PERCUSSION ENSEMBLE MUSIC by Michael Udow

Click on Add to Cart button to add item to your PayPal shopping cart. For other ordering information, or to download a PDF Order Form, click here.

FREE SHIPPING in the USA for items on this page!

OUTSIDE USA: CONTACT EQUILIBRIUM FOR A MAILING OR SHIPPING QUOTE PRIOR TO ORDERING.

A BIRD WHISPERED, "Your Children Are Dying" (1979) Difficulty: IV $54.00
[11 minutes]
You Tube
This quintet instrumentation includes marimba (4 or 4 1/3), chimes, 4 slapsticks, 4 crotales (substitute glock bars), and hand clapping; four performers playing crotales encircle the audience accompanying the opening marimba solo which then moves into a melodic cross-rhythmic section for chimes and four hand clappers/slapsticks; this dissolves into the final section where the quintet shares one marimba playing in the style of an African Mbira, (thumb piano) commissioned and premiered by the late Pat Hanley and the Webster Groves High School.
ACOUSTIC COMPOSITION # 1 (1973) Difficulty: V-VI $45.00
(1 - 5 perc. + stereo cassette tape) [13 Minutes]
Logical instructions provided to assist in the interpretation of graphic, spatial and proportional notations, specific instructions presented to encourage the design of new sound sources, the use of found objects and/or the use of standard percussion instruments; ideal for a professional concert or degree recital. Premierd by the Blackearth Percussion Group.
APPARITION for Solo Timpani & Percussion Ensemble (2004) Difficulty: VI $44.00
(Timpanist 5 – 8 drums, + 6 perc.) [11 minutes] (EQ81 Footprints CD)
You Tube – Dan Karas, Soloist.
While the composer prefers the implied harmonic clarity when 5 or 6 timpani are employed with extensive inside drum pedaling, it is possible to use as many as 8 drums and as such the virtuosity shifts to extended physical arm reaches. This work, was commissioned by Jonathan Haas for his Peabody Conservatory Percussion Ensemble with Ed Zaryky, soloist, who successfully performed the work with 8 drums. Apparition begins with a five note theme based on Dimitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 11. The work also pays homage to Johann Sebastian Bach's contrapuntal genius, quoting four successive intervals from The Art of the Fugue. These two thematic motives are intertwined throughout the work. This composition would work well on a percussion ensemble concert featuring a guest artist or on a student recital. My university colleague and timpanist of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Brian Jones, who incorporated five drums for his performance, brilliantly realized the first performance of this work in Michigan.
APPARITION for Solo Timpani, Piano and Two Percussion (2005) Difficulty: VI $32.00
(Timpanist 5 – 8 drums) [11 minutes]
You Tube – Ya-Chi Cheng (excerpts)
This version of Apparition was arranged at the request of Ya-Chi Cheng, at the time a MM and DMA student at the University of Michigan. Kindly view the compositional description in the percussion ensemble version of the work for more details. This version of the composition would work well on a student recital or community concert series presentation.
APPARITION for Solo Timpani and Orchestra (2006) Difficulty: VI $326.00
RENTAL
(Timpanist 5 – 8 drums) [11 minutes]
2 Flutes, 2 Oboes, Clarinet in Bb, Bass Clarinet, 2 Bassoons, 2 Horns in F, 2 Trumpets in Bb, Trombone, Bass Trombone, 2 Percussion, Violins I., Violins II., Violas, Celli, Contrabasses

