Drum Samples: Analyzing Snares
Snare drums are an essential component in a lot of genres; from dance to hip hop and RnB and all types of metal and rock, snares really have an impact beyond just a monotonous sound. The usage of snare drum samples is dependent on the exact style of music, as well as the tempo of the songs they are featured in.
Snare drum samples are usually placed on beats 2 and 4 in urban groove songs such as most hip hop. The reason for this is that it’s usually the kicks that occupy the other, stronger points of the bar, but the snare still plays an important part and sets the tone for the rest of the song much of the time.
There are so many different types of snares, but two seem to come out on top when making sample libraries and analyzing those of established producers and application developers. Real, live snares are sampled from recorded songs or recorded for the purposes of electronic use in lieu of a live drummer. The other type is the raspy or smooth snares that are developed by synthesizers like the Roland groove boxes; think TR-606s, TR-808s and so on.
Effects play a big role in the final sound of the snare drum samples, and one of the most common one is reverb. The reverb effect doesn’t just affect the sample, but can affect the whole song, even if only the snare is subjected to the reverb process. The reverb can be dynamic, as in applied throughout the song with variable parameters, or on a per-sample basis, with it having been applied prior to use and perhaps only affected by an ADSR envelope or similar.
If you listen to a lot of dance music (or even just a bit), you’re probably instantly reminiscent of the two most widely used techniques for placing snare drum samples strategically. The first method sees the snare occupying the first and fourth beats in just about every bar, and this relieves the ear from hearing just the kick constantly, as it usually hits on every single beat. The second method involves applying different groove templates to the kick and snare to have a back-and-forth going on musically.
One of the recommendations often offered by professional producers who have made it is to experiment with the snare drum samples. The rules are not set in stone. The interplay between kick and snare can be as nice and friendly as you want, or as bad and as unpredictable as you can imagine.
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