5. Percussion with Pedals
As drummers we not only move our hands the feet have a job also. But how do I get the instrument in front of my feet? The answer for pedals is a 3/8 floor plate with a 3/8 bar. The plate is simply fixed to the pedal and a cowbell, tambourine or groove block fixed on the bar and off you go. You can also get a special plate for percussion instruments that can be connected with pedals.
Instruments with the 3/8 coupling can be played with your feet this way. By choosing the right beater you can give the instrument your personal touch. Percussion with pedals is most interesting as a multi pedal orchestration ( Thomas Lang says hello J )
Most interesting in this context are double or even triple Fx pedals. Very complex ostinatos can be managed with these. (thats the how on earth is he doing that effect)
Meinl went one step further. With developing the Cabasa pedal Meinl employs a device that is not hit with a stick or beater but is rotated with the operation of the pedal. Lets see what the future holds for us. Maybe we soon see a foot guiro or a foot shaker.
Lets not forget the hihat. Tambourines, mounted on the rod are not new to us. A new concept is Gibraltars off time attachment. When the pedal of the hihat moves up a second set of hats are being closed. Instead of cymbals one could imagine instruments like shaker or tambourine here as well.
