HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

A percussion ensemble is a
musical ensemble A musical ensemble, also known as a music group or musical group, is a group of people who perform instrumental and/or vocal music, with the ensemble typically known by a distinct name. Some music ensembles consist solely of instrumentalists, ...
consisting of only
percussion instrument A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...
s. Although the term can be used to describe any such group, it commonly refers to groups of classically trained percussionists performing primarily
classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...
. In America, percussion ensembles are most commonly found at conservatories, though some professional groups, such as
Nexus NEXUS is a joint Canada Border Services Agency and U.S. Customs and Border Protection-operated Trusted Traveler and Border control#Expedited border controls, expedited border control program designed for pre-approved, low-risk travelers. Members ...
and
So Percussion Sō Percussion is an American percussion quartet formed in 1999 and based in New York City. Composed of Josh Quillen, Adam Sliwinski, Jason Treuting, and Eric Cha-Beach, the group is well known for recording and touring internationally and for th ...
exist.
Drumline Marching percussion instruments are instruments specially designed to be played while moving. This is achieved by attaching the drum(s) to a special harness (also called a carrier or rack) worn by the drummer, although not all marching bands us ...
s and groups who regularly meet for
drum circle A drum circle is any group of people playing (usually) hand-drums and percussion in a circle. They are distinct from a drumming group or troupe in that the drum circle is an end in itself rather than preparation for a performance. They can range ...
s are two other forms of the percussion ensemble.


Early literature

George Antheil George Johann Carl Antheil (; July 8, 1900 – February 12, 1959) was an American avant-garde composer, pianist, author, and inventor whose modernist musical compositions explored the modern sounds – musical, industrial, and mechanical – of t ...
's ''
Ballet Mécanique ''Ballet Mécanique'' (1923–24) is a Dadaist post-Cubist art film conceived, written, and co-directed by the artist Fernand Léger in collaboration with the filmmaker Dudley Murphy (with cinematographic input from Man Ray).Chilvers, Ian & Glav ...
'' (1923) is one of the earliest examples of composition for percussion, written originally as a film score and exemplifying the ideals of the Italian futurist movement. Antheil originally called for sixteen synchronized player pianos, as well as airplane engines, alongside more traditional percussion instruments. Another early example, Cuban composer
Amadeo Roldán Amadeo Roldán y Gardes (Paris, 12 June 1900 – Havana, 7 March 1939) was a Cuban composer and violinist. Roldán was born in Paris to a Cuban mulatta and a Spanish father. It was his mother, the pianist Albertina Gardes, who initiated her ch ...
's ''Rítmicas'' nos. 5 and 6 of 1930, made use of Cuban percussion instruments and rhythms. But it was
Edgard Varèse Edgard Victor Achille Charles Varèse (; also spelled Edgar; December 22, 1883 – November 6, 1965) was a French-born composer who spent the greater part of his career in the United States. Varèse's music emphasizes timbre and rhythm; he coined ...
's ''
Ionisation Ionization, or Ionisation is the process by which an atom or a molecule acquires a negative or positive charge by gaining or losing electrons, often in conjunction with other chemical changes. The resulting electrically charged atom or molecu ...
'' that "opened the floodgates" and truly brought the percussion ensemble into the fold of contemporary composition. Premiered in 1933 under the baton of
Nicholas Slonimsky Nicolas Slonimsky ( – December 25, 1995), born Nikolai Leonidovich Slonimskiy (russian: Никола́й Леони́дович Сло́нимский), was a Russian-born American conductor, author, pianist, composer and lexicographer. B ...
, ''Ionisation'' is thematically structured and makes use of 13 performers playing over 30 different instruments, including Latin percussion instruments, drums, cymbals, sirens, a piano, chimes and glockenspiel. Other noteworthy pieces were composed during the 1930s and 1940s, particularly on the
West Coast West Coast or west coast may refer to: Geography Australia * Western Australia *Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia * West Coast, Tasmania **West Coast Range, mountain range in the region Canada * Britis ...
of America by composers
Henry Cowell Henry Dixon Cowell (; March 11, 1897 – December 10, 1965) was an American composer, writer, pianist, publisher and teacher. Marchioni, Tonimarie (2012)"Henry Cowell: A Life Stranger Than Fiction" ''The Juilliard Journal''. Retrieved 19 June 202 ...
,
John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading fi ...
,
Lou Harrison Lou Silver Harrison (May 14, 1917 – February 2, 2003) was an American composer, music critic, music theorist, painter, and creator of unique musical instruments. Harrison initially wrote in a dissonant, ultramodernist style similar to his form ...
, and
Johanna Beyer Johanna Magdalena Beyer (July 11, 1888 – January 9, 1944) was a German-American composer and pianist. Biography Johanna Beyer was born in Leipzig, Germany, but very little is known about her life prior to her move to the United States in 1923 ...
. The year 1939 saw the composition of Cage's '' First Construction (in Metal)'' and Harrison's ''Canticle no. 1''.
Béla Bartók Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as H ...
's ''
Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion The Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion, Sz. 110, BB 115, is a musical piece written by Hungarian composer Béla Bartók in 1937. The sonata was premiered by Bartók and his second wife, Ditta Pásztory-Bartók, with the percussionists Fritz Schi ...
'', written in 1937, was also an important piece for the development of percussion composition. The early 1940s resulted in Cage's
second The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ...
(1940) and
third Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * Second#Sexagesimal divisions of calendar time and day, 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (d ...
(1941) Constructions, Harrison's ''Fugue for Percussion'' (1941), as well as Cage and Harrison's collaboration ''Double Music'' (1941).
Carlos Chávez Carlos Antonio de Padua Chávez y Ramírez (13 June 1899 – 2 August 1978) was a Mexican composer, conductor, music theorist, educator, journalist, and founder and director of the Mexican Symphonic Orchestra. He was influenced by nativ ...
's
Toccata Toccata (from Italian ''toccare'', literally, "to touch", with "toccata" being the action of touching) is a virtuoso piece of music typically for a keyboard or plucked string instrument featuring fast-moving, lightly fingered or otherwise virtuo ...
(1942) has also remained a standard work.


