The Single Flammed Mill may be familiar to many American drummers as part of the 40 PAS rudiments and it originates from the Swiss.
This rudiment is an inverted paradiddle with a flam, performed similar to flam taps, like this:
The Single Flammed Mill in Swiss / Basel Music:
Only the Basel style appears to use this rudiment.
We know that the Swiss tradition does not have paradiddles.
Instead, the Basel style apparently adopted the Single Paradiddle from the French in the late-19th century.
The French and Swiss refer to the Single Paradiddle in French as the Moulin, translated to “Mill”.
Once the Basel style adopted the paradiddle from the French, they made a few new rudiments that are variations on the paradiddle. A second Moulin is an inverted paradiddle. They further embellished this second Moulin with a flam, creating the flammed mill.
The Single Flammed Mill in American Music:
No historic manual appears to utilize an inverted Paradiddle. However, Hart (1861) comes close with his “Reversed Flam Paradiddle”, a rudiment seemingly unique to Hart. It is performed:
Hart’s odd rudiment deserved further study to see how he used this rudiment in practice and whether it appears anywhere else.
More Info:
If you have any additional information on the origin or development of this rudiment, please contact me and share your resources. Or, comment below!