“Tavolette” in “Feste Romane”. At the end of the last season I was lucky enough to play “Feste Romane” (“Roman Festivals”) which, together with “Fountains” and “Pines”, form Ottorino Respighi´s “Roman Triptych”. It is a work featuring an exuberant, imaginative and brilliant orchestration. It requires a “percusive force” of one timpanist plus nine percussionists and, in… Continue reading “Tavolette” in “Feste Romane”
Category: Orchestral
Articles dealing with orchestral percussion.
Happy birthday, Ms. Abe!
Happy birthday, Ms. Abe! Today is the 80th birthday of a person who has had a tremendous influence in the marimba world: Keiko Abe. © Yamaha. It is not the purpose of this article to detail her career, achievements or insist on the tremendous importance of her figure (all of that already well known), but… Continue reading Happy birthday, Ms. Abe!
“The Timpani and Percussion Instruments in 19th-century Italy”
“The Timpani and Percussion Instruments in 19th-century Italy” Because I have been a very good boy during this last year, the Three Wise Men brought me as a present the book “The timpani and percussion instruments in 19th-century Italy”, written by Renato Meucci, translated into English by Michael Quinn and edited by Banda Turca. ©… Continue reading “The Timpani and Percussion Instruments in 19th-century Italy”
The tenor drum, that great unknown
The tenor drum, that great unknown. The tenor drum is an instrument not very well known; even seasoned percussionists mistake it for the military drum, another member of the percusive family. This article will define its characteristics and make clear what instrument it is. At first I thought that this article would make not much sense… Continue reading The tenor drum, that great unknown
The Provençal drum
The Provençal drum. Today´s article deals with a traditional instrument that has made its way into the symphony orchestra. Common to different drumming traditions from several countries and around five centuries old, its name in French is very similar to the way that other completely different instruments are named in other nations, which has caused… Continue reading The Provençal drum
“Bluebeard´s Castle” – Xylophone.
“Bluebeard´s Castle” – Xylophone This month, the Asturias Symphony Orchestra is playing Béla Bartók´s opera “Bluebeard´s Castle”. This work features one of the most unusual and difficult xylophone parts in the repertoire, and this article will deal with this particular issue. “Barbe Bleue”. Ilustration by Gustav Doré for “Les Contes de Perrault”. Paris, Jules Hetzel,… Continue reading “Bluebeard´s Castle” – Xylophone.
Various stickings for “Scheherezade”.
Various stickings for “Scheherezade” Sometime ago I showed you a one-handed way to play the third movement of “Scheherezade”. That article was “Snare drum technique. One-handed Scheherezade”. © Grover Pro Percussion After recording that video I tried a few stickings to play that excerpt. You can see the result here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lryhSytw26g These are the different… Continue reading Various stickings for “Scheherezade”.
Snare drum technique. One-handed “Scheherezade”
Snare drum technique. One-handed “Scheherezade” Some weeks ago I saw an interesting video by Tony Ames (principal percussion with the National Symphony Orchestra) on which he can be seen playing the famous snare drum excerpt from the third movement of “Scheherezade” (N. Rimsky-korsakov) using just one hand. You know that I always try anything that leads… Continue reading Snare drum technique. One-handed “Scheherezade”
Snare drum technique. The roll.
Snare drum technique. The roll The roll is, probably, the most characteristic and idiomatic of all of the snare drum techniques. Isolately played on a snare drum, a 64th-note lasts exactly the same as a whole note. Because percussionists do not have an air column or a bow allowing us to play long notes on a… Continue reading Snare drum technique. The roll.
In memoriam David Searcy
In memoriam David Searcy. Sadly, I am writing again mourning a loss. David Searcy has passed away on August, 2nd. David was timpanist for the orchestra of Teatro alla Scala in Milan (before that, he played for the Bergen Philharmonic), a magnificent musician, and an excellent person. He was also a faculty member at the Royal… Continue reading In memoriam David Searcy