Kindly view the compositional description in the percussion ensemble version of the work for more details. This version of the composition, premiered by Carl Topilow and his National Repertory Orchestra, Ed Zaryky, soloist, is intended to serve as a virtuoso vehicle for a concerto soloist. The orchestration is imaginative and colorful while being pragmatic and straightforward with smooth page turns in all parts so that it is possible to perform the work with limited rehearsal time for the ensemble.
AS THE WIND COLORS (1980) Difficulty: III $17.50
[30 minutes]
This THEATER/MUSIC composition was commissioned and premiered by The Random Aesthetic Ranch in Minneapolis and is composed for 4 gong players each in a canoe paddled by two canoeists in each of four boats; detailed costume and canoe art designs are given; with the continuing need to allow cultural diversity with greater global communication, this work of new mythology has it's creative roots in First Nation rituals.
BLACK SHOGUN (2003) Difficulty: V$44.00
(Tap Dancer & 3 percussionists + background sound track) [16 minutes]
You Tube
Black Shogun was commissioned by Michael Eisenberg, who was a percussionist, tap dancer and a music technology major at the University of Michigan who, during his demanding technology degree. Michael premiered the work at the 2003 Percussive Arts Society International Convention on the Focus Day – collaborations for dance and percussion. This theatrical work is scored for tap dancer, three percussionists, and a background sound track of work-songs, which appears twice in the performance. The score provides a scenario with basic staging directions for the performers and rhythms for the tap dancer. The work is intended to be fully staged with costumes and lighting.

This work grew out of my reflections about both the Samurai and Shoguns during the Edo Period in Japan and the people of Africa who were enslaved and brought to the Americas to work the plantations. There is no attempt to equate the two cultures in a direct way. It is the observations during the journey on the pathway of life, the michi – the path, that takes on personal meaning as one allows an attempt at making connections and sense out of ones life and history. This is the meaning, for me, of Black Shogun and Black Shogun II, a later reworking of the composition for solo multi-percussionist and 3 percussion (see below).
BLACK SHOGUN II (2006) Difficulty: VI $44.00
(Solo Multi-percussionist & 3 percussionists + background sound track) [16 minutes] (EQ 90 Timelines CD)
You Tube – David Alcorn, Soloist
You Tube excerpts – Ian Ding, Soloist
This work was expressly composed for my university colleague, Ian Ding, Associate Principal Percussionist of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. The solo part includes Chinese Cloud Gongs, 5 Korean Tam Tam, 5 Chinese Paiku Drums (substitue bongos and congas), and a Frame Drum (with suggestions for substitute instruments as necessary) and integrates the instruments into a logical instrumentarium in both the physical configuration as well as the notation of the part.

This work grew out of my reflections about both the Samurai and Shoguns during the Edo Period in Japan and the people of Africa who were enslaved and brought to the Americas to work the plantations. There is no attempt to equate the two cultures in a direct way. It is the observations during the journey on the pathway of life, the michi – the path, that takes on personal meaning as one allows an attempt at making connections and sense out of ones life and history. Black Shogun II would be an appropriate feature work on a professional chamber music concert, a student recital or a percussion ensemble concert.
BOG MUSIC (1978) Difficulty: V-VI $71.00
(solo perc. and 3 percssionists) [15 minutes] (EQ 01 Shattered Mirror CD)
You Tube – Bog Music (Part 1)
You Tube – Bog Music (Part 2)
Three movement work; soloist:
    Mvt. I: vibraphone,
    Mvt. II: timbrepad of 12 standard idiophones,
    Mvt. III: 12 tom toms;
The other 3 percussion parts consist of small multiple percussion set-ups and are also challenging; changing meters, intricate rhythmic interlocking of weaving timbres between the performers; appropriate for a professional concert or degree recital; this work won the Percussive Arts Society's 1st Prize Award for composition for percussion ens. Premiered by Karen Ervin & Tintabulum.
CHARM, THE (2005) Difficulty: IV-V $44.00
(Soloist – large drum, + 6 percussionists each playing 1 chime tube & 1 Actor) [7 minutes] (EQ 81 Footprints CD)
You Tube
The Charm was commissioned by Jonathan Haas for his unique seventy-four inch Monster timpano, (substitute: – O-Daiko, Large Chinese Bass Drum, huge Bass Drum, etc.), speaking voices and 6 chime tubes, each played by an individual performer.

