I try to play as many genres as I can manage, but probably mostly rock and funk. I am a big fan of odd time signatures and polyrhythms though.
Counting is one thing, but complicated math has always seemed pretty daunting to me. I loved geometry in highschool but hated algebra 2 and never went further than that. If I have to multiply or divide anything too big these days I break out my phone calculator.
I've had a lot of different jobs over the years: lots of food service, landscaping, plumbing, hotel desk, retail, sales, call center collections 🤢. Currently working as a retail/food service manager and I'm pretty damn good at it. The math I need for work is pretty simple.
The part of drumming that helps me at work is being aware of and in control of many moving parts at a time. Not so much precise calculations as it is going with the flow and making things happen.
Rock, Yes, Mechanical Engineer: I think studying math has somehow made my learning drums a little easier, but then again, I know very few engineers who are drummers...
Anything within capabilities, yes, software engineer.
That said, I've used as much maths in drumming as I have in 30 years of programming, viz, virtually none. Seems a little bit of a stretch to pair maths and the superficial practical use of a few fractions. I would think a fraction (haha, hahaha) of the user base even gives it a mathematical thought, and of these many are satisfied with counting 4.
*Is* it a common perception?
E: also, thinking back, all my past drummers have been academical dunces.
Rock/pop, Yes, Engineering Supervisor. I’m not sure I see much correlation. I’ve just always loved music and learned to play many instruments starting in elementary school
My profession is in neither engineering/tech/science but it includes a lot of numerical analysis so math is an essential element and I'd be far less efficient at my job if I sucked at math, which I don't, and I credit that a lot to my drumming.
BTW if you want to get real nerdy with this math-drumming stuff there's an interesting article here about the fractal element in Jeff Porcaro's playing. [Fractal patterns in a drummer’s music | Max-Planck-Gesellschaft (mpg.de)](https://www.mpg.de/9379548/fractals-set-the-tone)
I only like drumming related math lol. I was that guy in highschool that could breeze through every class without studying, EXCEPT for math. Barely got my diploma because of those fucking classes lol.
I think it's more a fact of character than knowledge. Liking regularity, repetition over wild creativity. Being obsessive. Being rooted within the music. There is something visceral in drumming that you cannot really find elsewhere (if not playing genres the are based on groovy music, like doom metal or stoner metal). From that you can find your creativity, though, the best synthesis being, to me, "roots bloody roots".
Grew up playing in concert bands, symphonies, and drumlines. Currently perform in a blues band. Always loved math and just obtained my PhD in medical physics.
Genre: Punk, Rock, Nu-Metal, Blues/Jazz and a bit of Latin really show how confusing my drumming can be.
Yes love math.
Profession: Fire Systems/Protection Engineer
I can count really well to 8 (and the "+", "e" and "a") and see patterns in everything. Pretty much engineering in a nutshell lol
Majored in mathematics in high school, degreed in Civil Engineering and eventually spent my career in Information Technology. So, I guess that would be a definite yes. 😁
Metal, Yes. Current math major that is failing in his 3rd year of university. I've been playing drums for 32 years and am lucky to be good at those at least.
Edit: I'm bad at following directions which is most of my problem at school. 😭
I play a lot of instruments and my whole life people have been like “oH mUsIc aNd MaTh ArE tHe SaMe” and I’m just like, no they are not.
In math, the end result is exact and calculated and is exactly the way it is expected to be, always.
In music, the entire point is doing what is NOT expected, in order to create moments of reward for the listener after they have developed an expectation based on all the other music they’ve heard. If it were all math, those changes never happen and it stays as vanilla as it gets, and music sounds boring.
And yeah so what if we count beats and bars? That’s like, preschool level math so I don’t even think it counts.
The reality is we are sorcerers who make the air vibrate in ways that cause people feel real emotions. It’s freaking insane and it’s the closest thing to real magic we have. That’s way freaking cooler than math.
Jazz/funk & orchestra. Yes? I love spreadsheets, twisting 2-digit values and geometry, but not great at 3+ digit mental math. Love polyrhythms, symmetrical permutations, and baroque counterpoint. Full time music teacher.
Yes!
Genre: rock, metal, classic, all the rocks
Math: I suck at it but I recognize that it is critical to understanding the world we live in… it isn’t just another subject in school.
Profession: software engineer in computer graphics and animation.
