GCSE Music: Composing for Percussion
A free practical workshop exploring how drum kit, tuned percussion and timpani can transform your GCSE compositions.
Workshop details
Friday 30 October 2026 | 10:00am–11:30am
Yamaha Music School, 3 Seaforth Street, Blyth, NE24 1AY
FREE to attend for GCSE Music students with no percussion experience required.
Ever wondered how to make your GCSE compositions more exciting, effective and original using percussion?
Join us at Yamaha Music School North East for a free practical workshop exploring how percussion instruments can be used when composing music.
This session is designed especially for GCSE Music students and will combine demonstrations, practical examples and opportunities to ask questions about composing for percussion.
What will we explore?
During the workshop, we will demonstrate three different areas of percussion:
- Drum kit – grooves, fills, rhythms, accents and how a drum kit can drive the structure and energy of a piece
- Tuned percussion – using instruments such as xylophone, glockenspiel and marimba to create melodies, ostinatos, patterns and textures
- Timpani – exploring pitch, resonance, dynamics and dramatic effects
We’ll look at how different percussion instruments can contribute to a composition and how composers can use rhythm, texture, timbre, dynamics, articulation and structure to develop musical ideas.
There will also be plenty of time at the end of the session to ask questions and have a go at the instruments yourself.
Why is this useful for GCSE Music?
Percussion is much more than simply keeping the beat. It can be used creatively to develop almost every aspect of a composition.
The workshop will help you explore:
Rhythm & metre
Discover different rhythmic patterns, grooves, syncopation, accents and ostinatos, and consider how they can become the starting point for a composition.
Texture
See how layering different percussion parts can build and change the texture of your music.
Timbre & sonority
Hear how dramatically different percussion instruments sound and learn how choosing the right instrument can change the character of a musical idea.
Dynamics & articulation
Explore how playing techniques, dynamics and articulation can make percussion parts more expressive.
Structure & development
Find out how percussion can help create introductions, transitions, climaxes, breaks and other structural moments..
Developing musical ideas
Learn how a simple rhythmic or melodic idea on percussion can be developed, varied and transformed into something much more substantial.
How does this link to GCSE Music?
The workshop supports several of the core skills students are expected to develop through GCSE Music.
For example, the current AQA GCSE Music specification requires students to develop and manipulate musical ideas and demonstrate creative and effective use of musical elements in their compositions. Students must demonstrate control of elements including rhythm, metre, texture, melody, structure, form, harmony, tonality, timbre, dynamics, phrasing and articulation.
The practical nature of this workshop also connects composition with performance and listening. Students will hear the instruments being demonstrated, consider how different sounds affect a musical idea, and then have the opportunity to experiment with the instruments themselves. GCSE Music requires students to develop performing, composing and listening/appraising skills, while AQA’s assessment objectives include composing and developing musical ideas with technical control and coherence.
Who is it for?
This workshop is aimed at students currently studying GCSE Music, whether or not they already play percussion.
You don’t need to be an experienced percussionist – the session is about understanding what percussion instruments can do and how you can use those sounds creatively in your own compositions.
Book your free place
Places are free but must be booked in advance.
Please complete the booking form below to reserve your place and provide the contact, emergency and health & safety information we need for the session.
Workshop details
Date: Friday 30 October 2026
Time: 10:00am–11:30am
Venue: Yamaha Music School, 3 Seaforth Street, Blyth, NE24 1AY
Cost: FREE
Suitable for: GCSE Music students
Experience: No percussion experience required
We look forward to making some noise with you!