Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra Young Person’s Concerts May 16, 2014 Featuring: Chris Rose, principal percussionist and The Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Maestro Stuart Malina SPONSORED BY: Penn National Insurance The Children’s Home Foundation, Inc. The Charles A. & Elizabeth Guy Holmes Foundation
The Educational Programs of the HSO are funded in part by a generous grant from the Donald B. and Dorothy L. Stabler Foundation
Why come to a Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra concert? You’ve been to a movie in a theatre, right? What made you decide to see that movie in the theatre? Why not wait for it to come out on DVD or for it to air on TV? Going to the movies with other people is more exciting and there’s that gigantic screen. Concert-going is a lot like that movie theatre experience. You could listen to the music on DVD or on your iPod. But going to a live orchestra concert allows you to be a part of the music. It also is an individual event that only happens once! Unlike watching TV at home, you will not get yelled at by your mom when the TV is too loud. The Young Person’s Concert is unique: it is a learning experience that the conductor and the orchestra will perform for you and in it, they will make the music entertaining and accessible. No matter what kind of music performance you attend, the way in which the audience listens is every bit as important as how the musicians perform. Each individual listener’s imagination and energy contribute to bringing the music to life! These materials will help you prepare for the Young Person’s Concert at the Forum on Friday, May 16, 2014. You might want to create a special “Learning about the Orchestra” space in your classroom to display activities you complete from this booklet, or for any other materials related to the orchestra. Remember, the Harrisburg Symphony is your symphony and we want the music and what you learn from it to be part of your classroom experience before and after the concert!
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Percussion Concerto Jennifer Higdon
At the Young Person’s Concert, you will hear Jennifer Higdon’s Percussion Concerto. Like a symphony, a concerto is divided into sections. A concerto is usually divided into three movements and the form of concertos is fast-slowfast. A concerto in general showcases a particular instrument. The HSO’s principal percussionist, Chris Rose, will be featured as the soloist. Chris will be playing an elaborate part in all three movements as he is accompanied by the rest of the orchestra. Higdon wrote Percussion Concerto in 2005, and in 2010, the piece won a Grammy for the Best Contemporary Classical Composition.
THE ROLE OF THE DRUM AMONG ITS FELLOW ORCHESTRAL INSTRUMENTS Many people, including musicians, think of the drummer’s primary job as just providing a solid beat and rhythm. A drummer’s job is no more involved with rhythm or beat than anyone else in the ensemble. Since the modern drum set is capable of producing unlimited tonal, melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic shading, there is no reason why a drummer cannot be every bit the equal of any other musician in adding a unique voice to music (although there are some types of music that call for “keeping the beat.”) Anthropologists and historians repeatedly speculate that percussion instruments were the first musical apparatus that ever came into being. But with the utmost certainty, the human voice was the first musical instrument, and surely, percussion tools such as feet, hands, rocks, sticks and logs came in second to the on-going evolution of music. When humans developed tools for hunting and agriculture, their knowledge along side with skill, enabled them to produce more complex tools. They used slit drum, made from a hollowed-out tree trunk. A simple log may have been shaped to generate louder tones (log drum) and may have been pooled to create numerous tones (set of log drums). As time moved on, so is the evolution of percussion instruments. In the early 10th century, it was known that most tribes in Africa use sorts of percussions such as djembe, maracas used in Latin America, karimbas in Asia and seed rattles in Australia for their recreational and worship rituals and sometimes used in sending signals. Percussion instruments that are displayed in orchestra first came from Asia Minor. In the 15th century, people began migrating east and brought with them numerous instruments. Our percussion instruments got their initial stages there, when the Crusades took back the drums that they found in the Middle East. From then on, evolution of percussion and drums kicked up a notch and assortments of percussion instruments came into being.
