BMS Student Drums His Way To #FUTUREBEAT Final

02 Nov 2018

Year 11 student Ben Williams won the regional final of Yamaha’s #FUTUREBEAT, a competition for drummers aged 18 and under, on 13 September in Birmingham. Following his success, Ben will go on to perform in the national Grand Final in late October.

In the first stage of the competition Ben submitted a video of himself playing drums unaccompanied. From the video submissions, 64 promising drummers were selected to perform live at eight Regional Finals across the UK, for which Ben successfully qualified.

Upon reaching the final for the Birmingham region, Ben was sent two accompanying tracks with no drums included to which he had to add drums. The eight regional finalists then performed to an audience comprising family, friends and the general public. The judges marked each drummer on a variety of factors including groove, timing, technique, versatility and expression.

For the Grand Final, which will be held at the Yamaha Headquarters in Milton Keynes, Ben will receive mentoring from some of the country’s leading drummers and have the chance to perform with a professional band, in front of an eminent judging panel who will decide on an overall winner.

Ben, who has been playing drums for nearly eight years, said: “I’m feeling good for the Grand Final, a bit nervous but I am looking forward to getting the chance to work with professional drummers throughout the day.”