The Figurenotes team will host online drop-in sessions throughout 2026. These will take place every few months over the course of the year, and will usually take place in the first week of the month.

Each 30min sessions will provide a space to ask questions and gain guidance on all things Figurenotes. Some will be more general and open sessions, whilst others may have a particular focus, such as using Notate or working with a specific group.

Come along and ask questions, gain insight or just bounce ideas off the Figurenotes team and the wider community.

The first is a general drop-in session and takes place on Wed 4th February at 4pm.

Join using the Zoom link below.

https://us05web.zoom.us/j/84654315489?pwd=glhbNIwEU9Gdjowr6alNnoM6tGCnJq.1

Did you miss out on our online course in November? Secure your spot for the next one and enjoy a discounted price with the early bird rate.

After lots of enquiries about when the next Figurenotes: Developing Your Practice course will take place, you can now book your place on our May 2026 course. Our early bird rate of £99.99 will be available until 20th Feb. Places are limited, so book quickly to avoid disappointment.

Book now

How does it work?

You’ll learn how to use Figurenotes as a tool, working through the fundamentals of music. We’ll focus on rhythm, composition and creative play, as well as working with mixed-ability groups and ensembles. Each interactive session will be delivered in a small group.

Between sessions you’ll create resources that work for you, getting feedback and ideas from the rest of the group and course leaders. A follow-up 1-to-1 gives you the opportunity to go deeper, with course leaders focused entirely on you and your work.

Did you miss it? Don’t worry, we recorded it just for you.

At the start of June, we delivered a webinar with the BBC Ten Pieces team, exploring the accessible resources created over the last decade of partnership. The recording is now up on the Ten Pieces CPD page.

BBC Ten Pieces celebrated its 10^th anniversary in 2024 and we’re delighted to also be celebrating 10 years of partnership with Drake Music Scotland, who have been creating exciting Figurenotes resources since the initiative was launched. The Figurenotes resources on the Ten Pieces website have been valuable in helping to make fantastic classical music accessible to as broad an audience as possible, both to play and explore.

Jennifer Redmond, BBC Ten Pieces

If you haven’t taken a peek at this year’s list yet, head over to the Ten Pieces website.

As long-standing partners of this brilliant project, we are so pleased to see new accessible avenues to engagement. This year’s list includes some fantastic pieces, including adaptable arrangements for flexible ensembles. There are parts for digital and traditional instruments, including Clarion, Thumbjam, and CMPSR.

Figurenotes resources include parts for these flexible ensembles in all 3 stages of Figurenotes notation, as well as pick-and-mix lesson plans exploring Laura Shigihara’s Grasswalk.

Did you miss out on our online course in May? Secure your spot for the next one and enjoy a discounted price with the early bird rate.

After lots of enquiries about when the next Figurenotes: Developing Your Practice course will take place, we’re launching it early! You can now book your place on the November course. Our early bird rate of £99.99 will be available until 25th July. Places are limited, so book quickly to avoid disappointment.

How does it work?

You’ll learn how to use Figurenotes as a tool, working through the fundamentals of music. We’ll focus on rhythm, composition and creative play, as well as working with mixed-ability groups and ensembles. Each interactive session will be delivered in a small group.

Between sessions you’ll create resources that work for you, getting feedback and ideas from the rest of the group and course leaders. A follow-up 1-to-1 gives you the opportunity to go deeper, with course leaders focused entirely on you and your work.

Join us for a webinar exploring Figurenotes and BBC Ten Pieces resources. 3rd June 2025, 4-5pm

We’re delighted to be partnering with Early Years Music Scotland again this year to deliver a free online workshop.

We’ll be discussing how to develop creativity and musical confidence in an accessible way within Early Years music-making. You’ll learn how to harness the power of imagination and enable it to grow using Figurenotes as a tool. Discover how to help young musicians take their first steps in choosing sounds, creating music, and feeling ownership.

Early Years Music Scotland is delivering a year-long programme of free, high-quality, creative and inspiring continuous professional learning and development for musicians working with children in the early years across Scotland, supported by Creative Scotland’s Youth Music Initiative. We are thrilled to be a part of their programme once again.

This engaging workshop is free-of-charge to musicians living in Scotland and working with children in the early years (0-5yrs). Non-Scottish residents and non-musicians may purchase a ticket. The workshop will be recorded and available to view for one month following the event. If you are unable to attend live, you can select a ‘session recording’ ticket.

Book your place via the event listing. We look forward to seeing you there.