The first time I saw a picture of Jonathan's monster drum, 'Scene I' in 'Act IV' of William Shakespeare's Macbeth, came to mind. This famous scene, set in a cavern where in the middle stands a boiling cauldron with three witches hovering over it, seemed to be a logical springboard. The English art of church bell ringing includes a practice known as change ringing and requires a bell ringer for each bell. Change Ringing has its origins in the late 16th and early 17th century. Shakespeare, ringing changes, tubular bells, a cauldron, but this time with a velum stretched over the top. I recently performed this work in Korea with the Akademie Percussion Ensemble with the cast costumed and staged in theatrical lighting. A professional actress who delivered the text was miked with voice processing through a phase-shifter, which was quite dramatic.
COYOTE DREAMS Difficulty: V $69.00
(for marimba – 5 octave – and 3 percussionists) [18 minutes] (EQ 25 Christopher Froh, EQ33 Mayumi Hama, EQ78 Linda Maxey CDs)
Commissioned by Ron Samuels, President,Marimba One, for Katarzina Mycka, 1996 winner of the World Marimba Competition-Stuttgart, and 1995 winner of the Luxembourg International Marimba Competition. The premiere will take place at the 1997 Percussive Arts Society International Convention, Aneheim, CA the third week of November. Instruments include 5 octave marimba, shimedaiko (bongos), taiko (congas), O-daiko (bass drum), musical saw, cymbal on timpano, amplified cymbal, idiophones which may include log drums, piccolo wood blocks, metals, etc., wooden box. This is a powerhouse tonal high energy work with mix meters and cross-rhythmic interlocking rhythms. The middle section has a lyrical choral which develops into a highly contrapuntal extended harmonic "Bachian Invention". Not for the faint of heart!
DANCE for J.P.C. (1988) Difficulty: II-IV $17.50
[1 - 4 minutes] (EQ 81 Footprints CD)
This quartet (doubling of any of the parts is permissible) was composed in Tokyo in June of 1988 when the composer was asked by Akira Komaki, to whom the work is dedicated, to write a short piece for young percussionists at a master class in the Japan Percussion Center (J.P.C.); composed in 7/8 time with, at first, similar sub-groupings of 3+2+2 and then shifting to overlapping sub-groupings, each part is written for one unspecified sound source; the performance tempo is flexible - (to be determined by the timbres selected and performance level of the ensemble), and at a sprightly tempo, the composite rhythms moving at sub-divisions of the quarter note can be challenging for an advanced high school level ensemble.
DINOSAUR DANCE (1991) Difficulty: V $58.50
[6 minutes] (EQ81 Footprints CD)
This work for solo timpanist and percussion quartet (4 or 5 timpani, vibraphone, glock, chimes, metals) demands a high level of interlocking inner pulse skills with across the bar-line phrasing. Timpani tuning is reasonable and logical; appropriate for public performance and recital repertory. The percussion quartet parts are equally challenging. Premiered by Jonathan Haas and Drumfire with Benjamin Herman, timpanist.
FLASHBACK (1990) Difficulty: VI $59.95
[13 minutes] (EQ 02 Border Crossing CD and EQ 95 Timelines CD)
You Tube
A percussion quartet for vibraphone, 2 marimbas, and a fourth player with glock, 2 hi hats, 7 toms and 5 Peking opera gongs is a virtuoso ensemble work which demands the highest level of interlocking inner pulse with a solid grasp and comfort in playing in 7/8, 11/8, 12/8 and 4/4 meters while at times playing melodic material over the bar lines for extended periods of time; this is a composition which will only work if performed by four superb players; the concept and impetus for this work comes from the composer's admiration for the transcendental energy of master musicians, Alan Abel, Gary Burton, and Percy "Mr. Bones" Danforth. Commissioned by the Atmos Percussion Group and premiered by them at the 1990 Percussive Arts Society International Convention, Philadelphia.
FOUR CONSTRUCTIONS (1966) Difficulty: II-III $21.50
(Percussion Quartet) [9 minutes] ) (EQ 81 Footprints CD)
I composed, this, my first composition, when I was in Junior High School. Thus, I was compelled to debate with myself if it would be viable to bring this work out of moth balls.

