Simple Objects for percussion ensemble (2021)
Sometime in 2018 or 2019, on a visit to the Sheldon Museum of Art at UNL, I overheard a typical (if unhelpful) comment about a piece of abstract art: “my grandkid could make that!” We, as percussionists, are used to hearing this sentiment, whether it’s directed at tambourine, triangle, drums, or even keyboards.
As much as people toss this around as an insult, or a way to trivialize the percussion artform, they aren’t wrong. Basically anyone can play any of our instruments in some way or another. Steven Schick put it well: “Percussion instruments are, after all, simple objects: hit them and they will make a sound”.
With all of this in mind, I wanted to write a piece to celebrate these instruments in their simplicity. The four featured parts are not saturated with rhythmically complex or otherwise virtuosic material. Rather, the percussionists playing triangle, tambourines, cymbals, and drums lead the composition by playing melodically with their unique timbres. The rest of the percussionists, in turn, color these melodies with pitch.
To quote Schick again, “A cymbal, a gong, and a drum: these are simple objects and that’s a good thing. With simplicity comes intimacy, and with intimacy the strong sense of shared musical experience that many listeners feel when they hear percussion music.”