Drummer’s initial present alongside a stick (6)
I believe the answer is:
adhere
'stick' is the definition.
(synonyms)
'drummer's initial present alongside a' is the wordplay.
'initial' indicates taking the first letters.
'present' becomes 'here' (both can mean in attendance).
'alongside' means one lot of letters go next to another.
The first letter of 'drummers' is 'd'.
'd'+'here'='dhere'
'dhere' put after 'a' is 'ADHERE'.
(Other definitions for adhere that I've seen before include "Stick to, cling" , "paste" , "Header (anag)" , "secure" , "Remain attached" .)