Insects

Insects is a percussion ensemble exercise series designed to develop clean hand-speed transitions, stronger subdivision awareness, and consistent ensemble timing.

Each rhythmic subdivision is paired with an easy-to-remember insect-based mnemonic whose syllables naturally align with the rhythm. This gives developing players a simple way to hear and internalize subdivision changes while reinforcing music-reading skills and giving the ensemble a shared rhythmic vocabulary.

This level includes two rhythmic variations:

• Eighth notes to triplets
• Sixteenth notes to triplets

The exercise is written for battery, keyboard percussion, and drumset, allowing the entire percussion section to work on the same concepts together. Multiple bass drum options are included so directors can easily adapt the exercise to fit their ensemble:

• Unison bass drum
• 3-bass split
• 4-bass split
• 5-bass split

Insects is designed to be easy to teach, flexible enough for ensembles of different sizes, and useful as a daily timing, subdivision, and rhythm-transition exercise for players at a variety of experience levels.