Place the bass drum upright with the shell of the drum facing your chest, whether it's attached to a harness or a stand.
Position your hands, with each holding a bass drum mallet, near the rim on each side of the bass drum. If you were looking at a clock, your hands should be near 7 o'clock on the rim. Point the mallets upward at an angle of 45 degrees.
Beat the bass drum near the center of the drum head. Generally, alternate which side of the drum you beat, or beat the drum head on the side of the drum facing the audience. Adjust the intensity of how you beat the drum based on the dynamics of the piece you are performing.
Place the snare drum near your waist, whether it's on a harness or a snare stand.
Position your hands, with each holding a snare drum stick, so the sticks form a V in front of you. Position your sticks an inch above the surface of the snare drum, so that the tips of the sticks are near the center of the snare drum head, and are nearly touching.
Beat the snare drum, raising the stick and then beating it down near the center of the snare drum head. Adjust your stick heights as necessary to achieve the dynamics that the piece asks for.
Place the tenor drums so they are at waist level, whether they are attached to your body using a harness, or are on a stand.
Position your hands, with each holding a tenor drum mallet, so that the tip of the mallet is just an inch or two inside of the rim on the drum, as well as an inch above the head you are about to beat. Tenor drums differ from the snare drum and bass drum in that tenor drums are not struck in the middle of the drum head, but rather near the edge of the drum. As well, tenor drums are usually played in groups of four to six drums, so your left hand's mallet might be positioned over a different tenor drum than your right hand's mallet. This will depend on what the music piece calls for.
Beat the tenor drum, raising the stick and then beating it down on the tenor drum head an inch or two away from the rim. Adjust your stick heights as necessary to play the dynamics the music piece requires.