A very apt Gingerbready tale rounded off our Developing Your Practice course at the end of November, leaving us within touching distance of the Christmas holidays.

Our popular 3-week course came to a close with an engaging sound story, bringing together all the elements the group had studied over the duration of the training. This wonderful wee group worked on rhythm, creating activities and games for the people they work with. We then moved on to pitch and composition to bring even more creative ideas to life. Our final session focused on mixed-ability groups and ensembles.

“It’s an amazing amount of inspiration in such a short time”

Trainee, Nov 24

“One of the most valuable aspects for me was the sharing of ideas within the group. Seeing things someone else has shared and it sparking an idea, or sharing something and seeing someone go ‘I hadn’t thought of it that way’. It was really inspiring.”

Trainee, Nov 2024

We are always so impressed with the creativity and imagination of our trainees. The range of roles and settings in each group brings out so many different ideas and discussion points, leaving everyone brimming with inspiration and enthusiasm. From Beatles’ bass lines to percussion workshops, piano coordination skills to PMLD music sessions, there was a full range of fun covered within their creations.

For anyone who missed out on this iteration of the training, look out for the next cohort starting in the first half of 2025. Dates will be updated on our training page, as well as via the blog. Keep an eye on the email newsletter for early bird bargains.

I have been developing my use of Figurenotes for mainstream children of various ages through 1-1 keyboard tuition.

I’d like to share a DIY transition resource I created after inspiration from the Developing Your Practice course, as well as my takeaways from working with Figurenotes over the last few years.

Wednesday mornings have never felt so good. We were sad to come to the end of the latest Developing Your Practice course. Luckily, all participants get an individual follow-up session, so we will see their lovely, enthusiastic faces again.

“Really loved this training and will be recommending it to others. Lovely tutors who really engaged with us well and modelled all the tasks.”

The ideas that came from this cohort were absolutely brilliant. We had minibeasts helping us learn rhythm, fruity Figurenotes for percussion, and atmospheric stormy songs. There were rainy walks, art extravaganzas, and nature exploration. These topics helped us create resources and lessons that develop rhythmic skills, creative play, and composition.

As ever, we brought all the elements together in the final week with a group activity that is always full of fun.

“You’ve just ignited that passion within me to get working with this resource. It is so valuable. I understood its value in special schools, but this also needs to be in mainstream”

“The workshops have been inspirational”

Do you want to improve your practice? We’ll be training the next cohort in November. Get the Early Bird price of £99 by booking before 24th July.

There are funding options available at Scottish Music Centre through the YMI CPD Fund, as well as other funds across the UK and further afield. Full time students can claim a discount by emailing us at Figurenotes@DrakeMusicScotland.org.

“Inspiring, Engaging, Informative, Fun.”

“Wonderful training. Thank you!”

“I’m feeling so inspired!”

Trainees from the Scottish Borders

We had an outrageous amount of fun last week delivering training. It was week 2 of our brilliant online course, Figurenotes: Developing Your Practice, which is always a delight. Alongside this, we whizzed down to the Scottish Borders to deliver in-person training to a lovely group, organised by their YMI coordinator.

There was a mix of roles in the room, which always leads to interesting discussion. We also had some very experienced Figurenoters alongside people brand new to this way of working. Some tutors deliver 6-week projects, while others are classroom-based and much more focused on supporting the classroom learning objectives.

We spent a portion of the day creating Figurenotes compositions and it was fascinating to see the different ways that the tasks were approached depending on the setting people were working in. We always feel very privileged to have these conversations and understand the ways in which people are working. It helps us to create resources and training that will be useful.

The Ever-Popular Sound Stories

By far the most popular aspect of the day was our sound story, working to build skills in composition, turn-taking, listening, and performance. We explored leitmotif using the Gingerbread Man as our inspiration. We ended up with a lovely twinkly gingerbread man motif, full of energy and speed. The old couple at the start of the story couldn’t have been more different – they do say opposites attract. The reaction to these activities is always so good! I’m sure the students in the Scottish Borders will be having a great time in their upcoming lessons with these newly-inspired staff members.

We’ll be sure to create some more sound story resources and pop them up on the Hub. If you have your own successful resources, then do remember that you can share these with your fellow Figurenoters on the Hub’s community library. People working in the music education sector can often feel a little isolated, so a big part of the Hub is community, sharing, and supporting each other.

Thank you to everyone at the training day. We had an absolute blast!

If you are interested in training in accessible music practices and Figurenotes, either online or in-person, please get in touch via email at Figurenotes@DrakeMusicScotland.org.