After the Second World War

In the post-war period, many new works were composed for percussion ensemble. In 1960,
Alberto Ginastera Alberto Evaristo Ginastera (; April 11, 1916June 25, 1983) was an Argentinian composer of classical music. He is considered to be one of the most important 20th-century classical composers of the Americas. Biography Ginastera was born in Buen ...
composed the ''Cantata para América Mágica'', for soprano and large percussion ensemble. Carlos Chávez wrote his second such piece, ''
Tambuco Tambuco is a Mexican contemporary classical percussion group which has been nominated three times for awards including Best Classical Album. It was founded in 1993. The group consists of four percussionists: Ricardo Gallardo, Alfredo Bringas, Ra ...
'', in 1964.
Iannis Xenakis Giannis Klearchou Xenakis (also spelled for professional purposes as Yannis or Iannis Xenakis; el, Γιάννης "Ιωάννης" Κλέαρχου Ξενάκης, ; 29 May 1922 – 4 February 2001) was a Romanian-born Greek-French avant-garde ...
composed two percussion sextets for
Les Percussions de Strasbourg Les Percussions de Strasbourg is a contemporary classical music percussion ensemble made up of six percussionists. Founded in 1962, the ensemble is still performing and commissioning music. The current lineup has played together for 15 years. Thei ...
, '' Persephassa'' (1969), and ''
Pléïades ''Pléïades'' is a composition for six percussionists composed in 1978 by Greek composer Iannis Xenakis, originally commissioned by the percussion ensemble Les Percussions de Strasbourg. It is notable for its use of the sixxen, an instrument Xenaki ...
'' (1979), and in 1996 wrote ''Zythos'', for trombone and six percussionists, for
Christian Lindberg Christian Lindberg (born 15 February 1958) is a Swedish trombonist, conductor and composer, Biography Early life and career Lindberg was born in Danderyd. As a youth, he learned to play the trumpet, and subsequently began to learn the trombone ...
and the
Kroumata Kroumata was a Swedish professional percussion ensemble which was active from 1978 until 2015. The name derived from the ancient Greek word for percussion instruments. The group was founded in Stockholm in 1978 by Ingvar Hallgren, Anders Holdar, Ja ...
Ensemble.
Karlheinz Stockhausen Karlheinz Stockhausen (; 22 August 1928 – 5 December 2007) was a German composer, widely acknowledged by critics as one of the most important but also controversial composers of the 20th and early 21st centuries. He is known for his groun ...
composed a children's theatre piece for percussion sextet titled ''
Musik im Bauch ' (Music in the Belly) is a piece of scenic music for six percussionists and music boxes composed by Karlheinz Stockhausen in 1975, and is Number 41 in his catalog of works. The world premiere was presented on 28 March 1975 as part of the Royan ...
'' (Music in the Belly) in 1975, also for Les Percussions de Strasbourg, and in 2004 wrote a percussion trio titled '' Mittwoch Formel''. The British composer and percussionist James Wood has contributed several works to the repertoire, including ''Stoicheia'' (1987–88), requiring over 600 instruments played by 16 percussionists, as well as electronics, ''Village Burial with Fire'' for percussion quartet (1989), and ''Spirit Festival with Lamentations'', for quarter-tone marimba and four percussionists (1992).


