New Zendrum layouts

NEWS:
I have been practicing hard on the Zendrum LT whenever I have some free time to spare, and I have created a bunch of new layouts for it. I’ve posted them, hoping that other Zendrummers will find them useful in their quest to design the most expressive, playable, and intuitive layout of their own.

My layouts are mainly based on the ambidextrous approach, because the LT model’s trigger layout just begs for it and excels best at it. It also makes the most sense because it approximates the way drummers traditionally have one stick in each hand, and could strike on any surface with both sticks and achieve the same mobility and control in each hand. My current favorite layouts are ones based on what I call the T.I.M. (Thumb-Index-Middle) system, where the thumbs strike the kicks, the index fingers strike the closed hi-hats with the first joint (from the tip of the finger), and the middle fingers strike the snare rimshot. The ring finger and pinky are then used to control the open hi-hats and open snare hits. The palm and heel of the hands control the crash and splash.

Although I created these layouts specifically for Addictive Drums (my current favorite drum library), you can translate them to whatever drum module or sample library you use. I use similar layouts for EZDrummer or any other drum module/library. In the future, I’ll be posting layouts for other various drum and percussion modules/libraries.

Here’s is my current most used layout:

This layout is the most reasonable compromise for me at the moment. I don’t get the ride shaft, but it sounds similar enough to darker crashes that I don’t miss it much. I don’t get the snare rim click, but if play the snare rimshot lightly, it sounds close enough that I’m okay with it. I don’t bother with the choke for the splash since it’s such a fast decaying cymbal anyway, and I like having it both sides so I can create quick accents on any beat (as opposed to the crash, which I usually use on odd beats).

You can find the other layouts I have created here.

I’ll be working on those Zendrum videos I talked about before, as soon as I finish writing the course material for my upcoming art workshop.

WEBLOG:
I’m really looking forward to finishing the course material for the workshop I’ve been working on, since it’s taking up so much time and taking so long. I could’ve made the workshop a very simple one, just like most other workshops where they teach one skill or one topic, but I really want to give the students something that will really change their lives, instead of merely teaching them a new skill or cover a narrow topic. Whenever I thought I was close to finishing it, more ideas pop into my head and I’m off adding new content again. This time, I really think I’m getting close though, and it’s about time too, because I don’t think I could add anymore content without completely overwhelming the students.

As soon as I’m done with the workshop, I’m going to first make those Zendrum videos I’ve been dying to make, and then I’m going to jump head first into my next long-term multimedia novel project.

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Quickie movie reviews:

The Informers – A depressing film about a bunch of selfish, narcissistic, broken, and lost souls–all doing stupid things that any well-adjusted and mentally healthy person would shake his head at. The only character that had any meaning for me was Jack, who seemed to be the only one who understood right from wrong. The conclusion to his story was the only emotional catharsis, but the rest of the film just felt pointless. So we watched a bunch of useless people living out their useless lives for an hour and half–then what? What are we suppose to walk away with at the end of the film?

The Great Debaters – Predictable to the very last scene, but these types of inspirational films always are. You don’t watch these films for surprises, but to admire the struggles and triumphs of those who dared to try.

Election – It was a pretty good Hong Kong ganster flick, with that signature Johnnie To vibe. I’m a big fan of his 1999 film, The Mission/Cheung Fo, and I think he really peaked with that film.

Next – A pretty decent action thriller. I’m pretty tired of Nicolas Cage by now though, and I really would rather he just stop playing lead characters and actually take some supporting roles that’s nothing like what we’ve seen him do before.

Ju-on (The Grudge) 3 – Visually, these Japanese horror films will always creep me out, but in terms of story, they are often hit or miss. Most Japanese horror films have no logic to them–they are only meant to give you nightmares. The American remakes tend to try to be more logical, and thus more watchable in terms of plot, but none are ever going to go down in history as a masterpiece or anything, this one included.

State of Play – A pretty good political thriller overall. I was hoping for more insight into the friendship between Russel Crowe and Ben Affleck’s character, since I think it would’ve made the film emotionally more engaging, but it never happened.

Duplicity – Entertaining spy thriller that didn’t involve any guns or car chases, and had one of the most refreshing endings I’ve seen in these types of films in a while.

Passengers – A quiet little supernatural romantic drama. If you like Anne Hathaway, just watch it for her. The story is a bit ho hum since we’ve seen this kind of plot twist more than a few times by now.