There have been a few recent performances of Four Constructions both in the USA and abroad with High School and young undergraduate college students. In coaching the performances, I found that the performers enjoyed working on the details of precise rhythmic playing, care in selecting and realizing subtle timbre relationships within the four movements, Skin, Metal, Wood and Mixtures of the three. I can recommend this work for a strong junior high school, decent high school and a small, inexperienced college ensemble, as there are viable concepts worth exploring in detailed rehearsals. Aside from the standard instruments found in a typical school band room, the score also includes steel pipes, brake drums and a galvanized washtub.
FOUR MOVEMENTS (1974) Difficulty: V $69.00
[8 minutes] (EQ 81 Footprints CD)
The Movements, "Shake, Scrape, Rub and Strike" utilize maracas, guiros, sandpaper blocks and hand clapping (+ one bottle player), respectively; ALL INSTRUMENTS FIT INTO ONE SMALL SUITCASE! ideally a certain subtle theatrical performance posture and attitude will develop as the players, seated in the traditional string quartet configuration, perform each movement. Premiered at Chicago's Mooing Theater as part of an Equilibrium Concert.
LIMITS (1977) Difficulty: V $30.00
(Trio: Unspecified Instrumentation) [8 minutes]
This time/space score for a trio of actors, dancers, mimes, and/or musicians gives explicit instructions for interpreting a series of Pictograms which constantly mutate related, yet distinct, materials selected and/or created by the interpreter/performers. Premiered by The New Verbal Workshop.
MOON SHADOWS (2009) Difficulty: VI $37.00
(Multiple Percussion Solo and Wind Ensemble) [25 minutes]
You Tube
A series of main melodic themes based on ten Japanese haiku about the moon are unveiled throughout the composition. Contrapuntal lyrical lines were then superimposed over those initial melodies. The overall orchestration is intentionally transparent, reflecting the clarity of the haiku form. Subtle shifts in timbre further "reflect" and "amplify" the meaning of these "Pierrotesque" images. Yet, the depth within the orchestration is, at times, rather cloudy an ominous.

