2008 Virginia Music Educators Conference

John S. Battle High School
Percussion Ensemble

Mark Collins, Conductor
She-e Wu, Guest Soloist

Friday, November 21, 2008 ~ 11:45 am
The Homestead Resort
Hot Springs, Virginia

Program

(Click to See PDF of Program)

(Click Title to View Performance)

Winged Victory David F. Long
Designed primarily as an accessible ensemble piece in a somewhat ‘popular’
idiom, Winged Victory begins with an exuberant fanfare. A motive-based
theme follows, first singly, then with countermelody, leading to the return of
the fanfare. Another motive-based theme with countermelody follows, leading
to a repeatable section for performers to offer improvised solos within a given
framework. After a drum set solo, the texture thickens via the incessant repetition
and imitative overlap of the prior motives. This thickening texture leads
to the final recurrence of the fanfare. The overall mood is positive, ambitious,
and ‘victorious’, thus the title seems to provide an appropriate label.

Four Aces Steve Riley
Four Aces is a compilation for developing elementary to intermediate percussion
ensembles. The collection has pedagogical focus points regarding each
concept the work attempts to impart to each performer as an educational tool.
The pedagogical focus points for Four Aces include notation, effective
alternating sticking to develop the “weak hand”, an introduction to three specific
cymbal techniques and dynamics.

The Spinning Song A. Ellmenreich/ Chris Brooks
The Spinning Song (German: Spinnliedchen) is a small piece composed by
German composer Albert Ellmenreich in the mid-19th century. Chris Brooks
provides an excellent adaptation in this arrangement for mallets and percussion.

Taiko Scott R. Harding
Using traditional instruments, Harding emulated the unmistakable sound of a
Japanese TAIKO ensemble. The majestic opening accelerates into the quick
tempo that maintains intensity to the end of the piece. As with traditional
TIAKO ensembles, the composer uses the voice to generate emotional flavor.
This blend between rhythmic motion and human interaction with the music
defines the piece.

Jovial Jasper George Hamilton Green / Bob Becker
Robby Latham, Soloist
Jovial Jasper was published by George Hamilton Green in 1926 as a
xylophone solo with piano accompaniment. The original arrangement was
done in 1973 and was among the first of George Green’s compositions that I
arranged for Nexus using the four marimba/xylophone format. The xylophone
solo part in the arrangement remains almost identical to Green’s original
published version. For the most part, the only changes are the addition of
dynamics, slurs, and accents.
Green subtitle Jovial Jasper “A Slow Drag.” The slow drag was a notorious
couple dance usually done to music with a blues character and moderate
tempo, typically with the female dancer literally in the music and the rather
brisk tempo (half note = 94) of the 1926 recording by George Green and
pianist Frank Banta are somewhat at odds with the feel of the original
Afro-American four-to-the-bar blues dance. Green’s version is probably true to
the style of the slow drag often heard in New York during the 1920’s.

Introduction and March Garwood Whaley
Introduction and March was composed for standard band/orchestra
instruments and incorporates percussion idioms found in many works of the
19th and 20th centuries. The introduction is in two parts. The first, a slow tempi
in three sections (aba), is followed by a fast tempo lead-in that established the
“feel” of the march. The march tune is a simple melody and counterpart played
by bells and xylophone with rhythmic interruption at the end of each phrase.
The first strain is followed by a break-up strain without keyboard instruments.
The trio that follows, incorporates thematic augmentation and variation of the
first-strain melody accompanied by delicate drum and cymbal sounds. The
work concludes with a return of the first strain.

On Our Rockers Murray Houllif
On Our Rockers is one of several compositions in a collection that were written
to introduce young players to techniques on drums and accessories. The
collection introduces young percussionist the ten different styles of music
ranging from the cha-cha to flamenco.

Night of Moon Dances Eckhard Kopetzki
She-e Wu, Soloist
Night of Moon Dances was composed as a set piece for the final round of the
International Marimba Competition in Belgium 2004. The two movements
each have a slowly, mysterious introduction which lead into a faster section.
These sections are like bizarre dances in a dark sky. When I composed this
piece, I often looked to the pictures of Paul Klee. The picture “Figurine, die
Alte” inspired me when I composed this piece. The painting depicts a dark
background with a bizarre dance like person in bright colors. The rhythmical
beginning of the first movement is a like a flashlight on the whole scene. Like
a first view on a picture, as you stand in front of a picture and then you go
forward, you begin to see the details of the painting.

La Vida Es Un Carnaval  Victor Daniel / Lalo Davila
This Latin salsa was written in 1981 by Daniel and soared through the charts
when released by Celia Cruz. The lyrics lift up the spirit against the many
challenges that life presents and remind the listener that “life is a carnival and
your pains can be lifted through song.” Lalo Davila’s arrangement captures
the Latin style and sound through effective orchestration.


John S. Battle High School Percussion Ensemble

Personnel

Jonathan Adams           Alex Harlow
John Allerton            Kaitlyn Hughes
Derrick Ashley            Robby Latham
James Bowman             Katie Neeley
Brian Cross               Micah Robinson
Adam Denton      Zechariah Robinson
Chris Guffey           Haley Testerment
Aaron Harlow                  Zac VanHoy