The Heartland Marimba Quartet

Transcription

1 The Heartland Marimba Quartet The 91st Annual Iowa Bandmasters Association Conference 2018 Des Moines, IA Heartland Marimba Quartet is Supported by:

2 About HMQ The HEARTLAND MARIMBA QUARTET is comprised of Matthew Coley, Abby Fisher, Michael J. Jones, and Andrew Veit. The performers of HMQ showcase their unique backgrounds and styles of performance together in over 30 events per season. HMQ showcases and advances the classical art of marimba performance year-round through concerts at universities, art galleries, and performance halls; university master classes and high school presentations; and the varied events of the annual Heartland Marimba Festival. Though HMQ seeks to give a platform to the music of American composers in its programming, the quartet also performs works by international composers. Future commission projects include large-scale works by Brett William Dietz and Jeffrey Holmes, and a concerto for marimba quartet and orchestra by Kevin Romanski. In the spring of 2018, HMQ premiered the first concerto for marimba quartet and wind ensemble by Paul Alan Price-Brenner with three different ensembles: the University of Puget Sound Wind Ensemble (Tacoma, WA), the Ankeny High School Wind Ensemble (Ankeny, IA), and the Waterloo West High School Wind Ensemble (Waterloo, IA). Artist Biographies MATTHEW COLEY is an internationally acclaimed performer and the founding executive/artistic director of Heartland Marimba (HM) [a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization]. He directs the Festival, SoundWAYS, Ensemble, Quartet, and Publications divisions of HM, which produces over 40 events a season. Matthew served as the Percussion Faculty in the Iowa State University Department of Music and Theatre from and and is now the percussion instructor at Wartburg College, Waverly, Iowa (beginning fall 2018). He has performed as a soloist around the nation in over 35 states and in 10 countries, and has released four critically-acclaimed solo albums. He holds percussion performance degrees from Northwestern University (DMA and MM) and the University of North Texas (BM). Matthew is an endorsed artist by Marimba One, Black Swamp Percussion, ProMark Drumsticks and Evans Drumheads, Beetle Percussion, and Sabian Cymbals. ABBY FISHER is a percussionist focused on performing and supporting continued growth of new music, and has expertise in contemporary, classical, and African (Ewe) percussion. Abby was the Visiting Lecturer in Percussion at the University of Tennessee- Knoxville (Fall

3 2017), and is the Director of Operations for the nief-norf Contemporary Chamber Music Organization and Summer Music Festival (Knoxville, TN). Abby received her Doctorate in Musical Arts from Stony Brook University, Master of Music from New York University, and Bachelor of Music from Lawrence University. Abby is an artist for Marimba One and a Young Artist endorser for Vic Firth sticks and mallets. MICHAEL J. JONES is a marimbist, percussionist, and music educator based in Austin, TX. Michael is currently a faculty member at the annual Marimba Madness Summer Percussion Camp in Richardson, Texas as well as the annual Heartland Marimba Festival and maintains a large studio of private students grades Michael earned his Graduate Performance Diploma in Marimba at The Boston Conservatory, Master of Music from Texas A&M University-Commerce, and Bachelor of Music from Southern Methodist University. He also had the honor of studying in Japan with world-renowned marimba artist Keiko Abe. Michael is proudly endorsed by Encore Mallets, Beetle Percussion, and Marimba One. ANDREW VEIT is a freelancing percussionist, educator, and composer living in the Chicago suburbs. Andrew maintains a private teaching studio that educates over 50 students each week. He serves as the Director of Percussion Studies at William Fremd High School, and is a highly sought after clinician. In 2018 Andrew Veit served as the percussion adjudicator for the 70th annual Hong Kong Schools Music and Speech Association Festival. He has also led educational seminars nationally in Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Utah. Andrew holds a DMA from the University of Iowa, an MM from Texas A&M University Commerce, and a BA in music education from the University of Delaware. Andrew is a proud endorser of Innovative Percussion Sticks and Mallets, Marimba One Marimbas, and Beetle Percussion Accessories. The Music All five of the selected works performed today were commissioned by Heartland Marimba as part of an ongoing educational project funded by an awarded grant from the Iowa Arts Council, a division of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Each composer was asked to create fun and entertaining quartets aimed for high school level percussionists while also presenting organized educational approaches in their music. There were several stipulations set on the composers to ensure the pieces : The work must be within the abilities of most high school percussionists; The piece should