The essence of Japanese haiku seems to have a parallel sensibility with many of the smaller gardens I have visited while touring throughout Japan over the past three decades. In particular, the tiny gardens within the very small Daisenin Temple located in Kyoto remind me of the purity of this poetic form. The orchestration in Moon Shadows is intended to reflect this sensibility in ways similar to that of a graceful branch of a Yew on a moonlit night, reflecting upon a pond, then further transformed with shifts in the direction and intensity of the evening breeze as Koi, unaware of "the pure essence of the moment" unabashedly swim by. Premiered by the composer with the University of Michigan Symphony Band, Michael Haithcock, conductor.
MUSIC FOR CROSS-CULTURES NO. 1 (1983) Difficulty: IV-V $44.00
[8 minutes] (EQ81 Footprints CD)
This work for twelve percussionists uses ham boning (body slapping) along with 2 marimbas (4 octave) 2 vibes, 10 toms, 10 roto toms, 5 timbales, 5 bongos, 2 bass drums, 4 suspended steel plates, 2 gliss gongs; aside from the fact that the music is presented in text rather than through verbal instructions the work is learned not unlike the way gamelan musicians would learn a new work; this piece is quite appropriate for a university ensemble in which developing skills of memorization, strong inner pulse, understanding of shifting cross-rhythms and performance bravura are goals. Commissioned and premiered by George Frock & The University of Texas Percussion Ensemble.
POLE WRAPPING (1976) Difficulty: II $14.50
[20 minutes]
This minimalist performance art work for one dancer and tape (to be recorded by four performers) was a collaboration between the composer and visual artist, Karen Watts; the sound notation for stones, voice, dripping water, camera shutter, 2 desk bells and sandpaper blocks is graphic, proportional, and can be performed by non-percussionists; specific instructions for making fabric objects which cover a wooden tree limb are given as well as movement instructions indicating how these objects are to be manipulated during the performance. Commissioned & premiered by Mary Fulkerson, Dartington, England.
REALITY I & ILLUSION I (1980) Difficulty: III-IV $24.50
[2 minutes each]
These are two separate works for 5 perc. & non-optional conductor which should be programmed together on the same concert; in Reality I the conductor conducts the five clave players; in Illusion I, the conductor plays claves and the 5 performers conduct individual metric patterns with distinct flare and penuche; Reality I & Illusion I may be programmed consecutively, opening up each concert half or opening and closing a concert. Premiered by UMKC Percussion Ensemble.
RIO GRANDE RIFFS – Percussion Ensemble Version (2005) Difficulty: IV $27.50
(Octet – standard mallet keyboards, drumset and congas) [5 minutes] (EQ 81 Footprints CD)
You Tube
The original steel band version, was composed at the request of Jim Royle for his student pan ensemble in Connecticut. As I was composing the work, I also heard a percussion ensemble orchestration in my "mind's ear". So in January 2005, I orchestrated that version of the work. The work "grooves" in quirky mixed meter that performers and audiences alike appreciate and enjoy. Rio Grande Riffs, might conjure up an imaginary meeting of Stravinsky and Mozart drinking Pina Coladas in Trinidad or Tobago. You can't miss the hick-ups! The pan and percussion ensemble versions may also be combined in a joint performance.
RIO GRANDE RIFFS – Steel Band - Pan Ensemble Version (2004) Difficulty: V $27.50
(Pan ensemble, drumset and congas & engine room) [5 minutes] (EQ 81 Footprints CD)
This original steel band version, was composed at the request of Jim Royle for his student pan ensemble in Connecticut. The work "grooves" in quirky mixed meter that performers and audiences alike appreciate and enjoy. Rio Grande Riffs, might conjure up an imaginary meeting of Stravinsky and Mozart drinking Pina Coladas in Trinidad or Tobago. You can't miss the hick-ups! There is now a percussion ensemble version of the work (kindly see above) that may also be combined for a joint performance.
SANDSTEPS I. (1988) Difficulty: IV - V $11.00
[Variable length ca. 7 - 12 minutes] (EQ 81 Footprints CD performed by Bill & Ruth Cahn)
This percussion duo begins with both players performing a slow lyrical contrapuntal melody at a 4 1/3 octave "low A" marimba which melds into a second section completely improvised with free instrumentation; the third section for marimba and auxiliary instruments (as determined by the performers) is a folk music-like, mixed metered melody which begins slowly, and ends fast and allows for improvisation. Commissioned and premiered by SANDSTEPS (Alison Shaw & Craig Wigley).
SCHIZOID (2001) Difficulty: VI $24.50
(5 or 4.5 Octave Marimba & Vibraphone duo) [16 minutes] (EQ 90, Timelines CD)
Schizoid was written for and premiered and recorded by two wonderful former students, Mayumi Hama and Chris Froh. The motivic materials have their roots in scenes from my opera, Twelve Years a Slave. This is also the case in the work, Dreams From a Bayou – Long Ago But Not Forgotten, composed for percussionist, Payton MacDonald and flutist, Jessica Johnson's duo ensemble, Verederos, and appears on their EQ05 CD. I am pleased that each duo work is quite distinct from the other, yet both have clear traces that connect back to the source. This is a non-stop virtuoso work (with smooth page turns) and is not intended for "the faint of heart" – performers and audiences alike.

A smile comes to me as I think about the wonderfully fresh and creative energy of composer, William Albright, who, in his music, was usually gleefully full of shocking surprises.
SHADOW SONGS I (1986) Difficulty: III-IV $66.00
[9 minutes] (EQ 81 Footprints CD)
You Tube
This work is for twenty-one performers playing 6 timp., xylo, 3 marimbas (4o C - C), 1 marimba(4 1/3), 2 glocks. chimes, bongos, timbales, 4 toms, bass dr., 2 susp. cyms., 2 tams.; the melodic material is derived from the work, Over the Moon, (composed from images of Japanese Haiku), as well as from West African and North Indian drumming; for a director who conducts several groups, the 9 keyboard players can be rehearsed as one group while the remaining 12 players can form another ensemble with both groups coming together for final rehearsals. Commissioned and premiered by Joan Wenzel and New Philadelphia High School at the Mid-West Band & Orchestra Association Convention.
SHADOW SONGS IV (1988) Difficulty: V $61.00
[8 minutes]
You Tube
Composed for Ms. Keiko Abe, this work, for solo marimba and 3 - 8 percussionists, is appropriate for a recital or professional concert; the melodic material, composed from images of Japanese Haiku, is derived from the work, Over the Moon, as well as from concepts of West African and North Indian drumming.
SHATTERED MIRROR – Opera, THE (1999) Difficulty: V Please
email
Soprano, Tenor, Baritone, Chorus SATB (minimum 8), dancers, piano, synthesizer, 9 percussionists [1:20 minutes]
The premiere of the opera took place at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention in Orlando, Florida in November of 1999. The American Record Guide critic, John Fleming, worte of the premiere: "In The Shattered Mirror, Udow deployed percussion to invent a new kind of sound world, and to enter it was a memorable experience. Musically, it was a fantastic creation, expertly orchestra and dominated by a swirling, ethereal sound suggesting what might result if a Far Eastern gamelan orchestra were crossed with an opera by Puccini".