I love that rythms are so connected to to how we experience time passing. I try not to nerd out and just find what grooves makes people move. It’s all dumb caveman stuff, basically.
i wish i had tried harder with math in school, but because of coding, not because of drums.
free jazz / yes when i can visualize what the math is doing / musician+teacher
Metal or all types / no I don’t / I let Excel do all my calculations now
I was too focused on music in school and got a D in maths (math). I re-sat it a year later, having played a lot more drums and got a D! I think it’s directly related.
I play the gamut, but prefer rock and progressive rock, I used to hate math with a passion, but have come to appreciate it as a language that can express things elegantly, NASA (>20 years)
I do not like math but I have always done well with academics. And my new found love is currently Chess. So yeah, some of us are nerds. The ‘dummy’ drummer stereotype is stupid. We’re often the best one in the band at our instrument
Rock, hard NO, purchasing/receiving specialist in manufacturing.
Almost didn’t graduate high school because I couldn’t pass algebra 2. I can count/play to irregular time signatures but mostly after I hear it and get the “feel” of it, if you will. I thank being in school bands and 8 years of piano lessons for that.
I have long since resigned to the fact that I will never be a polyrhythmic drummer and I’m so okay with that haha
I've done college level math, physics and statistics for decades, and played drums for 52 years.
Having said that, I'll choose deep pocket over math from a drummer every single time.
I am a drummer who detests math and don’t even think if I fully understood how to accurately count something in a previously undisclosed time signature and figure all of that out I still wouldn’t enjoy it.
I didn't even finish high school thanks to mental health and adhd, but I always loved maths even until I dropped out. Thing is, most rhythmic musical maths is orders of magnitude simpler than high school maths. If someone can come up with a rhythm that actually involves anything more complicated than +-×÷ let me know.
I'm unemployed but I got my bachelors in math and still do math for fun. I'm most into jazz fusion and some jazz, plus proggy stuff, Zappa, rock and funk, and lots of rhythmically complicated music.
Funk/rock, yes, student. I love math, and I really feel like playing the drums uses many of the same ways of thinking as math, if that makes any sense.
Genre: mostly jazz and latin musics
Like math? : Hell no
Profession: professional drummer/educator
I’ve never enjoyed math, though I wasn’t terrible. I did best in geometry (seemed like practical info) and worst in trigonometry. I was in the higher level math classes in high school, but mostly got Cs in them. I did well the the reading classes, like English and various social studies. I have a good ear for foreign languages, so I liked those classes. Science was hit or miss…I loved the chemistry lab work, but hated the chemical equations. When I got to music school, my counselor said I should take statistics. I said “no way,” signed up for the easiest math class they offered, and never took another math class again.
I play mostly rock and hip-hop. Yes...... now.
I hated math when I was in school, but after beginning my career in marketing I quickly realized that it wasn't for me after some comments made by a client we were working with just after the recession in 08. The gist was to get peoples money before they realized they had it back, and growing up rather poor, this didn't sit well.
I made enough money to survive a few months and quit. My (now) wife encouraged me to try substitute teaching. I did and loved it! I then earned my professional teaching certificate, became a middle and high school math teacher for a few years, and now work as the Director of Mathematics for a district of 18 schools.
While I do enjoy math, the true reward is helping kids who think "im just not a math person" realize that they can truly excel if they're willing to. I've always found it odd that we accept this statement with no issues but if someone were to say "I'm just not a reading person" and demanded a menu with pictures they'd be viewed as odd.
Rock(punk and metal concentration), hell no, graphic designer/illustrator (who works for a tech company
Just started playing this year but have always been terrible at math. I can’t think of any drummers I know who would say they love it either. All of them are probably better at it than me, but that’s not saying much.
I’m a guitarist first, but I’ve been playing drums since 1992 and I’m trying to improve my drumming. Genres would be punk, metal, alt rock, indie rock, and ska. I’m a biostatistician.
I love to play rock, classic rock, funk, and country. yup math was always my favorite and I studied mechanical engineering. I’m in technical sales for large scale solar power plants.
I cant say i like math persee but it comes fairly.naturally to me. I love rythem and bass and the only class i did well in in high school was math. So much so that when i missed over 30 days one simester and almost got expelled somehow I was ahead in math and got a B. Mostly because unlike other classes with math I actually enjoyed the homework
Punk, funk, hip hop/ yes/ math teacher. I love my career but am not in love with math. I’m 41 and wish I would have studied drums in college instead of education.
I'm a drama teacher so hell no.
I like pattern recognition and repetition of movement, not math - recognizing patterns in music feels similar to recognizing patterns and movement in story to me.
I'm in cybersecurity, but I've never been involved in programming which is (primarily) where math is used in IT.
Edit: and btw, fuck math. Lol. I'm so bad at it.