4 be no longer than 6 minutes; The piece should not require more than one 5-octave marimba. (It is advisable to include ossia options for notes below F2, or even A2. As a 4.5- oct., or definitely a 4.3-oct. marimba will be more common in high schools.); Parts can require 4-mallet playing. A combination of both 2 and 4-mallet playing within the individual parts is great for pedagogical purposes; It is encouraged that the piece require only 2 or 3 marimbas. It is acceptable to include xylophone as one of the instruments, or an additional instrument. Once all parties were notified several months of composing followed. After a few months of composing the next phase of the project resumed during the 2018 HM winter retreat. In January of 2018, HMQ met in Ames, IA to record each piece over three days time. The resulting recordings are available on our YouTube channel, and serve as an educational resource for any students studying or preparing to perform these pieces. Each composition is available for purchase through HMPublishing. More information regarding our publishing efforts will be below. Pop Psyche Caleb Pickering Length: 5:30 Player One: two medium hard marimba mallets (such as Marimba One WWXB2) Player Two: two medium hard marimba mallets (such as Marimba One WWXB2) Player Three: two medium soft, articulate marimba mallets (such as Marimba One KMB3) Player Four: Two medium soft marimba mallets (such as Innovative Percussion IP3104) Instrument requirements: One 5 octave marimba and one 4.5 octave marimba Teaching Points: Interlocking rhythms Tempo changes separating sections Balance of individual volumes to isolate themes Unison moments with dynamic blended contour Program Note: Composed in the summer of 2017, Pop Psyche is a programmatic work that outlines the Greek mythos of Cupid's wife Psyche. The story revolves around Psyche wandering the Earth to find Cupid again, after both she and Cupid betray each other s marital trust. Psyche completes a series of trials and tribulations and journeys through the underworld itself to find Cupid. The couple is eternally reunited at the end of the story, and

5 serves as an allegory to modern love. The "Pop" in the title refers to the use of pop style melodies and harmonies throughout. Idle Hands Jared Steven Coffin Length: 3:30 Player One and Two: 2 hard tightly wound cord mallets (such as Innovative Percussion RS251 or Encore NT3) Player Three: Tightly wound cord mallets Player Four: 3 tightly wound cord or yarn mallets (such as two Innovative Percussion AA20 and one Marimba One RS3) Instrument requirements: Two 4.3 octave marimbas and one 4.5 octave marimba Teaching Points: Opportunity for two of the players to play with 3 or 4 mallets Staggering entrances and varied accent patterns Executing unison syncopated accents Balance (players aware of their role within the ensemble in each section) Program Note: "Idle hands are the Devil's playthings" - a proverb that shows the need to not waste time and get to work. The piece Idle Hands interprets this concept through the use of continual movement of the hands that develop further and further into interlocking melodic parts out of the recurring rhythmic drone. The rhythmic energy and vitality in the work creates a sensation that juxtaposes the associations we have about those with idle hands. Waves of Wood Daniel Krumm Length: 4:32 Player One and Two: Cord wound medium weight marimba mallet with clear and bold tone tone production (such as: Encore NT 3) Player Three and Four: Tightly wound yarn marimba mallets, medium soft in low position and medium in the upper 3 mallets (such as: Marimba One Round Sounds 1 and 3) Instrument requirements: Two 4.3-octave marimbas (one can be a 5-octave instrument for ossia parts in player 4, shared with player 2) Teaching Points Many articulations written throughout; staccato markings denote deadstrokes

