For two percussionists, includes 2 scores. A large circle of percussion instruments is the dramatic setting for this work for two percussionists. Instruments include: five Almglocken, three gongs, triangle, tubular chimes, orchestra bells, vibraphone, marimba, three brake drums, three Pyrex bowls, bongos, slit drum, five temple blocks, four tom-toms, three suspended cymbals, bass drum, tam tam, wind chimes, flexatone, maracas, claves, wood block, sleigh bells and tambourine. Moderately difficult graphic notation. Duration: variable
Print size: Legal (11 x 14")
Review from Percussive Arts Society:
Chamber Music
Dennis Eberhard and Annette Greive
Written as an improvisatory exploration for two percussionists, this work represents a lot of “new” writing trends from the early 1970s: free-form structure, a hefty amount of major sevenths and octave-displaced resolutions, and exploration of instrument sounds to create artistic gestures and ambiance.
This newly available work from 1972 is almost like stepping into a time machine. The written music consists of 10 sheets, or “cards,” that are scattered around the instruments (which are set up in a circle.) Inside the circle, the two performers are free to move back and forth between the cards and instruments, and are also free to determine ahead of time, or improvise, structural factors like order, duration, articulations, and number of repetitions. While the cards are written with a certain aesthetic and appeal (graphic notation pervades), they contain a twist in that the music can be turned 180 degrees and still played, thus altering the musical gestures and pitches, if on pitched instruments. With so much flexibility given to the players, in terms of musical and instrument decisions, this work has not only a strong artistic application, but also one on a pedagogical level. While this work will surely flex the listening skills and interpretation chops of the performers, it will also stretch the musical horizons of audience members. —Joshua D. Smith, 2020
