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Method Book 15 Bach Inventions In duet form: Especially arranged and transcribed for all mallet instruments.
An easy, two-mallet funky vibes/marimba duo, with optional percussion, HS/College, 8 minutes
A medium level, vibe/marimba duo in 7/4, shimmering simplicity and lyricism, solos transcribed from CD, 7 minutes
This charming set of pieces is based on Brazilian children’s songs. Each piece has its own character and offers an overview of the rich folkloric music of Brazil.
Ciranda is the name given to Brazilian folk songs sung by children in the streets. These pieces are written in two parts, one of them an original composition, and the other is a ciranda. The English translations for the titles are as follows:
1) Samba-lelê – Alessandra dancing samba
2) Nesta Rua tem um Bosque – In this street that is a forest
3) Atirei o Pau no Gato – I throw a piece of wood at the cat
4) Todo Mundo Passa – Everybody passes
5) Pai Francisco – Father Francis
Captivating pieces in the Brazilian style in which the instruments dialogue throughout the piece. The first movement is a sad ballad and the second is a lively Brazilian baiao.
A unique and entertaining piece written in the spirit of the music of Frank Zappa, A Message to a Friend has an open section of free improvisation for both players. Easily adaptable for a small-group format with the addition of bass and drum set.
Keyboard Take Hold of Me Composed by Olin Johannessen
Instrumentation: 1 vibraphone, 1 marimba (note: 5 octave is preferable, however a low-A marimba will also work)
This duet for vibraphone and marimba has a listenable accessibility while still being challenging from a technical standpoint. It calls upon the performers to have good versatility with 4-mallet control as well as a solid sense of communication with the other player as it weaves in and out of multiple time signatures and phrasings.
Johannessen gives several musical directions and suggestions in regard to pedaling, phrasing, and stickings which also make this a great piece to use in educational situations for practicing technical concepts in a musical application. Great for percussion recitals, ensemble concerts, and festivals.
Take Hold of Me comes with a full, bound score and includes individual parts for printing from an included CD-Rom.
Keyboard DuetBlue Motion Composed by Stephen Whibley
The first international collaboration, Blue Motion is an exciting new piece for percussion duo by British composer and percussionist, Stephen Whibley. It premiered in the United Kingdom in summer of 2006 by the exciting new percussion duo Maraca2 from Birmingham, UK.
The 9-minute work has a great feel of drive and momentum with pulse remaining constant from start to finish. With great contrast between the soft spacious sections and the impelling rhythmic grooves, the piece demands coordination between hands and feet and energetic communication between the two performers. Blue Motion is a challenging performance piece of virtuosity, vivacity, virility, vibrancy, vitality, and versatility!
This piece comes with a full, bound score and includes all individual parts available for printing on included CD-Rom.
Ensemble Goldberg Variation 28 Composed by J.S. BachArranged by Brian Slawson
Unlike many of J.S. Bach's other works, The Goldberg Variations were actually published in his lifetime (1741). This duet of Goldberg Variation 28 provides a flashy vehicle that features two players primarily playing with two mallets. The trading interaction between the two players keeps this piece moving at a brisk pace that will prove challenging when factoring in some of the quick interval changes during 32nd-note passages.
The visual aspect of this piece is enhanced with Slawson's suggested stickings—uniform, but in mirror image. While ideally performed on two 5-octave marimbas, substitutions are offered which allow it to be played on a standard range instrument (4 1/3 octave, low A).
This piece comes with a full, bound score and includes a CD-Rom containing an audio recording and individual parts available for printing.
Ensemble Two-Part Three-Pack Composed by J.S. BachArranged by Brian Slawson
J.S. Bach's Two-Part Inventions is a collection of fifteen short keyboard works originally written by Bach as technical exercises for his students. They are contrapuntal pieces "two voices of equal value but independent in Contour and rhythm "unlike "vertical" pieces that employ melody and harmony, basslines, etc. Born in the Renaissance period and coming of age during the Baroque, the contrapuntal style of writing served as a launch pad for rounds, canons, and ultimately fugues, this last of which Bach is considered the definitive master.
Slawson has arranged three of these inventions as mallet duets, packaged here for extra value as a "three-pack." The two-part inventions included here are No. 4 (D minor), No. 8 (F Major), and No. 13 (A minor). They can be performed separately or in succession. Performing duets can be one of the most rewarding settings for mallet players, and these arrangements will surely be a hit with both performers and audiences alike.
This piece comes with a full, bound score and includes a CD-Rom containing an audio recording and all individual parts available for printing.
Ensemble Fear Cage Composed by Kirk J. Gay
"Fear Cage" is a term used by paranormal researchers to describe a confined space with high electromagnetic field (EMF) readings. In these areas, one who is sensitive to such phenomena can feel uneasiness, paranoia, anxiety, nausea, and uncontrollable fear.
Written by Kirk J. Gay for two players enclosed within a circle (or cage) of 9 timpani, Fear Cage is a dramatic piece which uses a variety of effects to set a dark tone. Stationed back to back, the performers sometimes cross into each other's territory, ultimately rotating around the circle of drums and trading positions while playing. Unique textures such as bowed crotales and a prayer bowl on top of timpani heads provide a perfect complement to the included audio soundscape which runs throughout the piece. Several moments of free improvisation are called for as well. This is a timpani feature sure to leave its mark on your next concert.
This piece comes with a full, bound score and includes a CD-Rom containing a professionally shot video performance, full-quality audio for the soundscape track, and all individual parts available for printing.
Keyboard Duet Gibraltar Concertino ADVANCED Instrumentation: Marimba, bass guitar 5 Minutes 47 Seconds
Click the Links Below to Listen to the Piece
Keyboard Duet The Everglades MEDIUM ADVANCED Keyboard Duet Instrumentation: Marimba (2), vibraphone (1-2) 6 Minutes 32 SecondsThis title is on the New York state Percussion Solo and Ensemble list
Marimba Duet Echoes EXTREMELY ADVANCED Instrumentation: Marimba (2) 9 Minutes 3 Seconds
Keyboard Duet Open Window ADVANCED Instrumentation: Tenor pan, marimba 5 Minutes 31 Seconds
Keyboard Duet Elemental Introversion ADVANCED Instrumentation: Tenor pan, marimba 7 Minutes 40 Seconds
Marimba Duet Wild Hands ADVANCED