6 High player accountability; players 3 and 4 are often in unison or playing same chord tones offset by an 8th-note, and players 1 and 2 have hocketed melodies at times A great study in traditional and extended harmony/theory; chords and scales listed throughout the piece in the score Attention to slurred phrases all throughout the piece; short to long gestures Great for learning traditional/extended harmonies, developing tonal accuracy, and playing in many textures. Waves of Wood offers an opportunity for young percussionist to dazzle and amaze audiences with a teamwork approach. Most phrases are split between two players who alternate playing. The composition is a traditionally constructed piece that is written in a rondo form with three major themes developed throughout. Stone s Throw Adam Hopper Length: 4:30 Player One and Two: 2 hard tightly wound yarn marimba mallets (Marimba One Wave Wrap WW2) Player Three: 4 Medium tightly wound yarn marimba mallets (1 Marimba One Wave Wrap WW4 in the bass and 3 Double Helix 3 in the top voices) Player Four: 4 medium soft marimba mallets (such as 1 Marimba One WW4 and 3 Marimba One Double Helix 3) Instrument requirements: One 4.3-octave marimba (shared by players 1 and 3) and one 4.5-octave marimba (shared by players 2 and 4) Teaching Points: Working on odd meters and mix meter Opportunity for two of the players to play with four mallets Solo and unison playing required Staggered entrances amongst the parts and layering of varied rhythms Working on accent patterns and accented verse non-accented notes Program Note: Growing up in rural Kentucky, I always heard a variety of slang phrases and terms to convey particular meanings. When two objects or places are in close proximity to one another, it is often said they are just a "stone's throw" away. Stone's Throw is a piece for intermediate to advanced high school marimba quartet using a 4.3 and 4.5 octave marimba. The goal of this work is to serve as a fun and exciting piece for marimba quartet, only using a minimal set up. Marimba 1 and Marimba 3 should share a 4.3 octave marimba while Marimba 2 and Marimba 4 share a 4.5 octave. Careful attention should be paid to

7 mallet selection and balance amongst the voices. The section at rehearsal marker "B" requires exceptional dynamic control for the performers to achieve. The main theme of the piece does not actually make its presence known until rehearsal marker "D". When it finally does make its appearance, the theme is flanked by a variety of harmonic and melodic counter-motifs. In reference to setup, the two marimbas should face one other. This physical setup of the instruments represents the relative distance between the melodic and harmonic structure in the music itself. Nested Andrew Veit Length: 6:30 Player One: 2 medium rubber mallets, 2 medium hard yarn mallets, and bundled wood sticks (such as Innovative Percussion ENS 35, IP250, and BZW-2) Player Two: 2 medium rubber mallets, 1 wire brush (such as Innovative Percussion ENS 35, and WBR-1), and a piece of cork Player Three: 2 medium soft rubber mallets, 2 medium yarn marimba mallets (such as Vic Firth M153, and Marimba One WWXR3) Player Four: 2 soft rubber mallets, 1 wire brush (such as Innovative Percussion ENS 10, and WBR-1), and a piece of cork. Instrument requirements: octave marimbas. Players 1 and 3 share one instrument, and players 2 and 4 share the other. Teaching Points Introduced extended and special marimba techniques Interlocking rhythmic blend Unison moments with dynamic contour Open metering that require communication between performers Working on mixed meter variations of major themes. Program Note: Nested was written in the Fall of 2017 upon request of the Heartland Marimba organization as part of their educational commissioning initiative. The title is derived from the term percussionists give to rhythms that, when played together, fit within and interlock well with one another due to common subdivisions. Nested does have several moments where players fit rhythmic gestures together, however the greater idea of simultaneous connectivity between multiple things is the primary motive I used to compose the piece. The piece explores the limits of how marimbists can connect and interlock during a live performance not simply with rhythms, but also with sound effects and extended techniques. The special effects include using things not typically performed

8 on the marimba, such as brushes, bundled sticks, back ends of the mallets, and cork. These implements require special attention to successfully blend and balance as a group, which is an educational experience all young percussionists must have! Another new effect that I created exclusively for Nested is the four note blur-chords performed throughout the piece. These chords connect and interweave the entire composition, which creates another layer of connectivity contributing the primary motive of the piece. Information about HMPublishing Heartland Marimba executive/artistic director and founder, Matthew Coley, added HMPublications to the Heartland Marimba organization in HMP provides additional support to the classical marimba arts and the HM mission by further promoting compositions commissioned by HM, and compositions written by HM artists and performed by the HMQuartet, HMEnsemble, and students at the HMFestival. HMP specializes in distinctive 21st century solo, concerto, and chamber music for percussion and hammered dulcimer. The pieces available through HMP will range from, but are not limited to, solo marimba transcriptions, new marimba and dulcimer solos, percussion and dulcimer concertos (with chamber and large ensembles), and a variety of mixed ensemble and percussion chamber music. HMP particularly focuses on releasing new marimba ensemble works of high quality. Many of the ensemble pieces are available in multiple versions for varying numbers of players. HMP also feels that it is important to make compelling arrangements and transcriptions available for percussionists. A large portion of the catalogue is transcriptions for solo marimba or marimba ensemble.

9 Contact Information Facebook: YouTube: Heartland Marimba SoundCloud: Heartland Marimba Publications Hashtags #HeartlandMarimba #HMQuartet #HMFestival #HMPublications #HMSoundWAYS