Global mythology based on the writings of Dr. Joseph Campbell's work, The Meaning of Myth, serves as the basis of the work. The protagonist character, Sun, is searching for the meaning of life. Moon, a wizard, with the elusive character, Wind, and the chorus help Sun on his quest as he searches for The Meaning of Life. Moon, looking at Sun comments: "The rugged tree, wedged within the cliff, seems to fight for rugged strength." Triumphantly, Sun and the chorus sing of the wild hawk, "the great bird circles above the ascending clouds". Through the characters poetic singing, members of the audience are engaged in the interpretation of the poems and in the process we all ascend as our spirits soar like the wild hawk. Please contact the composer for details regarding Grand Rights rental.
SHATTERED MIRROR SUITE, THE (2003) Difficulty: V $98.00
Soprano, Tenor, Baritone, Chorus SATB (minimum 8), piano, synthesizer, 9 percussionists [25 minutes] (EQ 81 Footprints CD)
Kindly view above: Shattered Mirror - Opera, The (1999)
SUITE FOR JAZZ DRUMS & 4 HAND CLAPPERS (1965) Difficulty: II $13.50
[5 minutes] (EQ 81 Footprints CD)
A bassa nova, a waltz, and a 5/4 jazz section comprise the three movements for this, the earliest work in the catalogue; the hand clapping, in the style of Warren Benson and Jack McKenzie, requires low to high pitch inflections; the drum set chart allows for extensive improvisation. Premiered by junior high school students at the National Music Camp, Interlochen 1965.
THOUGHTS FROM ALMOST NEAR SOMEWHERE (1988) Difficulty: V-VI $56.00
[12 minutes]
You Tube
This suite, for a variable number of performers above six, combines materials from the percussion drama, The Shattered Mirror, with new musical materials; the precise sonic and visual energy, both delicate and bombastic, makes this work a must for any good college or professional ensemble.
TIMBRACK QUARTET (1978) Difficulty: IV-V $47.50
[4 minutes, 30 seconds] (EQ 01 Shattered Mirror CD)
You Tube
Each performer has a like set-up of twelve idiophones, arranged on foam pads in a keyboard configuration; the keyboard notation thus specifies location of timbres rather than frequency; "call and response" and flamenco-like sixteenth note inner-weaving of the voices (including a section for claves sounding like a gathering crickets) is the operative style for this work which ends in a lively, syncopated, unison crescendo.
TIMELINES (2004) Difficulty: V $59.95
(Snare Drum Solo with 14 percussionists) [15 minutes] (EQ 90 Timelines CD)
You Tube – Alan Abel, Soloist.
Timelines was commissioned for Alan Abel, one of my dearest mentors, and the Florida Percussion Summit at the request of John Evans. With due respect and homage to the great masters of the art of composition, melodic motives go intentionally awry with hints of Beethoven's Fifth and Ninth Symphonies, Ravel's Bolero, Rimsky-Korsikov's Scherazade, Leoncavallo's Il Pagliachi, to Stravinsky's Petrouschka, etc. Juxtaposing Beethoven's Fifth Symphony with a type of "Cubist" angular warping of the rhythmic snare drum motive from Ravel's Bolero is but the tip of the iceberg. The snare drummer's art is further articulated in the style from the American Revolutionary War drumming in a work entitled The 3 Camps, but again the motive is distorted and juxtaposed with faint and not-so-faint poly-rhythms from West African and Afro-Cuban cultures. I am particularly fond of reworking a wonderful 16th Century Swedish melody, Gaudete, gaudete!!! Christus ist na!!! The compound, dual meter, section that ends the work is in a loose sense, my impressions of one of the many styles of Japanese taiko drumming melded with my impressions of Irish folk rhythms.
TOPSY–TURVY (2008) Difficulty: V $42.50
(Quartet – 4 small setups) [8 minutes]
You Tube (Total instrumentation: Chinese Opera Cymbals, 5 high Piccolo Woodblocks, 5 Woodblocks, 8 Drums, 12 Almglocken, 5 small gongs)
Topsy-Turvy was commissioned by Professor Gang-ku Lee, for the Akademie Percussion Ensemble of Seoul, Korea. Professor Lee requested an exciting drumming work to close the percussion ensemble's Spring 2008 concert touring program. One goal I had was to compose a rhythmically energized work that continually subverted the comfort zone common in most of the world's popular dance musics, while captivating, rather than losing the interest of the sophisticatedly listener.

