Not Sure Yet: Percussion Ensemble Score & Parts

Controlled pandemonium with pocket. It sounds playful and deliberately rough around the edges, but the musicianship underneath is real. The sudden shift to the reverent (if ridiculous) kazoo interlude catches the audience off guard and reminds them that this ensemble knows exactly what it's doing.

Percussion ensembles at the high school or early college level who have developed solid fundamentals and are ready to explore what happens when you strip away pitched instruments and focus on timbre, groove, and ensemble precision. This works equally well for groups that want an entertaining concert closer or for ensembles looking to prove they can play musically on unconventional instruments.

• Treat the bucket and garbage can sounds as your drum kit. Assign specific instruments to specific pitches or timbral colors so the ensemble hears the musical architecture beneath what sounds like controlled chaos.
• The kazoo moment works best when the ensemble commits fully to the reverence of the original piece. Underplaying the humor kills it; overplaying it kills it too. Find the balance where the incongruity speaks for itself.
• Lock the rhythm section (whoever is carrying the primary groove) before rehearsing the ensemble as a whole. Once that pocket is solid, the rest falls into place quickly.

Anchor a percussion-focused concert as the final piece, or use it as a palate cleanser midway through a mixed program to give the audience a moment of unbridled fun. The easy doubling means you can bring in musicians from other sections of your ensemble if you want a massed percussion finale, or you can keep it tight with exactly eight players for maximum precision.

• Listening to ensemble pulse without relying on pitched instruments as a reference
• Executing consistent groove and rhythmic precision on non-traditional percussion instruments
• Tonal control and dynamic shaping on unpitched percussion
• Responding to sudden style shifts and dramatic recontextualization
• Creating distinct timbral voices within a single percussion ensemble