Percussion Ensemble

Written for the Rift Percussion Community Showcase, Riven Asunder, meaning “torn apart,” was a play on words as a suggestive embodiment of the word RIFT. Other aspects of the double entendre include how many of...

Rusalka's Song to the Moon is an aria from Antonín Dvorák's opera "Rusalka," which combines elements from three fairy tales. It is a song of love, loss, and longing. This arrangement for keyboard percussion...

Scherzissimo combines contemporary percussion ideas with classical chamber music sensibilities to create an exciting challenge for a skilled percussion quintet. Each player must maintain a highly musical touch while...

This arrangement takes the third movement of Antonin Dvorak’s iconic “New World Symphony” and brings it to the world of percussion. Arranged for 9 percussionists, this arrangement allows for every player to...

Secret Sauce is a mallet quartet with one percussionist, featuring common funk rhythms and chords that are accessible to younger players. Beginning with the introduction of the bass line, the piece slowly grows into an...

Shimmer was written out of Clayson's desire to create a solo that could be performed with beginner-level percussion ensembles. Many pieces exist for advanced solo marimba with advanced accompaniment, but few are written...

This intermediate work for 7-8 percussionists tells the story of Theseus’s ship as it approaches harbor and repairs begin. As you strip away broken parts and replace them with new ones, the story of the ship's...

Silence Won’t Save You is a contemporary pop-influenced piece for percussion quintet, vocalist, electric bass, and solo instrument that welcomes some open-ended opportunities for collaboration.Genre: Percussion...

Snapped in Half (Like A Sunflower) is a work for 10 percussionists that represents the juxtaposition of something very beautiful but fragile coming to a sudden and violent end. “Snapped” can refer to a literal,...

Sprawl is an exciting work for 8 young percussionists, with a title that reflects both the physical footprint of the setup across the stage and the piece’s uneven, driving rhythmic momentum. Throughout the piece,...

Structures is a haunting and groove-based mallet quartet that builds on itself until arriving at the finished product. Along the way, players develop motifs of self-reflection and nostalgia into complex constructions that...

Inspired by the lively street festivals along the malecón, this high-energy work for flexible percussion ensemble captures the vibrant spirit of the celebrations through striking percussion textures and engaging...

In the early 19th century, the people of German, Czech, and Polish visitors brought dance music from their own culture, the most popular being the polka. The local inhabitants of south Texas and north Mexico were drawn to...

Inspired by the local music and nature sounds experienced on the island of O'ahu in Hawaii, The Big Swell is a powerful percussion trio with a single shared bass drum & 3 small multi-percussion setups. The piece features...

Thicket is an immersive exploration of density, rhythmic interference, and the blurred lines between resonance and attack. The ensemble is designed with a specific symmetry—two vibraphones and two marimbas—yet...

Tilt is a dynamic percussion octet that features a stereophonic setup of two percussion quartets “tilting” the musical ideas between sides of the stage. All eight players play (and share) both pitched and...