patterns and relabel parts if needed. Add custom patterns to your own library for quick access.
How to Make Your Charts Look Their Best.
While building your chart, select the viewer icon to go back and forth between the editor and viewer to see how your chart is going to look in your viewing device. Moving bars up and down in your chart or making notation smaller will help make the chart view better on a single page.
Charts view better when only 8 blocks are used in each row. Use the “Hide Bar Label” (Song Form, Bars, Drum Instruction) to remove or add to save space and allow more bars to be added to your chart.
How to Use the Setlist Maker at a Gig
Open Setlist maker and select the + and - keys to add “New Songs”. Choose “new song” to open a dropdown list of all the songs in the drum chart manager.
Select first song in your setlist and all charts will open one by one in the view mode to be scrolled through to play each chart in the set. Select anywhere at the top of the chart with your finger to start the metronome for the count in. To edit your chart, select the menu on the top right hand side and select Edit to return chart to the edit mode. Save your chart after the edit and reopen in your setlist.
All charts have to be in the chart manager first before a new setlist can be built
How to View Charts and Your Spotify Playlist on an iPad using the Splitscreen Feature
View your charts with your Spotify playlist. Use the spitscreen feature on an iPad so you and see your charts and hear the song on your playlist. Watch this quick video to learn how.
How to View Charts and Your Apple Music Playlist on an iPad using the Split Screen Feature
View your charts with your Apple Music playlist. Use the spit screen feature on an iPad so you and see your charts and hear the song on your playlist. Watch this quick video to learn how.
Hide and Show Bar Labels and Title Field To Make Space.
You can hide or show the Bar Labels ( Song Form, Bars, Drum Instruction - The First Song form block) and the Drum Patterns Label, Title Field at the bottom of the chart so there is more room on the chart.
You can hide or show the Bar Labels and Title Field by just selecting it in the dropdown.
The Options Page
Use Options in the chart manager page to set Bar Labels (Song Form, Bars and Drum Instruction) and Title Field (Drum Patterns) to hide or show all the time.
Change drum chart fonts globally for all charts and setlists.
Change the font size in the Manager chart and setlist page.
Set Metronome to click all the time (Disabled) or
Set metronome to click for one, two or four bars during editing or performances.
This feature is perfect if all you need is to see the click for a few measures before you count the band in.
Add Lyric Cues
Add lyric cues to the drum instruction tier. This helps so you can see where you are in the chart. They can also be used if you are singing backups and need a lyric reminder that you have to sing.
You can make the font smaller by selecting and choosing "small" from the insert figure adjustment window.
Use the Viewer Mode Before You Head Out the Door
Always check your chart in the viewer mode to see how your chart is going to look on your mobile device and see if we need to make any adjustments. Check to see if you have added to many bars in each line. If you have, go back to the edit mode and use the Move Bar Up or Move Bar Down from the dropdown menu to adjust your chart so it fits on one page.
How to Chart a Sound Change (Rim Or Snare) on Beats 2 & 4.
Sometimes instead of playing the snare on beats 2&4, the song calls for a cross stick or a rim sound or even a clap sound. I have found that it is easier to read that change right in the chart rather than add a new pattern or change the SD pattern line.
Try This!
In the third tier, add the word Rim, Clap, Snare or any description directly into the chart. Then add which beat or beats this sound must be played on such as beats 2&4, beat 4 or beat 3.This method is fast to read and you can see it coming ahead of time so you will be prepared.
Short Video Tips on Using Drum Chart Builder
Quick Tips Ideas for Teachers
Drum Chart Builder can be used for making drum scores and new reading lessons for students. Here is a Quick Tip to using the program to help your students read music better and they can create their own drum music. Students can have their own accounts and bring in their iPads or tablets to lessons so teachers can open their accounts and build any type of drum notation the will help them understand how to read music. The program is browser-based so anything you do in their account stays there for them to review.
Quick Tips on How to Hide Bar Labels
Learn how to use remove bar labels making more room to add song forms. Learn how to remove the drum patterns title field to make your chart fit better on your viewer.
Quick Tips on How to Move Bars Up and Down .
Quick tip on moving bars up and down to best view charts on a mobile device.
Quick Tips Adding and Adjusting Measures to Your Chart.
This is a quick video on adjusting the measures of your charts in the chart editor and viewer so you can make your chart look right on your mobile device.
Drum Chart Builder 2.0, The Progressive App
How to Use the New Update
How to Read a Drum Chart
How to Read a Drum Chart.
This is a quick instructional video on how to read and easy one page drum chart.
Video Demonstration on How to Count a Simple Drum Chart
Listen to the song and watch how to count while playing and reading a drum chart.
Frequently Asked Questions About Drum Chart Builder
How to Write in Time Signature Changes
You can change time signatures in a chart two different ways.
Split up the song form and label each group of measure with the different time signatures.
Such as Verse is a total of 8 measure and the 5th measure is in 2/4. See example
Label one block as Verse 4 the next block as Verse 1 @ 2/4 and one block Verse 3 measures.
If I do not change the block with a different time signature then it is the original time signature.
Another way is to just use one block and split it up with / a slash mark and add time signature changes.
This is the way I like to do it so I don't use to much space. ex: 4/4 | 2/4 | 4/4. see image
How Do I Add Repeats to My Chart?
Drum chart builder was not designed to add repeats. The idea was to build a chart where we do not have to think about repeats, first and second endings, codas DC or DS. We wanted users to be able to just read the chart down. It is a simple way to read a chart. Beginner drummers like this approach because they are new at reading and counting.
For advanced drummers, you can add a text to a tier to say REPEAT 4X'S. This is a good space saver on your chart if the song you are charting is very long.
See the example.
How to Notate 2 Two Bar Patterns and 1 Bar Patterns In My Chart.
Drum chart builder was designed for working drummers who don't need a lot of notation to read. So you have to be creative in your chart to fit just what you need to play the chart. If you need to add more notation to your chart try this.
Choose the pattern that is not to complicated and notate the bass drum pattern in the third tier of the song form.
Use the 4 spaces available for the two 2 bar patterns and notate pattern 2 and 3 at the bottom of your chart.
This will keep you chart as one page.
See the example.
See if this technique works for you.
SETLIST TIPS
Zoom In and Out
To make charts fit better in the viewer, try using the zoom in and out icons. The program remembers what size it was last used in.
Questions from Users
How Do I Move Measures?
By using the quick dropdown menu, you can move, delete and insert 3 tier blocks in your charts.
Answers Videos from Staff
How do I adjust measures to fit in pdf?
Here is a quick video on how to move the tiers to fit better in your viewer.
Streamline your charts and simplify for easy reading and viewing.
As you build your charts, always check to see how your chart is going to look when you are using the view mode at your gigs. Do this as you build your charts to make sure your charts look right and fit right.
Answers Videos from Staff
Question about screen size
Here is a quick video on how each browser works with Drum Chart Builder.
Answers Videos from Staff
About Us
96 Song to chart and the band leaves in two weeks.
At a rehearsal, you are given 5 pages of measure after measure of music to play.
Auditions, how to do you prepare?
Bands and shows, how do you keep organized?
Many drummers every day are faced with this problem and are forced to solve the problem either by hoping they can memorize all the songs or
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