Deviled Eggs are a hybrid rudiment that challenge your hands to transition smoothly from a relaxed Triple Stroke to alternating Double Strokes. In this article, we're going to break down what Deviled Egg hybrid rudiments are as well as how to play them.
What is a Deviled Egg Hybrid Rudiment?
The Deviled Egg hybrid rudiment consists of seven notes that are grouped in a 3-2-2 fashion.
The first three notes are played as a Triple Stroke with an accent on the downbeat. The fourth and fifth notes as well as the sixth and seventh notes are played as Double Strokes.
When playing Deviled Eggs, you alternate the hands between groupings to get RLR or LRL to get this:
Right Hand Deviled Egg: RRR LL RR
Left Hand Deviled Egg: LLL RR LL
The Deviled Egg Written Out
In this example, the Deviled Eggs are written out in 7/16 time so that you can easily see the distinction between the Triple Stroke and Double Stroke groupings:
While you may see Deviled Eggs written in 7/16 time for an exercise or musical passage, it is much more common to see Deviled Eggs written as Septuplets (also known as 7s or Sevenlets) which look lik this:
Regardless of how they are written, you want to make sure that you're looking for the primary sticking pattern to determine whether or not they're Deviled Eggs.
Watch a Video Demonstration of the Deviled Egg Here
Focus Points for Practicing the Deviled Egg Hybrid Rudiment
There are three common pitfalls that rudimental drummers fall into when they play Deviled Eggs.
Here are the pitfalls and what you want to focus on to ensure you're not creating bad habits:
1) Playing the Triple Stroke as three accented notes of equal volume. When you do this you completely destroy the flow and feel of the rudiment. Focus on playing the Triple Stroke as a decaying set where each note is softer than the one before it.
2) Allowing the hand to hand transitions alter the rhythm. Make sure you're playing all seven notes with equal spacing in between. Have a friend play straight alternating sixteenth notes and match your Deviled Eggs to them.
3) Ripping the Triple Strokes and slurring the Double Strokes. If you notice yourself doing this make sure to ease up on the Triple Strokes and push through the Double Strokes just a bit.
Helpful Exercises
Deviled Eggs can be tricky to play if you don't have much experience playing relaxed Triple Strokes or if you're not comfortable alternating between Triple Strokes and Double Strokes.
Here are three exercises you can practice to significantly improve the quality and flow of your Deviled Egg hybrid rudiments:
Now that you have all of the information and resources you need to play Deviled Eggs, go work them up and teach them to your friends!
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