Ones Who Helped to Set the Sun, The (Solo 4- & 6-Mallet Marimba)

This is a solo concert piece composed in the virtuoso tradition. The work is composed in a tonal and improvisatory manner. Many intricate techniques are employed by the soloist, including the use of 6 mallets in the opening section. The work calls for immense technical and music prowess and demands great endurance from the soloist. This results in a grand show piece to be enjoyed by all.

Genre: Marimba (4 & 6-mallet) | # of Players: 1
Level: Medium Difficult | Duration: 8:30

Instrumentation
Solo Marimba (5-octave)

Program Notes
The Ones Who Helped to Set the Sun is a solo marimba work that was composed in the summer of 2005 for marimbist Brenton Dunnington. It is a solo concert piece composed in the virtuoso tradition. The concert piece is the first in a set of six rhapsodies for solo marimba.

The work is composed in a tonal and improvisatory manner. Many intricate techniques are employed by the soloist, including the use of 6 mallets in the opening section. The work calls for immense technical and music prowess and demands great endurance from the soloist. This results in a grand show piece to be enjoyed by all.

Titled The Ones Who Helped to Set the Sun, it is written in the old-fashioned style of bravura fantasy, where a slow section – which commonly contains nothing of the theme that is to come – is followed by a cadenza. A theme and variations follows with a pseudo-orchestral ritornelli and concludes with a grand coda.

The Ones Who Helped to Set the Sun is dedicated to Paul Watkins and all who helped through his final days.