Percussion Solo Competition: What It Is, Where It’s Run and How It’s Judged

One player performs a prepared solo on a percussion instrument such as the snare drum, drum kit, xylophone or timpani, entered by age band and marked out of 100.

Percussion Solo is the class for a single player on a percussion instrument: the snare drum, the drum kit, tuned instruments such as the xylophone, marimba or glockenspiel, or orchestral instruments such as the timpani. The entry is one performer and one prepared piece, played from memory or from the copy. Because the class names the family rather than one instrument, a young snare-drum player and an older kit drummer enter under the same heading, and the panel judges how well each performs what they chose.

The one template that carries it, a British music, speech and drama eisteddfod, splits the class by age in six bands: seven and under, nine and under, eleven and under, thirteen and under, fifteen and under, and eighteen and under. Time limits rise with age, from three minutes for the three youngest bands to four, five and then eight minutes. Every band is an individual entry, open to boys and girls together, with no language set and a top mark of 100.

A round is short and orderly. The entrant is called, adjusts the stool, sticks and any stands, and plays; the adjudicator writes a comment and a mark as the piece finishes. The time limit covers the performance, and a percussionist also has set-up to think about, since moving a kit or tuned instrument on and off stage takes time that belongs to the organiser’s timetable, not to the performance. A well-prepared entrant arrives knowing exactly what needs to move and where.

Organisers add the class because percussion is a popular entry point to instrumental music, and a dedicated class gives drummers and tuned-percussion players a stage that a general instrumental class might blur. It sits beside the woodwind, brass and string solos in a music section and is marked on the same scale, so results can be compared fairly across the section.

Where Percussion Solo is run

Percussion Solo appears on one eTalenter template: a British children and young people’s music, speech and drama eisteddfod that runs it in six age bands. The data supports only that template, so this page does not claim wider use. Many other festivals run percussion classes under their own names, and organisers building a similar event can use this class as the starting point.

• United Kingdom

Key facts

• Individual entry, open to boys and girls together; no language is set
• Six age bands: 7 & Under, 9 & Under, 11 & Under, 13 & Under, 15 & Under and 18 & Under
• Time limits by band: 3 minutes for the three youngest, then 4, 5 and 8 minutes
• Marked out of 100; the source prints no judging criteria for the class, so none are assumed here
• Idea, not a rule: younger entrants often choose a steady, rhythmic piece on a single snare drum or a small tuned instrument
• Idea, not a rule: older entrants sometimes pair a rudiment-based opening with a more musical second section

On eTalenter, Percussion Solo is filed under Music and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 1 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.

Across the templates that use it, Percussion Solo is most often entered as an Individual competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to 3–8 minutes where a limit is set.

What judges look at in Percussion Solo

What a Percussion Solo panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:

• Rhythm and pulse: a steady beat that does not rush or drag, with rests counted and tempo changes kept even
• Technical control: clean strokes, even rolls and accurate sticking, with the instrument played from a relaxed grip instead of a tense one
• Dynamics and tone: a real difference between soft and loud passages, and a good sound drawn from the instrument instead of simply hitting it harder
• Accuracy and memory: the notes or patterns played as written, with few stumbles and a secure recovery if one happens
• Musicality and presentation: a piece that is shaped as music, played with phrasing and a clear start and ending, not just a run of patterns
• Time discipline and stage manner: a tidy set-up, a calm start, and finishing inside the limit for the band

Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Percussion Solo under Scoring Setup, or start from the full instrumental music competition judging criteria guide.

How to prepare for Percussion Solo

How entrants and their teachers usually get Percussion Solo right on the day:

• Choose a piece that suits the age band and fits the time limit, and pick something you can play cleanly every time rather than something just out of reach
• Practise with a metronome at several speeds, then without it, to check that the pulse stays steady on its own
• Rehearse the full set-up and tear-down at home or in school: stool height, stand positions, sticks or mallets within reach, so no time or composure is lost on the day
• Record yourself and listen back for rushing, uneven rolls and notes that are too loud or too quiet, then fix those first
• Mark the dynamics in the copy and rehearse them deliberately, because the difference between soft and loud is where panels hear musicianship
• Bring spare sticks or mallets, a stick bag, a non-slip mat if you use one, and a clean copy of the music if the notice asks for it
• If you lost marks at a first festival, ask for the written comments and work on the fault named most, usually steadiness of pulse or evenness of rolls

Frequently asked questions

Is Percussion Solo judged individually or as a team?

Across eTalenter’s templates it’s most often run as an Individual entry, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.

Which instruments count as percussion in this class?

The template names the class only as Percussion Solo and does not list instruments. The snare drum, drum kit, xylophone, marimba and timpani are the usual choices, but check your organiser’s notice for any limit.

How long is a Percussion Solo?

On the British template that carries it, the limit is 3 minutes for 7 & Under, 9 & Under and 11 & Under, then 4 minutes for 13 & Under, 5 minutes for 15 & Under and 8 minutes for 18 & Under.

Do I need to bring my own instrument?

The template does not say. It prints only the age bands, time limits and a mark out of 100, so ask your organiser what is provided on the day, especially for a drum kit or tuned instrument.

Is it judged individually or as a team?

It is an individual item: one player per entry, open to boys and girls together, and marked out of 100.

Want the full judging picture? Read the full instrumental music competition judging criteria guide, or browse every music competition item.