Blaze (Perc Ens 7)

Blaze is a balanced percussion septet pitting the keyboards versus the battery instruments. It draws inspiration from the following Ralph Waldo Emerson quote, as in “trail-blaze” or a blaze on a trail:

“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”

Genre: Percussion Ensemble | # of Players: 7
Series: N/A
Level: Intermediate | Duration: 5:15

Instrumentation
Player 1: Xylophone, Bells
Player 2: Vibraphone, Temple Blocks
Player 3: 4-octave Marimba (shared with P4), Medium Tom
Player 4: 4.3-octave Marimba (shared with P3, Kick Bass (or Multi-Bass)
Player 5: Timpani (4 drums), China Cymbal
Player 6: Snare Drum, Bongos, Hi-Hat
Player 7: 4 Concert Toms, Suspended Cymbal

Program Notes
Blaze is a balanced percussion septet pitting the keyboards versus the battery instruments. It draws inspiration from the following Ralph Waldo Emerson quote, as in “trail-blaze” or a blaze on a trail:

“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”

The piece was commissioned by the departing Sydney Grammar School (Australia) 2021 Percussion Ensemble students Remy Alonso, Lars Hoflin, Luke Levison, Edward Meade, Daniel Sirmai, and Elliot Soh, on behalf of, and dedicated to, their conductor and teacher, Mr. Iain Scotland.