KSU School of Music presents Percussion Ensemble, directed by John Lawless, performing an exciting program of repertoire for various groupings of percussion instruments.https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/musicprograms/2061/thumbnail.jp

Donohue, Joe

Ollman, Michael

Yi, Andrew

English

DigitalCommons@Kennesaw State University

Monday, April 30, 2018 at 8 pmDr. Bobbie Bailey & Family Performance Center, Morgan HallOne-hundred Forty-first Concert of the 2017-18 Concert SeasonKENNESAW STATE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MUSICPercussion EnsembleSPRING CONCERTJohn Lawless, DirectorJIM CASELLADystopiaDAVID REEVESPieces of EightROBERT MARINOEight on 3 and Nine on 2Michael Ollman and Andrew Yi, soloistsDUSTIN SCHULZEInvolutionBELEW / BRUFORD / FRIPP / LEVINarr. Alex PenetonDisciplineMICHAEL BURRITTThe Blue Flame QuintetJoe Donohue, soloistANDREW CREECHLotusTRADITIONALarr. John LawlessTaikoDWAYNE RICEI Ching (The Book of Changes)programprogram notesDystopia  |  Jim CasellaDystopia was written in 2008 during a time where I had been writing film scores for low budget horror films. The idea was to capture the similar sense of tension, action, and suspense these films exhibit, but in a performance piece written specifically for percussion instruments. Part of this endeavor happened naturally while other aspects required a certain sense of creativity to truly capture the mood. Some interesting textures are achieved by way of the bowed waterphone, tam tam, and vibraphones, and the guttural, groaning bass drum is achieved by creating friction using a rubber ball drug against the large drumhead. Frequent use of tight intervals and dissonant melodies add to the tension driven by a syncopated ostinato in 5/4.– Jim CasellaPieces of Eight  |  David ReevesThis piece is about freedom from structure and spontaneity of entrances and exits. Equally important is the need for uniformity in the ensemble, rhythmic accuracy, balance, and blend. These contradicting aspects make the conductor's job difficult. If the performers are solid enough from a timing standpoint, I would omit the use of a conductor altogether and let the performers use their eyes and ears to communicate the music.– David ReevesEight on 3 and Nine on 2  |  Robert MarinoThis is a multi-percussion like no other. Written for eight pitched tom toms, 2 roto-toms, 2 bongos, and a bass drum, this piece tests the percussionists' abilities to split rhythms. Two players perform the piece facing each other, sharing instruments just as they share in playing almost every rhythm in the piece. The listener is engaged aurally and visually as both performers sound like one in an exciting and captivating percussive showcase. Written in 2007 for George Clements' senior recital at the Eastman School of Music, the piece's unique name comes from a unique experience. Robert Marino played 3rd bass drum for the Cadets Drum and Bugle Corps eighth world championship in 2000, and George Clements played 2nd bass drum in the Cadets for their ninth DCI world title in 2005. This work was written with the goal of combining drum corps elements into a formal recital piece that would challenge any percussionist, regardless of his or her level of experience.– Robert MarinoJazz Classical Involution  |  Dustin SchulzeInvolution utilizes repetitive rhythmic layering to create a sensation of "turning in" on itself. The layered ostinati weave in and around each other, as well as over the bar lines, to create elaborate textures and an eclectic auditory terrain. The combination of asymmetrical phrasing and unorthodox tonality will challenge the listener's sense of time, rhythm, texture, and personal existence within the cosmos.– Dustin SchulzeDiscipline  |  arr. Alex PenetonGrowing up as a kid, I was exposed to progressive rock music through the vast music library collected by my father, with such bands as Yes, Rush, and Emerson, Lake and Palmer becoming immensely influential on my overall taste of music. After playing a Jesse W. D. James composition titled Harfall last semester, I was greatly influenced to create my own tribute to progressive music, and I thought what better way than to arrange the music of one of the proggiest of the genre, King Crimson, and the title track of their 1981 album Discipline for percussion ensemble. Discipline, in a nut shell, is a five minute take of what a rock band would sound like playing in the style of Steve Reich, who is one of the pioneers of minimal music during the second half of the 20th century. King Crimson's leader, Robert Fripp, has explained in interviews that Discipline was composed as an exercise in literal dicipline- no single instrument is allowed to take the lead role in the performance, nor to play as simply an accompaniment to the other instruments, but each player must maintain an equal role while allowing others to do the same. This is emphasized by the lack of any dynamics or other expressional instructions in the piece other than to simply "play."Discipline mimics the popular Reich-ism of phasing through the dual guitar-work of Fripp and Adrian Belew, who achieve this by playing in different time signatures simultaneously. These time signatures include 11/16 against 12/16, and 14/16 against 15/16. More daring is the fact that while the two guitars are alternating between contrasting meters, the bass - or in this case, Chapman Stick - and drums (played by Tony Levin and Bill Bruford, respectively) are predominately grooving in 17/16 while the kick drum is maintaining a steady 4/4 pulse. When all parts are combined, it creates a seamless collage of polyrhythm that is near-hypnotic to the listener.– Alex PenetonThe Blue Flame Quintet  |  Michael BurrittThe Blue Flame Quintet was written for the Lassiter High School Percussion Ensemble in 2005 and premiered at the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Convention in Chicago. The quintet is scored for solo marimba (5 octave), and four accompanying multiple percussionists. The orchestration includes traditional instruments such as glockenspiel, vibraphone, bongos, conga drums, timbales, bass drum and cymbals. Non-conventional instruments include ankle bells, ribbon crasher, Chinese opera gono, bamboo clackers, cajon and caxixi.In the process of writing Blue Flame, I was inspired by the thought of performing with these wonderfully young and enthusiastic musicians. I couldn't help but remember my early days as a drummer and my first rock band, The Blue Flame. We named the band after the rocket car that broke the land speed record in 1970. (I must admit that I still have fantasies of being a rock star.) So this is my chance, the marimba is my guitar, and the guys are my band!