Accreditation

The existence of percussion ensembles in music schools across the United States and beyond is due largely to Paul Price, who taught at the University of Illinois from 1949 to 1956 and established the first accredited percussion ensemble during his time there. His students at that time included
Michael Colgrass Michael Charles Colgrass (April 22, 1932 – July 2, 2019) was an American-born Canada-based musician, composer, and educator. Life and career Colgrass was born in Brookfield, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. His musical career began in Chicag ...
, who, unsatisfied with the available percussion ensemble literature, composed for the ensemble and went on to become a Pulitzer-winning composer with ''
Déjà Vu ''Déjà vu'' ( , ; "already seen") is a French loanword for the phenomenon of feeling as though one has lived through the present situation before.Schnider, Armin. (2008). ''The Confabulating Mind: How the Brain Creates Reality''. Oxford Univer ...
'' (1978), written for a percussion quartet with orchestra. Since the 1950s, the percussion ensemble has become a permanent part of the academic music world, and professional percussion ensembles such as
Nexus NEXUS is a joint Canada Border Services Agency and U.S. Customs and Border Protection-operated Trusted Traveler and Border control#Expedited border controls, expedited border control program designed for pre-approved, low-risk travelers. Members ...
have furthered the art form through commissions and worldwide performance. The
Sousa Archives and Center for American Music The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music (SACAM) documents American music through historical artifacts and archival records in multiple formats. The center is part of the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign's library system an ...
holds the Paul Price Percussion Music and Papers, 1961–1982, which consists of percussion sheet music, sound recordings, and correspondence documenting Price's career as a percussion musician, and conductor of the Manhattan Percussion Ensemble.


Other significant composers

In addition to Beyer, Cage, Cowell, and Harrison, American composers who have made significant contributions to percussion ensemble literature include:
Steve Reich Stephen Michael Reich ( ; born October 3, 1936) is an American composer known for his contribution to the development of minimal music in the mid to late 1960s. Reich's work is marked by its use of repetitive figures, slow harmonic rhythm, a ...
,
Howard J. Buss Howard J. Buss (born January 6, 1951 in Allentown, Pennsylvania) is an American composer of contemporary classical music. Buss’ works include instrumental solos, chamber music, symphonic, choral, and band works. His music has received awards, ...
, Christopher Rouse, William Russell,
William Kraft William Kraft (September 6, 1923 – February 12, 2022) was an American composer, conductor, teacher, timpanist, and percussionist. Biography Early life and education (1923–1954) Kraft was born in Chicago, Illinois. He was awarded two Anton Seid ...
, and
Eric Ewazen Eric Ewazen (; born March 1, 1954, Cleveland, Ohio) is an American composer and teacher. Biography Ewazen studied composition under Samuel Adler, Milton Babbitt, Gunther Schuller, Joseph Schwantner, Warren Benson, and Eugene Kurtz at the Ea ...
.


