One Minute to Midnight (Perc Ens 12)

One Minute to Midnight is based on the term “minutes to midnight” associated with the doomsday clock that represented probability of the threat of a global catastrophe during the late 1940’s. It is a fun, yet unnerving work for percussion orchestra that portrays a series of events that invigorated a combination of emotions such as fear, calmness, and intense exhilaration.

Genre: Percussion Ensemble | # of Players: 12
Level: Medium Difficult | Duration: 3:00

Instrumentation
Glockenspiel (Crash Cymbals)
Xylophone (Suspended Cymbal, Crotales, Whip)
Vibraphone 1
Vibraphone 2
Marimba 1 (4.0-octave)
Marimba 2 (4.0-octave)
Marimba 3 (4.0-octave)
Marimba 4 (5.0-octave)
Timpani (3 drums), Wind Chimes
Percussion 1 (Splash Cymbal, Snare Drum, Chimes)
Percussion 2 (China Cymbal, 4 Concert Toms, 2 Woodblocks, Suspended Cymbal, Wind Chimes, Bell Tree, Triangle)
Percussion 3 (Bass Drum, Tam-Tam, Temple Blocks, Triangle)

Program Notes
One Minute to Midnight was commissioned by Mauricio Castellano and the Sharyland Pioneer High School Percussion Ensemble for the 2018 Percussive Arts Society International Convention. The piece is based on the term “minutes to midnight” associated with the doomsday clock that represented probability of the threat of a global catastrophe during the late 1940’s. One Minute to Midnight is a fun, yet unnerving work for percussion orchestra that portrays a series of events that invigorated a combination of emotions such as fear, calmness, and intense exhilaration.