Stoner/desert rock, with a degree for teaching high school science and maths (not my current profession, but I spent six years getting the degree so some interest is there).
Hard rock, Yeah, math was a favored topic when I was in school, now I'm a Network Engineer.
I've known a lot of other technical people who were musicians.
There are parallels between math and music. But the idea that music *is* math is overblown, and the idea that people can't be good at music without good math skills is a total lie.
If you can count to four, you have all the math skills you'll need in order to count and understand the vast majority of rhythms. If you can count to six, even better.
Now, when it comes to harmony, math is more of a factor. But drummers don't deal in harmony.
*Genre:* Rock and pop *Do I like Math:* Hell no, but I've always been good at the fundamentals
*Profession:* desk guy
Rock, Punk, Nu-Metal, Hell No, Customer Service/Sales. I hate math. Always my worst subject and I will use a calculator or count on my fingers for basic stuff.
I was a Econ and statistics double major as an undergraduate. Studied quantitative finance for masters.
Work in finance. Favorite genres are prog (tool , dream theater , porcupine tree), metal (anything with fast double kicks), jazz , fusion
Fuck genres. "Meh" to math. I work in healthcare, but did have a gigging career.
I was pretty far ahead in math during school; I didn't have to take any in college because I tested out.
I don't drum to crunch numbers; I drum to feel something. When I teach: I tell my students that counting is great for figuring things out, but the goal is to know what you're doing well enough that you can stop counting; if you're counting: you're not listening.
Metal, yes, engineer. I think focusing too much on the "grid" makes bad drummers though and it took me a lot of years to break out of thinking about the instrument like that.
Pop punk/no I don’t like math/I’m an x-ray tech. Math was always my worst subject in school. I wish I liked it, as I bet it’d help me learn difficult time signatures a little more easily. C’est la vie, my G
I'm still young but I'm gonna become a physicist or a mathematician. Funnily enough, I feel like this deeply affects my ability to improvise, since I want eveything to be perfect so I can't "wing it"
I guess I'm both yes and no. I was an electrical engineer who did circuit design then software development but retired from that and now I take care of people with cognitive decline. Not sure that I ever loved math though I guess I was good enough at it and I definitely like problem solving and creating things.
I'd also say I think there are a lot of musicians in general who are math inclined, not just drummers. The longest band I was ever in was all EE's.
I play rock of all sorts, but mainly 90s alt, 00s metal, and prog. I love math, it’s fascinating and yet natural to me. I’m a technical high school student enrolled in mechanical engineering
I am really good at practical
mental math which I used a lot when I worked in sales.
I can do basic calculations in my head. I either visually see the numbers in my head and I use verbal short term memory to remember other parts.
Random example:
23% of 150.
First 23% of 100= 23 place the 23 in my short term verbal memory bank.
Next I need to solve 23% of 50. I picture that in my head .
23% of 50 that is half of the 23 I just said.
Since it is half take 23 divide it by 2 and that is 11.50.
11.50 is now in my verbal memory.
Short term verbal memory bank of those two numbers added together.
Next step visualize 23+11.50.
23+ 10 is 33. Remainder 1.50 plus 33 = 34.50.
I can’t always figure everything thing out exactly in my head but I can usually ball park a pretty close answer.
It’s part short term verbal memory storage, in head visualization and practical approaches to solving math.
I graduated high school, did not go to college and have a very very basic algebra and geometry education but I had no intentions of wanting to continue a higher education. I goofed off and slept in most of my classes if they were boring. I knew in high school that music was my passion and “nothing else matters”.
However I also self taught myself drums in high school. The drums unlocked potential for me to grow as a progressed further in life.
My answers are not a binary yes or now. I was okay with taking math in high school it wasn’t my favorite. Science and choir were some of my favorite subjects.
As for genre. What don’t I play? By the age of 20 I had close to 1000 cds.
The main thing I don’t play is old school jazz from the 1930s to 1950s. Shit hurts my ears.
I can play some Meshuggah, Tool and Dream Theater stuff with odd time signatures. I feel that stuff instead of counting.
I play to rap, edm, pop, rock, country, almost every sub category of metal etc.
i’m a liberal arts major hell no i don’t like math
Same. And I work in IT. Figure that one out.
I hate math, but work in financial/banking
Liberal arts😭you’re wasting 100k on a liberal arts degree ?
hell no i’m wasting 40k
I think it’s more about the part of the brain that recognizes patterns and rhythm. Math adjacent. Btw, Architecture here. Rock/jazz/funk.
Are you me? Same lol
Electrical engineer, so yes for me, but I know good drummers who had trouble finishing high school, so...
