When I was first asked to write something for this site I wasn’t sure where I should start. There are so many topics to cover but since this is a lessons oriented site I’ve decided to talk a little bit on drum notation and the multitudes of methods and changes that you may encounter when someone hands you a “chart” to follow.
If you came up through a school music program then your used to seeing snare drum on the top line, bass drum on the bottom and cymbals flying up above the snare drum in mid- air (not on a line). Usually tom-toms will be between the snare and the bass drum in descending order (high to low). If there are specific sounds wanted the composer would normally write little notations next to the part, like “play on hi-hat” or “standard jazz ride”. Sometimes they might say “cross-stick” for a bossa nova rimshot sound or “choked crash” for a staccato cymbal crash.
For the most part, drum notation was pretty simple and easy to follow, yet contained all pertinent information regarding the song. I’ve got a bunch of old big band charts written by people like Don Menza, Duke Ellington and even Frank Zappa. They all use nearly identical notation.
But since the advent of the “computer program for songwriters” a whole host of new and (sometimes) unusual methods for drum notation have arisen! I’ve been handed charts that had no fewer than thirty two completely different types of notation for four drums and three cymbals! Some of these charts written by computer could only be played as written BY a computer! I mean they were physically impossible for a human to reproduce. Now maybe three humans could (each taking a few parts) playing together.
I have to admit that I am not totally knowledgeable about all the different programs out there, but I’m sure there must be some that would make sense to me. The last decent computer chart for drums I played was done on “Finale’” and it looked real similar to my old big band charts.

 I do have a book of basic rhythms for drummers which has just about every standard type rhythm ever written and it is written so anybody can read it. It has a separate staff for each instrument. But of course you couldn’t (or wouldn’t want to) write a part out that way for an entire song. 

 I’m not really sure where this computer age in music notation will lead us, I just hope I’m not handed a chart that only a computer could read at my next gig!