– Michael BurrittLotus  |  Andrew CreechLotus was written as a musical representation of the blue lotus flower. The blue lotus takes on the spiritual meaning of rebirth. The minimalistic laying and texture represent the flower itself while the form represents rebirth.– Andrew CreechI Ching  |  Dwayne RiceI Ching (2008) is a set of variations for large percussion ensemble based on concepts from the ancient Chinese book of wisdom by the same name.The "I Ching" (pronounced Yee Jing), or the Book of Changes, is an ancient Chinese book of wisdom derived from the polar concepts of Yang (the light or creative) and Yin (the dark or receptive). Yang is represented by a solid line and Yin by a broken line. These lines are then combined into all possible groups of three, creating eight different trigrams (a set of three lines). Each trigram is associated with an image of something that exists between Heaven and Earth.The trigrams are then stacked onto each other in all possible combinations of two, resulting in 64 Hexagrams (a set of six lines), each representing a degree of change that can happen in our lives. Each degree of change is given a name, an image, an explanation, and a way to confront the change.The book is often labelled as mysticism, but is actually very far from it. It can be used as a practical way to approach life. Both Taoism and Confucianism, the predominant schools of thought in China, have their roots in its study.The inspiration for I Ching came from the images of the eight trigrams, which are represented in the following order: Earth, Mountain, Water, Wind, Thunder, Fire, Lake, and Heaven. The resulting piece is a set of variations on a theme, each basically an "impression" of the trigram's image and meaning.EARTH - The Receptive, MOUNTAIN - Keeping Still, WATER - The Abysmal, WIND - The Gentle, THUNDER - The Arousing, FIRE - The Clinging, LAKE - The Joyous, HEAVEN - The Creative.The connections between the piece and the actual I Ching run much deeper than just the surface images of the trigrams. They not only dictate both the form and the feel of each musical section, but their consecutive connections into hexagrams, and those hexagram's degrees of change, give the piece its direction and momentum.– Dwayne RiceJordan AdamsDaniel ArenasJosh ArrantsMichael BerryChristopher BowersJared CookAndrew CreechJoe DonohueJason FreyMitch GillisJordan HillMia JordanTessa JordanMichael MakridesBryan MayoMichael OllmanAlex PenetonKaelyn PutnamDadisi SanyikaClay WildermanAndrew YipersonnelbiographyJohn Lawless, SeniorLecturer, joined the musicfaculty of Kennesaw StateUniversity in 1998 and became theDirector of Percussion Studies in 2004.Principal Timpanist of the Atlanta Operaorchestra since 1979, John held the sameposition with the Chattanooga Symphony for21 years.Since 1978, Mr. Lawless has performed, touredand recorded with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestrawhile maintaining a thriving freelance career as astudio and pit percussionist.A founding member of the Atlanta Percussion Trio, Mr. Lawless performs hundreds of school concerts a year for thousands of children throughout the Southeastern United States. Along with Scott Douglas and Karen Hunt, the trio has been a performing group for 32 years, bringing educational programs to children of all ages.As a soloist, Mr. Lawless played several concertos with the Chattanooga Symphony, including: The Olympian for 8 Timpani and Orchestra as well as The Messenger for Multiple Percussion and Orchestra, both written by James Oliverio. In 2009, Mr. Lawless performed Joseph Schwantner's Concerto for Percussion with the Cobb Symphony Orchestra. In 2014, he performed the Southeastern premier of Christopher Theofinidis' Marimba Concerto with the KSU Wind Ensemble for the Festival of New Music.A graduate of Georgia State University, Mr. Lawless' teachers include Tom Float, Jack Bell, Cloyd Duff, Paul Yancich, Bill Wilder and Mark Yancich. Previous faculty appointments include those at Georgia State University, Clark Atlanta University and West Georgia State University.  about the school of music`/musicKSU     t@musicKSU     y/musicKSU         @musicKSUmusicKSU.comVisit the Live Streaming page on musicKSU.com to watch live broadcasts of manyof our concerts and to view the full schedule of upcoming live streamed events.Please consider a gift to the Kennesaw State University School of Music. http://community.kennesaw.edu/GiveToMusicconnect with usWelcome to the Bailey Performance Center! The School of Music at Kennesaw State University is an exciting place! We have a wonderful slate of performances planned for this year's Signature Series, and if you have not yet purchased your season tickets, I encourage you to do so as soon as possible. The Atlanta Symphony returns again this year as well as a wonderful slate of other performances.The Dr. Bobbie Bailey & Family Performance Center is celebrating its 10th Anniversary Season this year. When this building opened in October of 2007, it was transformational for the School of Music and for KSU! It continues to be a jewel in our crown and musicians from around the world love to perform here because of the wonderful acoustic properties of Morgan Hall.The weekend of October 7th–8th, we had an alumni recital on the 7th and a grand celebration Sunday afternoon October 8th, with full choir and orchestra to celebrate all this Center has meant to us these past 10 years! In honor of the Bailey 10th Anniversary, we officially launched our Name a Seat Campaign during our celebration in October. What a wonderful way to honor a loved one or to provide for future programming for Morgan Hall.I look forward to a long and rewarding relationship with you. With your continued support of music and the arts, I look forward to all that we will accomplish together!  Stephen W. Plate, DMADirector, KSU School of Music

Percussion Ensemble Spring Concert

https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2061&context=musicprograms

Percussion Ensemble Spring Concert

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