The pattern
150 BPM · 3/4 · 12 step
| Instrument | Beat 1 | Step 2 | Step 3 | Step 4 | Beat 2 | Step 6 | Step 7 | Step 8 | Beat 3 | Step 10 | Step 11 | Step 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kick | hit | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest |
| Rim shot | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest |
| Closed hi-hat | rest | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | rest |
| Ride | hit | rest | rest | rest | hit | rest | rest | hit | hit | rest | rest | rest |
How to play it and where it comes from
The jazz waltz in 3/4 (Bill Evans's "Waltz for Debby", Coltrane's "My Favorite Things" with Elvin Jones). Sixteenth-note grid (12 steps = 3 quarter notes): the ride plays 1, 2 and the "a" of 2 (an approximation of the third triplet, the classic "ding, ding-ga, ding"), foot hi-hat on 2 and 3 (or only on 2), light kick on 1, comping rim. The real swing is in triplets: play it with a relaxed feel. Typical tempo 120–180 per quarter note; at fast tempos often felt "in one" (one pulse per bar). Variants: superimposed 6/8 (Elvin Jones), brushes.