2025 in Review
So apparently it’s December already. When on earth did that happen?!
As the year races to an end I thought I’d indulge in a bit of sentimentality and reflect on how much Fulcrum has grown since 2024. When stuck in the weeds of the day-to-day, it can be hard sometimes to see just how much progress you’ve made. Looking back though, I’m really proud of what I’ve learnt this year and where the business will be going in 2026.
Fulcrum is developing into something truly beautiful, allowing me to meet lots of brilliant people and providing the opportunity to work on some treasures of percussion history.
So here’s to 2025 - thanks for the memories!
Completed projects
This year I’ve worked on 30 instruments!
From old-school brands like Leedy and Korogi, current industry staples such as Adams and Yamaha, and some newer brands like Bergerault and Majestic, it’s been awesome to work on instruments from different stages in percussion’s evolution.
Highlights have included
de-rusting a Leedy marimba frame (and in the process learning some SCIENCE),
tracking down a rare motor controller for a Saito vibraphone which had been lost when moving schools several years ago,
and learning a helluva lot more about how timpani pedals work!
Social Media and Website Building
One of my goals for this year was to be consistent with posting to Instagram, to correspondingly increase traffic to my website and help it appear more easily in Google searches. Managing at least two Instagram posts per month with twelve blog entries, I’m quite happy with the progress I’ve made.
After working on tagging, adding alterative text for images, and bunch of other small SEO changes, Fulcrum’s website is now averaging 26th position in Google for percussion repair related searches. While this is still further down the list than I’d like, it’s definitely an improvement on the website’s position earlier this year which, if memory serves, was something like 139th position. Visits to this website are also up more than 200% from 2024.
The most popular Instagram post of the year was the “Timpani Tip of the Day!” reel (October 22) with 3.7K views. This was leagues better engagement than I’ve seen for any of my other posts and caused a distinct uptick in website traffic. As such I’m thinking of pulling back on blogs and switching to more video-based content in 2026 to encourage more frequent bite-size engagement.
Marimbafest
In July I travelled to Perth for the sixth annual Marimbafest hosted at WAAPA. I’d heard about this event quite often over the last few years and was so glad to have the opportunity to attend!
After undergoing wrist surgery in 2023 and having to relearn all the fundamentals, it was great to have a performance goal to work towards. Getting to spend over a week surrounding by so many likeminded percussionists was an added bonus and felt like coming home.
And to top off the experience, I also bought a Black Swamp snare drum! After years of searching I finally found a snare that matches me and where I want to go with my music.
Upskilling
Since Marimbafest I’ve been working on upskilling and planning where I want to go with Fulcrum.
I’m excited to announce that in 2026 I’ll be undertaking a Carclew Fellowship with David Egan of Rhythm Restorations, the leading percussion restorer in Sydney. This is a fantastic opportunity and it’s a bit surreal to finally have a mentor after teaching myself for so long.
In preparation for this fellowship I’ve started pursuing woodworking classes. A big shoutout to Hills Woodworkers Inc who held an Introduction to Woodturning workshop last weekend. They were incredibly generous with their time and very patient while I asked dozens of questions about how they might, theoretically, make something resembling xylophone mallets or bars. Food for thought and future projects…
Well, that’s all for today. Take care and happy playing!
