Snare rush
Encyclopedia
Snare rush is a term often used in intelligent dance music
culture to refer to impossibly fast rolls
. A snare rush can vary in tempo
considerably, from 16th notes to even 2048th notes. At that sort of speed, the effect is a buzzing sound, but with a detectable pitch, so some artists vary the repeat rate, and can even play a tune. One example of this would be the last 18 seconds of Ghetto Body Buddy by Venetian Snares
, where the theme from Sesame Street
is played using only extremely fast snare rushes. The defining characteristic of a snare rush, as opposed to a roll, is the sheer virtuosity it takes for a physical drummer to play a successful one. As such, almost all snare rushes are computer programmed and can be used with bass drum
s, tom-toms
and cymbal
s to intensify the effect. They are often used as fill
s, alongside complex programmed breakbeat
s. Snare rushes are also often run through analog or dsp
effects together with variations in volume, such as a filters
or pitch shifting
. They are probably most common in trance music
, hard techno, gabber music, oldschool jungle
, IDM
, drill 'n bass, breakcore
and glitch
music.
Intelligent dance music
Intelligent dance music is a term that describes an electronic music genre that emerged in the early 1990s. The genre is influenced by a wide range of musical styles particularly electronic dance music such as Detroit Techno...
culture to refer to impossibly fast rolls
Drum roll
A drum roll is a technique the percussionist employs to produce a sustained sound on a percussion instrument. Rolls are used by composers to sustain the sound and create other effects, the most common of which is using a roll to build anticipation.- Snare drum roll :The most common snare drum roll...
. A snare rush can vary in tempo
Tempo
In musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
considerably, from 16th notes to even 2048th notes. At that sort of speed, the effect is a buzzing sound, but with a detectable pitch, so some artists vary the repeat rate, and can even play a tune. One example of this would be the last 18 seconds of Ghetto Body Buddy by Venetian Snares
Venetian Snares
Venetian Snares is the main performing alias of Canadian electronic musician Aaron Funk .From Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Funk is known for making electronic music often in odd numbered time signatures...
, where the theme from Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
is played using only extremely fast snare rushes. The defining characteristic of a snare rush, as opposed to a roll, is the sheer virtuosity it takes for a physical drummer to play a successful one. As such, almost all snare rushes are computer programmed and can be used with bass drum
Bass drum
Bass drums are percussion instruments that can vary in size and are used in several musical genres. Three major types of bass drums can be distinguished. The type usually seen or heard in orchestral, ensemble or concert band music is the orchestral, or concert bass drum . It is the largest drum of...
s, tom-toms
Tom-tom drum
A tom-tom drum is a cylindrical drum with no snare.Although "tom-tom" is the British term for a child's toy drum, the name came originally from the Anglo-Indian and Sinhala; the tom-tom itself comes from Asian or Native American cultures...
and cymbal
Cymbal
Cymbals are a common percussion instrument. Cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys; see cymbal making for a discussion of their manufacture. The greater majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sound a...
s to intensify the effect. They are often used as fill
Fill (music)
In popular music, a fill is a short musical passage, riff, or rhythmic sound which helps to sustain the listener's attention during a break between the phrases of a melody....
s, alongside complex programmed breakbeat
Breakbeat
In 1992, a new style called "jungalistic hardcore" emerged, and for many ravers it was too funky to dance to. Josh Lawford of Ravescene prophesied that the breakbeat was "the death-knell of rave" because the ever changing drumbeat patterns of breakbeat music didn't allow for the same zoned out,...
s. Snare rushes are also often run through analog or dsp
Digital signal processing
Digital signal processing is concerned with the representation of discrete time signals by a sequence of numbers or symbols and the processing of these signals. Digital signal processing and analog signal processing are subfields of signal processing...
effects together with variations in volume, such as a filters
Filter (signal processing)
In signal processing, a filter is a device or process that removes from a signal some unwanted component or feature. Filtering is a class of signal processing, the defining feature of filters being the complete or partial suppression of some aspect of the signal...
or pitch shifting
Audio timescale-pitch modification
Time stretching is the process of changing the speed or duration of an audio signal without affecting its pitch.Pitch scaling or pitch shifting is the opposite: the process of changing the pitch without affecting the speed...
. They are probably most common in trance music
Trance music
Trance is a genre of electronic dance music that developed in the 1990s.:251 It is generally characterized by a tempo of between 125 and 150 bpm,:252 repeating melodic synthesizer phrases, and a musical form that builds up and breaks down throughout a track...
, hard techno, gabber music, oldschool jungle
Oldschool jungle
Jungle is a genre of electronic music that incorporates influences from genres including breakbeat hardcore, and reggae/dub/dancehall. There is debate as to whether jungle is a separate genre from drum and bass as many use the terms interchangeably...
