Quick facts

What this app does

Stick Lab is an offline percussion measure builder and sticking-practice tool. Build one measure of 4/4, view it as a timing grid or as real rhythmic notation, turn on counting and stickings, and practice it against a steady check pattern with looping playback.

WHat you can practicE

  • Quarter-note, eighth-note, triplet, and sixteenth-note rhythms in 4/4

  • Played and silent positions within each beat

  • Alternating and natural sticking from either hand

  • Manual right- or left-hand overrides on individual notes

  • Hearing your rhythm against a full subdivision, either before it or underneath it

  • Looped, steady-tempo repetition anywhere from 40 to 240 BPM

How to use it

  1. Set Tempo (40–240 BPM), Subdivision (Quarter, Eighth, Triplet, Sixteenth), Sticking mode (Alternating or Natural), and Start hand (R or L).

  2. Tap noteheads to turn them on or off until the measure matches what you are practicing, or press Randomize. Turning every note off is allowed — you can still practice the check pattern on its own.

  3. Select a notehead to open the panel below the measure. It names the beat and count, turns that note on or off, and overrides its sticking to Auto, R, or L.

  4. Under Notes, switch between Grid and Notation. In Notation, choose a Notation style: Flags, Dotted, or Beamed.

  5. Under Display, turn Counting and Stickings on or off.

  6. Turn on Check pattern and choose Before (one measure of straight subdivisions, then yours) or Underneath (straight subdivisions playing quietly under yours). Add Loop, then press Play — or tap the space bar.

  7. Press Reset to turn every note back on and clear any sticking overrides.

Controls and accessibility

Stick Lab is designed for touch, mouse, and keyboard use on phones, tablets, computers, and classroom displays. Every control, including each notehead, is a standard button you can reach with Tab and activate with Enter or Space, and noteheads are labelled for screen readers. Pressing the space bar starts and stops playback whenever the focus is not on a control.

Privacy

Stick Lab requires no account, backend, or network connection. It does not collect practice data and can run entirely offline after it is loaded.

Help and feedback

Using the buttons in the app footer is easiest — they open an email that already includes the app name, build, page address, and browser details, so you only need to describe what happened.

About

Stick Lab is a forever-free Backwerd Rhythm Shop practice app.

© 2026 Backwerd Rimshot, LLC. All rights reserved.