(grouped into five beats of 3,3,4,3,3 sixteen) and a 9/8 measure (grouped into six beats of 3,3,4,3,3,2 sixteen). The result is a Middle-Eastern or Bulgarian type of rhythmic groove. Counterpoint occurs by overlaying other beat-groupings of the basic sixteenth note pulse. This composition will most likely be felt and heard by the performers and the audiences as an American work because, although there is a sense of interdependence within the community of the ensemble, there also is a strong sense of independent confidence that is needed to achieve a performance that "cooks".

The "B Section" of this work is the "tipping of my hat" to the influential American composer, Henry Cowell whose students, among others, included John Cage and Lou Harrison.

Later in the second "A Section", a 2/4 metered seemingly stereotypical "rock" groove begins, but the listener is caught off balance by the use of odd numbered beat groupings that circumvent one's sense of proportional balance. Put simply, if a couple danced the Foxtrot, Samba, Waltz or Mambo to this work, they might fall over.
TOYAMA (1993) Difficulty: NR $17.50
[3 - 4 minutes] (EQ 81 Footprints CD large ens. And EQ 90 Timelines CD duo version)
Composed for the 1993 Toyama, Japan Percussion Festival, this work combines additive rhythmic compositional concepts utilized in the music of Frederick Rzewski and cycling rhythmic concepts familiar in the music of Steve Reich. Toyama is easily memorizable, yet develops high levels of concentration and attention to a strong sense of inner-pulse. Premiered by The Toho Gakuen Percussion Ensemble and The University of Michigan Percussion Ensemble.
TWO TRANSPARENT STRUCTURES (1969) Difficulty: III-IV $39.95
[8 minutes] (EQ 81 Footprints CD)
for solo marimba & perc. quartet tom tom, tam tam, "E" crotale; chimes, 2 tri., 2 timp.; 5 coffee cans, log drum; tri., susp. cym., bass dr.; both movements are lyrical & modal in the "October Mountain" tradition; sensitive timbre balancing and solid inner pulse with shifting meters makes this early work valuable for the high school or average freshman level perc. group.
WHITE DWARF (2005) Difficulty: NR $27.95
(Mezzo-Soprano, Tuba, 4 Percussion – glockenspiel, high-c crotale, vibraphone, marimba, bass drum, gong, sound effects) [8 minutes] (EQ 90, Timelines CD)
White Dwarf (referencing a newly discovered star) is a setting of whimsical and at times, sardonic poems by the late, John Updike. The work, originally composed for Mezzo-Soprano, Tuba, Piano and off-stage sound effects, was re-orchestrated in this version at the request of Don Liuzzi for a concert at The Curtis Institute of Music. Having observed a number of performances of this work, I can safely say that audiences have enjoyed this work immensely.
ZIG ZAG (2000) Difficulty: NR $18.50
(Multi-percussion duo) [10 minutes] ) (EQ 50, Over the Moon CD)
Zig Zag was premiere by percussionists and former students, Daniel DeSena and David Tolen, while on a tour in Japan with marimbist, Mayumi Hama. Mayumi who requested the work, used it to give herself a breather in the midst of a huge concert program. There is an introduction, which gives improvisatory instructions conjures up images of forest creatures. The major portion of the work is an additive system based with high energy interlocking contrapuntal drumming that can be memorized.