Success stories

MLC-Academy teachers book release

Drumset for Beginners by Paul Hose & Jim Farey is an exciting and innovative approach to teaching and learning how to play drums. Even while acquiring the basics, students are given room to ‘express’ themselves through the application of essential structural and technical devices. More than this, the book then takes a journey around all the key styles that are the cornerstone of any drummer’s technique, offering a wide selection of subsidiary materials that point the student in the direction of further study once the basics of each style have been mastered. An accompanying MP3CD allows the student direct aural inspiration, but also, the featured play-alongs act as a goal and progress indicator for student and teacher, as well as being great tracks in their own right!

You can find out more by clicking here.

Maya Dunn: Percussionist

In March 2008, Maya travelled to Alsace and Germany with Nottingham Music School (NMS) for the second time following the success of their visit the previous year. Three of the bands that meet at NMS every Saturday performed in Europe; the Concert Orchestra, for which Maya is a member of the percussion section, the Senior World Music Group and the Stage Band, NMS’s big band. The Stage Band performed pieces such as ‘Pick up the Pieces’, ‘Más Que Nada’, ‘Thriller’ and ‘Children of Sanchez’. The Concert Orchestra plays a variety of pieces that include some classical music, but primarily consist of theme tunes to popular films. On their tour of Alsace and Germany, the orchestra played pieces such as ‘The Eve of War’, ‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service’ and ‘Bolero’.

The percussion section for the orchestra are required to play not only the drum set part, but parts for timpani and other tuned percussion as well as solos on the snare and bass drums. Maya plays snare in ‘Bolero’, bass drum, timpani, xylophone, and drum set parts in pieces such as ‘Peter Gunn’, ‘The Eve of War’ and ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’.

The group stayed in Riquewihr, a small town in Alsace, and performed three formal concerts around the region as well as impromptu street performances. The first formal concert took place in Germany at a school called Helmholtz Gymnasium in Karlsruhe. This concert was shared with the school’s jazz band and at the end of the concert, all the bands came together to perform ‘Tequila’. The second gig took place in the band stand at Europa Park, Germany’s answer to Disney Land, where the group generated many spectators including a stray dog! After that, the group did street performances to advertise their concert in the Alsatian town of Kayersberg.

Before returning to Nottingham for the post-tour gig, the Concert Orchestra, Senior World Music Group and Stage Band performed in a primary school in Strasbourg. After enjoying the performance, the children sang to the group and taught them an African song. The overall experience was very rewarding as well as good fun.