Tone Exercises

Teacher: Paul Jennings Length: 5 min Category:

Playing the Sides

Teacher: Paul Jennings Length: 4 min Category:

Of course most of the time when we play the cajon we are playing the front surface (tapa) to create the sound. It is possible to incorporate some of the other surfaces of the the cajon though. Many cajon players are now using the sides of the instrument to get additional tones.

Cymbals With Cajon

Teacher: Paul Jennings Length: 5 min Category:

Another common addition to the cajon is cymbals. Many percussionists use cymbals with their hybrid cajon setups these days. Sometimes even just one cymbal can be an affective addition.

Quick Guide to Playing the Cajon

Teacher: Richie Gajate-Garcia Length: 3 min Category: Percussion, Secrets From the Pros

Richie Gajate-Garcia is famous for his hybrid drum percussion set up. In this lesson he shows you how to get the basic sounds from your cajon.

Doubles Exercise

Teacher: Paul Jennings Length: 3 min Category:

Many are played hand-to-hand, meaning no two hits or more are played on one hand before moving to the other. It is important to get used to playing double hits on any percussion instrument.

Reggae 1

Teacher: Paul Jennings Length: 4 min Category:

Now your will learn a nice reggae rhythm for cajon. Pay close attention to the hi-hat pattern being played on the high slap tone along with the emphasis being played on beat 3 of the bar.

La Mano Secreta

Teacher: Paul Jennings Length: 4 min Category:

La Mano Secreta or, “the secret hand” is a popular technique or rudiment that is typically used on congas. You can also use the technique on other drums including the cajon.

The Evolution of Rhythm Pt. 1

Teacher: Alex Acuña Length: 10 min Category: Beats / Grooves, Latin, Musical Styles, Percussion, Secrets From the Pros

In this lesson, Alex demonstrates some basic single and double stroke motions that apply to both the drum set and congas.

1 to 8 Exercise

Teacher: Paul Jennings Length: 3 min Category:

This exercise is a great one for warming up. It is also great to get your brain working better with your hands. It is used by many drum set players or marching snare drummers but can also work well on the cajon and most other hand drums too.

Paradiddle on Cajon

Teacher: Paul Jennings Length: 3 min Category:

The paradiddle is one of the most popular rudiments in drumming. It is used widely in snare drumming and also drum set playing and is also very useful on the cajon.