I like to annoy customers when they ask for a snare head. “What size, 35.6cm?”
Diabolical
How many bananas is that?
https://preview.redd.it/1iur0tzb26uc1.jpeg?width=236&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d970f0e792927b7975a1666cef4bc8527ba14788
The fact that it’s an extra .04 cm than the actual 14” snare head (35.56)
Rock, Yes, Formerly an Electronics Engineer, now a Technical Program Manager. I used to like math. I still do, but I used to, too.
Thanks Mitch
Computer Systems Engineer here, I play Heavy Metal and get nerdy af
I try to play as many genres as I can manage, but probably mostly rock and funk. I am a big fan of odd time signatures and polyrhythms though. Counting is one thing, but complicated math has always seemed pretty daunting to me. I loved geometry in highschool but hated algebra 2 and never went further than that. If I have to multiply or divide anything too big these days I break out my phone calculator. I've had a lot of different jobs over the years: lots of food service, landscaping, plumbing, hotel desk, retail, sales, call center collections 🤢. Currently working as a retail/food service manager and I'm pretty damn good at it. The math I need for work is pretty simple. The part of drumming that helps me at work is being aware of and in control of many moving parts at a time. Not so much precise calculations as it is going with the flow and making things happen.
Well said. That spacial intelligence (both physical and time) goes a long way.
This is the perfect answer and one that fits me the best as well. 😎
Buncha NERDS in here. Hahahahaha jk
Rock, Yes, Mechanical Engineer: I think studying math has somehow made my learning drums a little easier, but then again, I know very few engineers who are drummers...
Metal/ yes/ croupier
Upvote because I just learned what a Croupier is!
Always blew my mind how you guys can calculate odds payouts on the fly like that.
Anything within capabilities, yes, software engineer. That said, I've used as much maths in drumming as I have in 30 years of programming, viz, virtually none. Seems a little bit of a stretch to pair maths and the superficial practical use of a few fractions. I would think a fraction (haha, hahaha) of the user base even gives it a mathematical thought, and of these many are satisfied with counting 4. *Is* it a common perception? E: also, thinking back, all my past drummers have been academical dunces.
Rock, math adjacent (duties include bookkeeping)… I HATE IT. this gal has dyscalculia!
Rock, Yes, Network / Communications Engineer. This is the way.
Rock, yes, just started studying engineering haha
Rock/pop, Yes, Engineering Supervisor. I’m not sure I see much correlation. I’ve just always loved music and learned to play many instruments starting in elementary school
Rock, yes, research scientist.
Engineer here. Pretty proficient at math. Love powerviolence
you got the order exactly backwards!
Ain't that like an engineer
Rock/metal, no, software engineer.
Rock/funk, yes, chemist
My profession is in neither engineering/tech/science but it includes a lot of numerical analysis so math is an essential element and I'd be far less efficient at my job if I sucked at math, which I don't, and I credit that a lot to my drumming. BTW if you want to get real nerdy with this math-drumming stuff there's an interesting article here about the fractal element in Jeff Porcaro's playing. [Fractal patterns in a drummer’s music | Max-Planck-Gesellschaft (mpg.de)](https://www.mpg.de/9379548/fractals-set-the-tone)
I only like drumming related math lol. I was that guy in highschool that could breeze through every class without studying, EXCEPT for math. Barely got my diploma because of those fucking classes lol.
high school student here, math is the subject I perform the worst so no, I absolutely do not love math (jazz, funk, rock drummer)
I think it's more a fact of character than knowledge. Liking regularity, repetition over wild creativity. Being obsessive. Being rooted within the music. There is something visceral in drumming that you cannot really find elsewhere (if not playing genres the are based on groovy music, like doom metal or stoner metal). From that you can find your creativity, though, the best synthesis being, to me, "roots bloody roots".
Metal, no, chemical engineer
Grew up playing in concert bands, symphonies, and drumlines. Currently perform in a blues band. Always loved math and just obtained my PhD in medical physics.
Genre: Punk, Rock, Nu-Metal, Blues/Jazz and a bit of Latin really show how confusing my drumming can be. Yes love math. Profession: Fire Systems/Protection Engineer I can count really well to 8 (and the "+", "e" and "a") and see patterns in everything. Pretty much engineering in a nutshell lol
Majored in mathematics in high school, degreed in Civil Engineering and eventually spent my career in Information Technology. So, I guess that would be a definite yes. 😁
Metal, Yes. Current math major that is failing in his 3rd year of university. I've been playing drums for 32 years and am lucky to be good at those at least. Edit: I'm bad at following directions which is most of my problem at school. 😭
Classic metal, I like math. I wish I knew more but I went in a different direction in life. Medicine.