Djembe
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A HISTORY OF PERCUSSION INSTRUMENTS The drum set is unique among musical instruments. Its individual parts originated from all over the world over thousands of years. Percussion and drums can be defined broadly as instruments that must be struck with a mallet or shaken to produce a sound. The surfaces can be made of animal hide, wood, metal, or really anything that produces sound. The mallet or beater which is used to produce the sound can be pretty much anything including a human hand. Drums include a variety of instruments that make similar sounds to a piano; such as a xylophone, marimba, glockenspiel, etc. Percussion instruments that must be shaken are mostly made up of contained beads or metal. The most famous percussion instrument, the snare, also has beads with adjustable tension along with metal disks for additional sound. All of these instruments go back thousands of years to around 6000 B.C., and it is believed that percussion instruments were the first musical instruments ever invented. Ancient Africans used drums as a form of communication, to send signals. When drums were first invented, they were made out of natural materials such as animal hides. Since drum sticks were not around then, people would simply use their hands. From there onward drums have evolved by the people and cultures that made them and the styles of music they were designed to play. Today, advancements are still being made in what was once a very simple instrument.
Timeline of Drums and Percussion Throughout the Different Eras of Music Early snare drum from the 1600’s The Middle Ages 1475 - consisted of bells, jingles, long drums, nakers, side drums, tabors, tambours and timpani - many of today’s percussion instrument’s roots can be traced back to this era - drums were played for the king and his guests quite often while also being accompanied by other musicians - drums were also played at weddings, festivals, social events, and in times of despair [as inspiration] The Renaissance 1600 - consisted of tabors, timbrels, long drums, jingle bells, snare, and monk bells - although many of the percussion instruments were the same as the Middle Ages, they were highly improved - people came up with new ways to use drums, for the first time drums were used in the military and during battles - during performances drums were mostly played along with the accompaniment of a singer and dancers The Classical Period 1820 - percussion consisted of kettle drum, vibraphone, snare, gong, whip, triangle, marimba, and tambourine - during this period orchestral music and symphonic bands had completely taken over music - in orchestras cymbals and bass were added to give songs more excitement and energy - in most orchestras the snare was the main percussion instrument The Twentieth Century/ Modern 2000 - bands that used a drummer now only needed one instead of four or more - music was no longer limited to concerts, opera-houses, clubs, and domestic music making - technological advances led to new styles of music such as techno, rap, pop, etc. [electronic instruments] - recording music made distributing it to the public easier and much faster
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The roots of the bass drum were first seen in Africa, Nicaragua, Honduras, and Guatemala. The smaller drums were known as primero and the larger bass drum known as segunda. The bass drum as we know it made its way through Turkey and Europe in the form of davul, which was viewed as the European version of the Arabic tabl. The heads of these drums were made from various animal skins and produced sound when the player struck the head with a stick in each hand. By the 19th century the drum had grown in size and was mounted on a frame at a horizontal angle. The bass drum was not the only percussion instrument that traveled to Europe. Its accompaniment was a pair of drums called nakers which came from the Arabic naqqara. These instruments were very similar to Persian and Arabic kettle A Segunda (bass drum) drums, except in Europe the drum was suspended from the player’s belt. In the 15th century, Swiss soldiers marched to the beat of a fife, which was hung on the drummer’s side at a 45-degree angle and was played in traditional grip. At this time the snare had moved to the resonant head, and for the time multi-stroke techniques such as flams, ruffs, and drags were used. The tom-tom of the modern drum kit is a descendant of eastern Asian drums. Many of China’s drums were barrel shaped, ranging from small sizes to six feet in diameter. The types of drums in China had a painted and decorated shell and had two heads that were also decorated on the top and bottom of the drum, which were nailed in so no tuning was necessary. Later in the 20th century these drums made it to America and were first put in with early trap kits. In 1930, for the first time, tomNakers toms were made with tunable bottom and top heads. The most common configuration of these drums was a four piece setup, which included a snare, a bass drum, a mounted tom and then a floor tom. The final element to find its home on the modern drum set was the hi-hat, since cymbals were already part of the kit. Cymbals were actually first used in the Ottoman Empire for daily rituals and ceremonies. Almost 300 years later the hi-hat came to mind since the bass drum had already evolved to be played with a drummer’s foot. Drummers wanted to be able to use all four limbs, and now that their left occupied the hi-hat stand, they had accomplished what they wanted. Other types of cymbals were put on stands behind the rest of the kit and raised so they could easily be played. Once the hi-hat was added, the modern drum set was born. Source: http://historyofdrumsandpercussion.weebly.com/index.html
