If you worship drumming legends like John Bonom, Ringo Starr or Lars Ulrich, then you can get your drumming kicks when you play online virtual drums.
The Increased Popularity of Drumming
Most people dream of becoming the lead singer of a band or the dude throwing out all the licks on crushing guitar solos, but being the drummer of a band seems to always be an underrated position. Thanks to Harmonix's game Rock Band, it has become quite evident that drumming is not as easy as previously thought, but it is certainly a lot of fun.
In Rock Band you are playing drums virtually - with a small set in front of you that functions fairly close to the real deal. Many people are taking it upon themselves to learn how to play the drums, but the cost of a decent set can be quite astronomical. Lucky for them there are web sites with Flash games that allow anyone the opportunity to bang away on a drum set.
Online Drums vs. Real Drums
Despite looking like a true drum set, there is no real comparison between playing on a real drum kit and trying to play online virtual drums. Virtual drums are programmed with the proper sound and you merely have to click your mouse on a graphic of a drum head in order to produce it. Though you will never get winded playing virtual drums, arranging a song can be extremely difficult unless you find a virtual drum kit that allows you to click on a series of drums and play them back as a string. Otherwise, you click a drum and it plays a sound.
With all of these differences, why bother playing them? To be quite honest, they are a lot of fun. And like other games you find on the Internet you can play them for free. You can also bang away for hours without bothering a single person in your home or office and without annoying your neighbors.
Play Online Virtual Drums as a Learning Tool
If you want to learn how to play the drums but can't afford to buy a real drum set or hire a drum teacher, do the next best thing - play virtual drums. You could buy drum pads that are used in school as a practice tool, but the sound is monotone. They are mainly useful in learning how hard to hit a regular drum head and how the sound changes in relation to force.
Virtual drum sets, though not able to show you power vs. sound, let you listen to the drums when hit. You can use this to determine how a song will sound. Some of these virtual drum machines allow you to add drums to the kit or set the drum head sound, so you can experiment with how different sizes of drums sound and work together as a unit.
In addition, virtual drum sets can teach you fundamental song construction. Depending on the particular kit you find online, you can click on a drum and it will add the note to the musical bars. You can then play it back at a designated pace so you can hear how your arrangement sounds. This is like a drum machine you would use in a studio but a lot simpler to use. As an added bonus, these virtual drum kits are free.
Step up to the Big Seat
Check out the following sites to play online virtual drums:
Playing drums on the Internet does have its limitations. However, besides just banging around on them to pass the time, you can actually learn a few things. If the limitations don't matter to you and you just want to learn how drums sound, how they work together in an arrangement or how to read simple drum tab, then playing virtual drums online is an affordable and enjoyable music-making option.