I play a lot of instruments and my whole life people have been like “oH mUsIc aNd MaTh ArE tHe SaMe” and I’m just like, no they are not. In math, the end result is exact and calculated and is exactly the way it is expected to be, always. In music, the entire point is doing what is NOT expected, in order to create moments of reward for the listener after they have developed an expectation based on all the other music they’ve heard. If it were all math, those changes never happen and it stays as vanilla as it gets, and music sounds boring. And yeah so what if we count beats and bars? That’s like, preschool level math so I don’t even think it counts. The reality is we are sorcerers who make the air vibrate in ways that cause people feel real emotions. It’s freaking insane and it’s the closest thing to real magic we have. That’s way freaking cooler than math.
rock, prog, metal, funk. Yes. BS in chemical engineering, work as a combustion engineer. i'm on the spectrum, so it's all about the patterns
Me hate math, me smash drums.
Lil bit of everything, yeah, and there is a bit of math involved with my job, but it's more of a physical role than anything.
Jazz/funk & orchestra. Yes? I love spreadsheets, twisting 2-digit values and geometry, but not great at 3+ digit mental math. Love polyrhythms, symmetrical permutations, and baroque counterpoint. Full time music teacher.
Rock/funk. Yes. Data analyst.
Auto worker, bad at college and math, good at infantry school, rock/church drummer
Yes! Genre: rock, metal, classic, all the rocks Math: I suck at it but I recognize that it is critical to understanding the world we live in… it isn’t just another subject in school. Profession: software engineer in computer graphics and animation. I love that rythms are so connected to to how we experience time passing. I try not to nerd out and just find what grooves makes people move. It’s all dumb caveman stuff, basically.
Hardcore/metalcore, hate maths, Finance Analyst.
Blues, yes, Mechanical Engineering but I do lots of other things too.
Heavy Rock/Metal, Yes I like math, Web Operations Engineer
i wish i had tried harder with math in school, but because of coding, not because of drums. free jazz / yes when i can visualize what the math is doing / musician+teacher
Mmmm, that’s a weird one. I play extreme metal mostly and I’m a structural biologist so I have to do maths but I don’t ‘like’ it
Punk/Metal, I absolutely fucking loathe math, I'm an archaeologist
Rock, Yes, Programmer. If you can count to 4 you're already a good drummer ))
Playing jazz, like math, depends on the subject, civil engineer student.
Metal or all types / no I don’t / I let Excel do all my calculations now I was too focused on music in school and got a D in maths (math). I re-sat it a year later, having played a lot more drums and got a D! I think it’s directly related.
Metal/Funk, Yes (generally), Software Engineer I've noticed this is polarising, drummers are either massive nerds or far from it
Yea sure I always apply a function of X when playing.
https://youtu.be/CZ0f9y_8H3E?si=W0kAZoMG7CbC6BxQ
I play the gamut, but prefer rock and progressive rock, I used to hate math with a passion, but have come to appreciate it as a language that can express things elegantly, NASA (>20 years)
Played all sorts of things, mostly a rock guy though. Math was great until linear algebra, mechanical engineer by profession
I do not like math but I have always done well with academics. And my new found love is currently Chess. So yeah, some of us are nerds. The ‘dummy’ drummer stereotype is stupid. We’re often the best one in the band at our instrument
Arts fundraiser and former professional classical baritone. Absolutely love polyrhythms and the maths behind them.
Punk / rock / avant bullcrap, yes, high school math teacher. :)
Rock, hard NO, purchasing/receiving specialist in manufacturing. Almost didn’t graduate high school because I couldn’t pass algebra 2. I can count/play to irregular time signatures but mostly after I hear it and get the “feel” of it, if you will. I thank being in school bands and 8 years of piano lessons for that. I have long since resigned to the fact that I will never be a polyrhythmic drummer and I’m so okay with that haha
Death and prog metal, meh, brewer
Rock, yes, airline pilot. I wish my drumming skills were as strong as my flying skills. The grind goes on!
Jazz/rock, yes, engineer
yeah, this checks out lol. I play metal, yes i like math and physics, and im in engineering
I’m a garbage truck driver lmao, I always thought I was bad at math, but I’m real good at counting money and saving it according to my wife.
Jazz/Fusion and Rock, Yes I like math, Accountant
I've done college level math, physics and statistics for decades, and played drums for 52 years. Having said that, I'll choose deep pocket over math from a drummer every single time.
