PASIC50 Celebrated 50 Years of the World’s Largest Drums and Percussion Event

The 50th Percussive Arts Society International Convention (PASIC^®) took place November 12-15, 2025, in Indianapolis. Recognized as the Greatest 4 Days in Drums and Percussion^TM, PASIC50 brought together musicians, students, educators, industry representatives, and other enthusiasts from around the world to celebrate the percussive arts.

PASIC50 welcomed a record-setting attendance of more than 7,800 participants. Attendees traveled from across North America and at least 24 additional countries to experience a wide array of concerts, clinics, masterclasses, workshops, panels, and presentations representing every corner of the percussion world, including drumset, keyboard percussion, symphonic, marching, world, interactive drumming, and more.

The opening concert by the Wula Drum and Dance Ensemble set the tone with a powerful celebration of traditional West African drumming. Throughout the weekend, more than 25 new works were premiered as part of PASIC’s expanded new-music initiative. In total, PASIC50 featured over 100 sessions showcasing percussion in all its forms, from timpani to tap dancing, marching percussion to marimbas, and djembes to drumsets.

Among the many artists who took the stage were Les Percussions de Strasbourg, Dafnis Prieto and Sí o Sí Quartet, Gregg Bissonette (Ringo Starr), Matt Billingslea (Taylor Swift), Glenn Kotche of Wilco, Nikki Glaspie & Punkadelick, Jamey Haddad, Jeff Hamilton, the Santa Clara Vanguard Percussion Section, Stefon Harris, Omar Hakim, Nancy Zeltsman, and many more.

PASIC50 also took the music beyond the Indiana Convention Center, with members of the PAS community and PASIC artists giving masterclasses in Indianapolis Public Schools, an Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra partner concert featuring world-renowned percussionists Michael Burritt and Ivan Trevino, and a special performance of Inuksuit, a modern classical composition that evokes nature and space and is meant to be performed outdoors. Inuksuit featured 150 musicians moving throughout White River State Park, allowing attendees to wander through the music as they listened to this largest-ever performance of the piece.

PASIC concluded with an exciting concert by Galactic featuring Jelly Joseph and Stanton Moore, blasting their funk-infused New Orleans rhythms, drawing many of the convention’s performers and presenters onstage to join in the celebration.

“PASIC50 was an incredible experience and absolutely one for the record books,” said Joshua Simonds, Executive Director of the Percussive Arts Society. “From groundbreaking clinics to concerts that had people dancing in the aisles, our community came together to learn, connect, and celebrate today’s drum and percussion world.”

The Percussive Arts Society (PAS) has announced that unique and new PASIC Virtual Sessions began December 1. Through the end of the year, these sessions are free and open to the public – see pas.org/pasic for details and to access the sessions. Beginning in 2026, these sessions will only be available to PAS members.

PASIC is held each November in Indianapolis. PASIC 2026 will be held November 11-14 at the Indiana Convention Center.