Through A, for solo marimba includes one score.
Review from Percussive Notes (Dec. 2020):
Through A
Jeffrey Kresky
“Through A” was composed for Payton MacDonald. The piece seemingly gets its title from the A2 ostinato throughout. As the music gets more complex melodically, every eighth note not filled by this melody is filled by an A2. Thus, it is completely constructed of constant eighth notes. Jeffrey Kresky writes in a note at the bottom of the first page, “In this score, dynamics and the articulative surface—both in the large and at the level of detail—are determined entirely by the performer. Measures with repeat signs can be repeated continuously until the performer wants to move on.” Therefore, the expressive quality of a performance of this work is left up to the performer.
From a technical perspective, the most difficult component to accomplish is accuracy across large leaps and physical stretches. The left hand moves between the repeated ostinato on A2 and components of the melody sometimes more than two octaves higher. Also, phrasing is a challenge. With these large leaps, stretches, and alternations between melody and ostinato, it can be difficult to properly phrase the melody while leaving the ostinato underneath as more static.
This piece would allow a student to explore musicality, phrasing, and expression with no prescribed detail in those areas already on the page. Also, it is a study in focus to be able to accurately perform the leaps to and from the recurring A2 ostinato.
—Justin Bunting
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