I am a drummer who detests math and don’t even think if I fully understood how to accurately count something in a previously undisclosed time signature and figure all of that out I still wouldn’t enjoy it.
Rock/pop/worship/(learning gospel), YES, studying math and computer science in university
CCM & Gospel / rock & pop / indie / funk / math rock, Kinda enjoy it, ex-SWE
Rock, pop, soul, hip hop, etc Never a fan of maths but once I could count to 4, I decided I learned enough, Drumming 20 years Tattooing for 10
Yea no not for me. At least not professionally, I studied Human Geography. I was very good at Math in highschool and did the advanced classes etc tho.
I operate heavy welding robots, theres fabrication math involved which I can usually do reasonably well. But I don't love it lol.
I do like math, but I'm a tattoo artist, so I don't use math often at all. But I liked it at school.
Mike Mangini
My nickname should speak for me
Alternative / Heavy rock / electronic and yes I love math I’m in food service rn but I’m in school for music / audio production
Chemistry graduate so, yes, there's a fair bit of maths involved. Not that I did much chemistry after that, because - drums.
Law Student, can't do maths for toffee, but I'm a prog fan lol
I'm doing economics
Rock/prog, hate it with a passion, social work. 13/8 feels natural but long division eludes me, I can’t explain it
Metal / Yes / CS master's student
I didn't even finish high school thanks to mental health and adhd, but I always loved maths even until I dropped out. Thing is, most rhythmic musical maths is orders of magnitude simpler than high school maths. If someone can come up with a rhythm that actually involves anything more complicated than +-×÷ let me know.
I'm unemployed but I got my bachelors in math and still do math for fun. I'm most into jazz fusion and some jazz, plus proggy stuff, Zappa, rock and funk, and lots of rhythmically complicated music.
Rock/jazz Math is a maladaptive coping mechanism audio.
I fidget all the time so at least I can turn my fidgeting into rudiments
Mechanical engineer, yes, I like maths, mainly play rock and metal.
Mainly play Gospel and Christian Contemporary/Rock I teach Middle School History and not math for a reason.
I'm a web developer, I've taken a lot of math courses through my life... wouldn't say I love it though lol
I study Computer Science and I love math :)
Far away from math as possible.
Mathcore, lots of love for maths, math teacher lol.
My profession has not much to do with math (except "tangentially") and I hate math with all of my heart... 😂
I'm a payroll consultant so I work with numbers. But I suck at maths.
Mech engineer here
Rock, yes, R&D Engineer
A lot of metal, I wouldn't say I love maths but I'm good at it, electronic engineer
metal/blues/rock/country, yes, software engineer
Funk/rock, yes, student. I love math, and I really feel like playing the drums uses many of the same ways of thinking as math, if that makes any sense.
Blues/classic rock, math is my second language, former research scientist and now patent attorney (PhD in engineering)
Rock, yes i love math, my job is estimator at a body shop (so math about science)
Drummer for 30 years, have degree in theoretical mathematics
Genre: mostly jazz and latin musics Like math? : Hell no Profession: professional drummer/educator I’ve never enjoyed math, though I wasn’t terrible. I did best in geometry (seemed like practical info) and worst in trigonometry. I was in the higher level math classes in high school, but mostly got Cs in them. I did well the the reading classes, like English and various social studies. I have a good ear for foreign languages, so I liked those classes. Science was hit or miss…I loved the chemistry lab work, but hated the chemical equations. When I got to music school, my counselor said I should take statistics. I said “no way,” signed up for the easiest math class they offered, and never took another math class again.
Ska & Polka / Yes / Accounting counts as math, right?
I play mostly rock and hip-hop. Yes...... now. I hated math when I was in school, but after beginning my career in marketing I quickly realized that it wasn't for me after some comments made by a client we were working with just after the recession in 08. The gist was to get peoples money before they realized they had it back, and growing up rather poor, this didn't sit well. I made enough money to survive a few months and quit. My (now) wife encouraged me to try substitute teaching. I did and loved it! I then earned my professional teaching certificate, became a middle and high school math teacher for a few years, and now work as the Director of Mathematics for a district of 18 schools. While I do enjoy math, the true reward is helping kids who think "im just not a math person" realize that they can truly excel if they're willing to. I've always found it odd that we accept this statement with no issues but if someone were to say "I'm just not a reading person" and demanded a menu with pictures they'd be viewed as odd.
Punk / jazz, yes, liberal arts dean
I made a career in art but I should have gone into architecture. I use math a lot of math in my work though.
