Percussion

Percussion is more than just drums!

Percussion is a group of instruments, that make a sound when they are hit by a stick or mallet. The percussion instruments are put into two categories: Pitched Percussion, and Non-Pitched Percussion. Pitched percussion are instruments that have notes, such as the Xylophone, Marimba, Glockenspiel or Vibraphone. Non-Pitched instruments are things that don't play different notes, like the Snare Drum, Bass Drum or Cymbals.

Here are some Orion Students demonstrating different instruments!

What is the Percussion Class?

Our percussion class at Orion is designed for Beginning Percussion students, who have never been in a percussion class before. No experience is required! It's great if you have music background, but if you haven't had percussion experience, you're in the right place!

Our percussion class works hard to learn their own ensemble piece, and to be able to play accompaniment parts to the Beginning Band. Our percussion class embodies the Orion Core Values, by being a team unit and community together, demonstrating Grit through determination past setbacks, and more. Our Percussion class works hard to learn and keep growing! We would love to have more students who want to work with us to be great percussionists!

Practice is imperative to the success of a Beginning Band member. Students are expected to practice every day for 20 minutes. For students who find taking their instrument to and from school every day inconvenient, the band room practice rooms are available before and after school. The band room is open from 7:15am-4:00 pm daily, with only slight variations. Playing an instrument involves the development of hundreds muscle fibers acting in unison to perform a specific task. Much like throwing a football, shooting a basketball, or kicking a soccer ball, muscle-memory is required to ensure that every aspect of playing an instrument is performed the same, proper way every time. Practice doesn't make perfect....Practice makes permanent.

What do I need for Percussion class?

Drum sticks! Please try to get your own drumsticks. These are yours to keep, and you'll be the only one using them. It's much easier to have the same sticks every day, and then you get to take them home to practice. Ms. Shinney recommends Vic Firth 5A drumsticks. They are the best general use sticks, and are durable to regular use!
Practice Pad! Please plan on getting your own practice pad. While I have some you may use at the school, you will need a way to practice at home.
Pencils! Pencils! You need a pencil EVERYDAY! We only use pencil to write on music, because it gets reused. (It actually costs money to replace music if it gets ruined. When you buy a band song, you only pay for a set number of trumpet parts, so if it gets ruined or lost, you have to pay to get more copies.)
Mallet instrument @ home for practice! Ms. Shinney requires you to have some kind of mallet instrument at home for your practicing. A Bell Kit is a GREAT choice. Most will come with the mallet instrument, a pair of mallets, a practice pad, and a pair of drumsticks! What a bargain! Bell kits start at about $100 on Amazon. (You pay for quality.) Since this is an at home practice tool, a cheap option will be fine, just beware that they may break, as well as the sticks/mallets it comes with. Ms. Shinney's favorite is a Pearl Bell kit, but any in your price range usually work great! (We also have kits available from Orion for rental. These kits come with a pair of sticks, a pair of mallets, yarn mallets for other instruments, drumsticks, and a practice pad. See Instrument Rental Page for Details.)
Yarn Mallets! You don't NEED a pair of yarn mallets, but they are AWESOME to have your own pair. Yarn mallets are used for other mallet instruments such as the marimba, vibraphone, etc. Ms. Shinney does have some at the school to use, so these are optional, but highly recommended. I recommend Vic Firth M3 mallets. (You can only find these on Amazon in complete sets with sticks, timpani mallets, bell kit mallets, the yarn mallets, and a stick bag, which is a great thing to own, though not required. I would go to Vic Firth's website and order there.)

Parents! You CAN rent all of the things you need for Percussion Class from the school!

Please remember this is on a first come first serve basis.

Students will need to have a mallet instrument at home, called a bell kit. Bell kits are $75 to rent for the entire school year, which comes with the bell kit, hard mallets, yarn mallets, practice pad, and drum sticks. (Everything that you need for percussion class!)

Students can rent sticks/mallets only, for $35. This includes drumsticks, yarn mallets, and hard mallets.

See the Instrument Rental Page for more details.