, IDM
Intelligent dance music
Intelligent dance music is a term that describes an electronic music genre that emerged in the early 1990s. The genre is influenced by a wide range of musical styles particularly electronic dance music such as Detroit Techno...
, drill 'n bass, breakcore
Breakcore
Breakcore is a style of electronic music largely influenced by hardcore techno, drum and bass and Intelligent dance music. Its sound is largely characterized by a high-tempo, well-timed mingling of distorted kick drums , break beats arranged from samples of the Amen break, and audio samples from a...
and glitch
Glitch (music)
Glitch is a term used to describe a genre of electronic music that emerged in the mid to late 1990s. The glitch aesthetic is characterized by a deliberate use of glitch based sonic artifacts that would normally be viewed as unwanted disturbances reducing the overall sound quality and are thus...
music.
Artists who have used snare rushes
- Aphex TwinAphex TwinRichard David James , best known under the pseudonym Aphex Twin, is an Irish-born electronic musician and composer described as "the most inventive and influential figure in contemporary electronic music"...
- AutechreAutechreAutechre are an English electronic music duo consisting of Rob Brown and Sean Booth, both natives of Rochdale, Greater Manchester. Formed in 1987, they are one of the most prominent acts signed to Warp Records, a label known for its pioneering electronic music and through which all Autechre albums...
- Benn JordanBenn JordanBenn Lee Jordan is an American modern jazz and electronica musician operating under many pseudonyms. Since 1999 his most widely distributed and eclectic music has been released under the name of The Flashbulb...
(The Flashbulb) - Bogdan RaczynskiBogdan RaczynskiBogdan Raczynski is a Polish braindance artist. His work includes a song with Icelandic artist Björk.-Biography:Bogdan Raczynski was born around 1977 in Poland, but later moved to the United States with his family...
- BTBT (musician)Brian Wayne Transeau is a classically trained and Grammy-nominated American music producer, composer, audio technician, multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter better known by his stage name, BT. He is an artist in the electronic genre...
- Datach'iDatach'iDatach'i is the pseudonym of Joseph Fraioli, an electronic musician based in New York City. Datach'i's music places an emphasis on complex drum programming and elaborate timing.-Biography:...
- DntelDntelJames Scott "Jimmy" Tamborello, more commonly known as Dntel , is an electronic music artist. He is sometimes cited as James Figurine, the co-programmer and vocalist for the electropop outfit Figurine. Other projects include Strictly Ballroom, Headset and The Postal Service. Tamborello has...
- Enduser
- HrvatskiKeith Fullerton WhitmanKeith Fullerton Whitman is an American electronic musician who has recorded albums influenced by many genres, including ambient music, drill and bass, and krautrock. He records and performs using many aliases, of which the most familiar is Hrvatski...
- Kid 606
- JegaJegaJega is the recording name of Manchester-based electronic music artist Dylan Nathan. Nathan has released records on the Planet Mu, Matador and Skam record labels....
- Luke VibertLuke VibertLuke Vibert is a British recording artist and producer known for his work in many subgenres of electronic music. Vibert began his musical career as a member of the Hate Brothers, only later branching out into his own compositions...
- µ-ziq
- PhuqPhuqPhuq is an English producer of "Wonk" - an experimental blend of Breakcore / Gabber / IDM and various other styles of electronic music.Born in 1983 in Essex, UK, he is currently based in London....
- Speedy JSpeedy JSpeedy J , is a Dutch electronic music producer based in the city of Rotterdam. His breakthrough came with the release in 1992 of the minimal techno track Pullover...
- SquarepusherSquarepusherSquarepusher is the performing pseudonym of Tom Jenkinson, an English electronic music artist signed to Warp Records. He specialises in the electronic music genres of drum and bass and acid, with a significant jazz and musique concrète influence....
- UnderworldUnderworld (band)Underworld are a British electronic group, and principal name under which duo Karl Hyde and Rick Smith have recorded together since 1980.- Early years: 1979–1986 :...
- Venetian SnaresVenetian SnaresVenetian Snares is the main performing alias of Canadian electronic musician Aaron Funk .From Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Funk is known for making electronic music often in odd numbered time signatures...
- WispWisp (musician)Wisp is the alias of electronic music artist Reid Dunn who hails from Niagara Falls, New York. Wisp began making music on his computer in 1999 and originally released his music for free as mp3s on Netlabels before being signed to Sublight Records. In December 2007 he was signed to Benn Jordan's...
- Vverevvolf GrehvVverevvolf GrehvVverevvolf Grehv is the brainchild of Dapose, guitarist/bassist/keyboardist of The Faint. The music of Vverevvolf Grehv combines the brutality of death metal, the tempos of speed metal and the sonic decimation of noise with the complexities of electronic music genres such as snare rush and idm...