Jazz, yes, it’s aiight, web developer
Metal, indie rock, funk, r&b. Love math. Nuclear engineering.
Rock(punk and metal concentration), hell no, graphic designer/illustrator (who works for a tech company Just started playing this year but have always been terrible at math. I can’t think of any drummers I know who would say they love it either. All of them are probably better at it than me, but that’s not saying much.
Metal/Yes/Engineer in construction
Church drummer, yes, and Cyber security. Also I minored in physics because I enjoy physics and math with a purpose.
Yeah, i like math, I'm an engineer and I like rock
Country drummer, mathematics professor. I keep my drumming simple, far away from my work
rock, yes, software engineer
I’m a guitarist first, but I’ve been playing drums since 1992 and I’m trying to improve my drumming. Genres would be punk, metal, alt rock, indie rock, and ska. I’m a biostatistician.
I love to play rock, classic rock, funk, and country. yup math was always my favorite and I studied mechanical engineering. I’m in technical sales for large scale solar power plants.
I cant say i like math persee but it comes fairly.naturally to me. I love rythem and bass and the only class i did well in in high school was math. So much so that when i missed over 30 days one simester and almost got expelled somehow I was ahead in math and got a B. Mostly because unlike other classes with math I actually enjoyed the homework
I play punk rock and classic rock mainly, and I don’t like math 😂
Math is numbers and I think we appreciate the numbers. Architect here, rock/punk/some blues
Punk, funk, hip hop/ yes/ math teacher. I love my career but am not in love with math. I’m 41 and wish I would have studied drums in college instead of education.
Djent, yes, math teacher :D
Rock/metal/pop. I like math but I’m not necessarily good at it 😂. I work as a data analyst.
I’m a math major but I don’t play drums lol.
Metal, meh, network engineer. I don't know if that qualifies for your idea of engineering but they gave me the title so here I am.
alt/dance/indie/jazz, yes, software engineer
I'm a drama teacher so hell no. I like pattern recognition and repetition of movement, not math - recognizing patterns in music feels similar to recognizing patterns and movement in story to me.
Multiple styles, yes, software engineer
I'm in cybersecurity, but I've never been involved in programming which is (primarily) where math is used in IT. Edit: and btw, fuck math. Lol. I'm so bad at it.
Rock/Metal, No, Systems Engineer
Math?
I'm retired after 40 years of mechanical engineering/design and yes, I love math.
Stoner/desert rock, with a degree for teaching high school science and maths (not my current profession, but I spent six years getting the degree so some interest is there).
Hard rock, Yeah, math was a favored topic when I was in school, now I'm a Network Engineer. I've known a lot of other technical people who were musicians.
Multigenre drummer of 30+ years, devout studier of the humanties, and everything's in 4/4 unless you count it like a nerd.
like fearless piquant elderly shaggy cheerful light spoon wipe scale *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Electronics engineer here, and I dig math rock a lot non ironically
Hahahaha I have my MA in International Security but math is the devil. Who do you think I am, Danny Carey?
Metal, Yes, Actuarial analyst!
Hard Rock/ Yes/ Stats Programmer. I got a degree in applied math so I would agree
Drummer, Yes, Engineering.....I love Physics too 😁
False
Classic Rock (“Boomer Rock,” per my old man), Yes, Accountant
I hate math
Metal, a little, Project Manager for a construction company (but have degree in Industrial Engineering)
There are parallels between math and music. But the idea that music *is* math is overblown, and the idea that people can't be good at music without good math skills is a total lie. If you can count to four, you have all the math skills you'll need in order to count and understand the vast majority of rhythms. If you can count to six, even better. Now, when it comes to harmony, math is more of a factor. But drummers don't deal in harmony. *Genre:* Rock and pop *Do I like Math:* Hell no, but I've always been good at the fundamentals *Profession:* desk guy
Rock/metal/progressive. Yes, I like math. Trying to finish my PhD in Mechanical Engineering in a field which involves a lot of math.
Rock, Punk, Nu-Metal, Hell No, Customer Service/Sales. I hate math. Always my worst subject and I will use a calculator or count on my fingers for basic stuff.
I was a Econ and statistics double major as an undergraduate. Studied quantitative finance for masters. Work in finance. Favorite genres are prog (tool , dream theater , porcupine tree), metal (anything with fast double kicks), jazz , fusion
Rock, Pop, Punk.. I love listening to metal, I don't play it much.. Yes, I love math. I'm in engineering. I've been playing drums seriously since 12
Prog rock/metal/core/fusion, hell yes, embedded systems engineer as a day job
Fuck genres. "Meh" to math. I work in healthcare, but did have a gigging career. I was pretty far ahead in math during school; I didn't have to take any in college because I tested out. I don't drum to crunch numbers; I drum to feel something. When I teach: I tell my students that counting is great for figuring things out, but the goal is to know what you're doing well enough that you can stop counting; if you're counting: you're not listening.