List of notable percussion ensembles

*
Amadinda Percussion Group Amadinda Percussion Group is a percussion ensemble that was formed in Budapest in 1984 by four musicians, who had just after having graduated from the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music. Since founding the ensemble, their aim has been twofold: to prese ...
*
Blue Man Group Blue Man Group is an American performance art company formed in 1987. It was purchased in July 2017 by the Canadian company Cirque du Soleil. Blue Man Group is known for its stage productions, which incorporate many kinds of music and art, bot ...
*
Kroumata Kroumata was a Swedish professional percussion ensemble which was active from 1978 until 2015. The name derived from the ancient Greek word for percussion instruments. The group was founded in Stockholm in 1978 by Ingvar Hallgren, Anders Holdar, Ja ...
*
Nexus NEXUS is a joint Canada Border Services Agency and U.S. Customs and Border Protection-operated Trusted Traveler and Border control#Expedited border controls, expedited border control program designed for pre-approved, low-risk travelers. Members ...
* The Percussion Clique, Michael Aldan Bayard *
Les Percussions de Strasbourg Les Percussions de Strasbourg is a contemporary classical music percussion ensemble made up of six percussionists. Founded in 1962, the ensemble is still performing and commissioning music. The current lineup has played together for 15 years. Thei ...
* Scrap Arts Music * Singapore Wind Symphony's Percussion Ensemble *
So Percussion Sō Percussion is an American percussion quartet formed in 1999 and based in New York City. Composed of Josh Quillen, Adam Sliwinski, Jason Treuting, and Eric Cha-Beach, the group is well known for recording and touring internationally and for th ...
*
Stomp Stomp may refer to: *Stomp (strike), a downwards kick using the heel Music and dance * ''Stomp'' (album), by Big D and the Kids Table, 2013 *Stomp (jazz), a type of rhythmic jazz tune popular in the 1920s *Stomp (theatrical show), a percussive ph ...
*
Tambuco Tambuco is a Mexican contemporary classical percussion group which has been nominated three times for awards including Best Classical Album. It was founded in 1993. The group consists of four percussionists: Ricardo Gallardo, Alfredo Bringas, Ra ...
*
Third Coast Percussion Third Coast Percussion is a Grammy Award-winning American percussion ensemble, based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The group, composed of Sean Connors, Robert Dillon, Peter Martin, and David Skidmore, specializes in new music/contemporar ...


See also

*
Gamelan Gamelan () ( jv, ꦒꦩꦼꦭꦤ꧀, su, ᮌᮙᮨᮜᮔ᮪, ban, ᬕᬫᭂᬮᬦ᭄) is the traditional ensemble music of the Javanese, Sundanese, and Balinese peoples of Indonesia, made up predominantly of percussive instruments. T ...
*
Indoor percussion ensemble An indoor percussion ensemble or indoor drumline is type of marching ensemble consisting of the battery and front ensemble instruments. It differs itself from a traditional percussion ensemble by not only on musical performance, but on theatrics ...
*
Noise in music In music, noise is variously described as unpitched, indeterminate, uncontrolled, loud, unmusical, or unwanted sound. Noise is an important component of the sound of the human voice and all musical instruments, particularly in unpitched percus ...
*
'ote'a The ōtea (usually written as ''otea'') is a traditional dance from Tahiti characterized by a rapid hip-shaking motion to percussion accompaniment. The dancers, standing in several rows, may be further choreographed to execute different figures (inc ...
*
Pungmul ''Pungmul'' (; ) is a Korean folk music tradition that includes drumming, dancing, and singing. Most performances are outside, with dozens of players all in constant motion. ''Pungmul'' is rooted in the ''dure'' (collective labor) farming cultur ...
* Rhythm band *
Samul nori Samul nori (사물놀이) is a genre of percussion music that originated in Korea. The word ''samul'' means "four objects", while ''nori'' means "play". Samul nori is performed with four traditional Korean musical instruments. They are '' Kkwaengg ...
*
Taiko are a broad range of Japanese percussion instruments. In Japanese, the term refers to any kind of drum, but outside Japan, it is used specifically to refer to any of the various Japanese drums called and to the form of ensemble drumming m ...
*
Thayambaka Thayambaka or tayambaka is a type of solo chenda performance that developed in the south Indian state of Kerala, in which the main player at the centre improvises rhythmically on the beats of half-a-dozen or a few more chenda and ilathalam playe ...


References


External links


Art of the States: percussion ensemble
works for percussion ensemble by American composers
Very early percussion ensemble recordings by John Cage and Lou Harrison

list of the worksDave Sabine's Percussion Sheet Music Library
{{Authority control Types of musical groups