Drums3D

Disco beat: drum pattern and how to play it

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Time signature
4/4
Tempo
101–130 BPM
Difficulty
Easy
Loop
4 bars
Main groove × 3
Open hi-hat
Hi-hat
Snare
Kick
Fill × 1
Open hi-hat
Hi-hat
Snare
Kick

Each row is one drum, each column one step. Large dots are accents, small dots normal hits, faint dots ghost notes.

About this groove

The time is kept with quarter notes on the hi-hat. The kick lands on every beat — the famous “four on the floor”. The snare marks the backbeat on 2 and 4. The hi-hat opens on 1&, 2&, 3& and 4& and closes again on the next note. The loop is 4 bars long, and the fourth bar ends with a short fill on the snare.

In our catalog 9 songs use it, from 101 to 130 BPM.

Learn Songs on this beat run from 101 to 130 BPM; the median of all 150 songs on Drums3D is 118 BPM. Song tempos compared →

Who plays what: notes per bar

Cymbal hand8
Snare hand2
Kick foot4

Every kick lines up with a cymbal stroke, which makes this one of the easiest coordination patterns to start with.

How to practice it

  1. Press Play and listen to a few loops while counting out loud: 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &.
  2. Lower the tempo to 70 BPM and play just the kick and snare along with the player.
  3. Add the hi-hat part. When the loop feels relaxed, move up to 95 BPM.
  4. Finally play the full groove at 116 BPM, including the fill, then try it without the player.
  • An open hi-hat is only half the move — close it exactly on the next count, or the groove gets messy.

Compared with the nearest groove

Compared with “Highway to Hell” (AC/DC, basic rock beat), this groove adds kick notes on 2 and 4, plays quarter notes on the cymbal instead of straight 8ths and opens the hi-hat — and it runs at the same tempo. If you can already play that one, this is your next step. basic rock beat →

Songs that use this groove