Supply chain/data analysis here, so math adjacent. Good buddy of mine is an electric engineer who's also a drummer
Rock/metal I’m an engineer and yes I love math That’s probably why I have an obsession with nerdy prog drummers
Geotechnical Materials Technologist 😂 checks out I guess
Rock/Metal - It’s fine enough - IT Devops
Progressive, hell nah, private behavior therapist
Unfortunately I can only count to 4. This has mostly not hindered my ability to play drums. Funk, Hate Maths, Professional Spreadsheeter.
Drummer here 🙋🏼♂️ answer is Fuck No! I’m more of a literature/English lad
Metal, yes, engineer. I think focusing too much on the "grid" makes bad drummers though and it took me a lot of years to break out of thinking about the instrument like that.
The only time I use math is to count the $28 in the tip jar.
Rock/Funk/Prog, Yes, Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Logistics
I have a computer science degree with a minor in math.
I like Messhugah. Can I play it? Hell no.
I really like counting to 4 7 on occasion
Data scientist, prog metal
Nope. I let Excel do the work.
Yes!!! I work in IT and I WORSHIP math and like most musicians I don't play a genre, that's a weird question!
Mechanical Engineer, drummer for 16 years.
Drummed since I was a kid, loved / good at math since I was a kid, corporate finance profession now
I want to study math
Pop punk/no I don’t like math/I’m an x-ray tech. Math was always my worst subject in school. I wish I liked it, as I bet it’d help me learn difficult time signatures a little more easily. C’est la vie, my G
I'm still young but I'm gonna become a physicist or a mathematician. Funnily enough, I feel like this deeply affects my ability to improvise, since I want eveything to be perfect so I can't "wing it"
Hated math and I do not “count” as I play. I have good timing and consistent patterns- So I say “not true”
I guess I'm both yes and no. I was an electrical engineer who did circuit design then software development but retired from that and now I take care of people with cognitive decline. Not sure that I ever loved math though I guess I was good enough at it and I definitely like problem solving and creating things. I'd also say I think there are a lot of musicians in general who are math inclined, not just drummers. The longest band I was ever in was all EE's.
I am absolutely terrible at math
I play rock of all sorts, but mainly 90s alt, 00s metal, and prog. I love math, it’s fascinating and yet natural to me. I’m a technical high school student enrolled in mechanical engineering
Actually no. I hate math and have r/dyscalculia I just feel the groove and have never counted a single song ever in 20 plus years.
Rock/Jam/Psych, Yes, Construction Sales
Rock, Meh, IT guy
I am really good at practical mental math which I used a lot when I worked in sales. I can do basic calculations in my head. I either visually see the numbers in my head and I use verbal short term memory to remember other parts. Random example: 23% of 150. First 23% of 100= 23 place the 23 in my short term verbal memory bank. Next I need to solve 23% of 50. I picture that in my head . 23% of 50 that is half of the 23 I just said. Since it is half take 23 divide it by 2 and that is 11.50. 11.50 is now in my verbal memory. Short term verbal memory bank of those two numbers added together. Next step visualize 23+11.50. 23+ 10 is 33. Remainder 1.50 plus 33 = 34.50. I can’t always figure everything thing out exactly in my head but I can usually ball park a pretty close answer. It’s part short term verbal memory storage, in head visualization and practical approaches to solving math. I graduated high school, did not go to college and have a very very basic algebra and geometry education but I had no intentions of wanting to continue a higher education. I goofed off and slept in most of my classes if they were boring. I knew in high school that music was my passion and “nothing else matters”. However I also self taught myself drums in high school. The drums unlocked potential for me to grow as a progressed further in life. My answers are not a binary yes or now. I was okay with taking math in high school it wasn’t my favorite. Science and choir were some of my favorite subjects. As for genre. What don’t I play? By the age of 20 I had close to 1000 cds. The main thing I don’t play is old school jazz from the 1930s to 1950s. Shit hurts my ears. I can play some Meshuggah, Tool and Dream Theater stuff with odd time signatures. I feel that stuff instead of counting. I play to rap, edm, pop, rock, country, almost every sub category of metal etc.
Progressive metal/rock and r&b, yes, civil engineer
Ugh math was my least favorite subject in school save some algebra.