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Meet the Composer! Pulitzer-prize winner Jennifer Higdon (shown to the right) was a relative late comer to music, teaching herself to play flute at the age of 15 and then beginning formal music studies at 18, she began composing music at the age of 21. Despite this relatively late start, Higdon has become a major figure in contemporary classical music and makes her living from commissions, completing between 5-10 new works each year. Higdon has been commissioned by the likes of the Cleveland and Philadelphia Orchestras; eighth blackbird, a Chicago-based contemporary music sextet; The Tokyo String Quartet; “The President’s Own” Marine Band; and world renowned violinist, Hilary Hahn. Higdon received the 2010 Pulitzer Prize in Music for her Violin Concerto, with the committee citing Higdon’s work as a “deeply engaging piece that combines flowing lyricism with dazzling virtuosity.” She has also received awards from the Serge Koussevitzky Foundation, the Guggenheim Foundation, the American Academy of Arts & Letters (two awards), the Pew Fellowship in the Arts, Meet-the-Composer, the National Endowment for the Arts, and ASCAP. She holds the Rock Chair in Composition at The Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.
Meet the Soloist! Christopher Rose has been the principal percussionist with the Harrisburg Symphony since February of 1998. He is also a member of “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band in Washington, DC. He has been a percussionist with the band since 1997 and has held the title of assistant principal percussionist since 2001. He currently holds the rank of Master Sergeant. Rose has gained extensive experience as a soloist, to include Concerto for Four Percussionists by William Kraft, Déjà vu by Michael Colgrass and Converging Worlds by Jonathan Leshnoff. He was most recently featured as soloist on William Childs’ Concerto for Percussion and Concert Band. Rose graduated Magna Cum Laude with his Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees in percussion performance from the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University in Houston, Texas.
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Percussion Page There are hundreds of percussion instruments around the world! They are all unique and are played in different ways. Sometimes they are played with sticks or sometimes they are played with mallets. A lot are played with your hands! Timpani drums are played with a soft mallet but are unique because they are pitched. During the performance of Percussion Concerto, see if you can recognize and count all of the instruments that Mr. Rose plays!
What is on A Drum kit? Have you ever seen a drum set and wondered why there are so many different drums and cymbals on it? It may even have some hand percussion attached to it like a tambourine or a triangle. The following is a list of drums and cymbals that are usually on a basic drum set and describes where they are usually placed for a right-handed drummer. A snare drum is mounted on its own stand, placed between the player’s knees and has snare –wires underneath it, which gives it the “pop” sound. A bass drum is a large, low-pitched drum that faces the audience. The drummer stomps on a pedal which has a mallet attached so that they can play the bass drum. Tom-toms – tom-toms are the several additional drums mounted above the bass drum. These additional drums have higher and lower pitches and are named by them, high-tom, mid-tom, and low-tom. The low-tom is also called the floor tom because it has it’s own stand to the right of the bass drum. The ride cymbal is usually on the right side. It produces a distinct sound for the drummer to keep a constant rhythm. Similarly, the hi-hat is a set of closed cymbals that is played with the drummers left foot by stomping on the hi-hat pedal. The hi-hat’s role is to keep a constant rhythm but is quieter than the ride cymbal. Lastly, crash cymbals are placed around the drum kit wherever the drummer prefers. They are loud and are made to accent strong beats.
Making Music with Mallets… There are mallet percussion instruments that play definite notes and which resemble the piano. They have an important role in the percussion section! The differences of the instruments are mostly what they are made of and how they sound like. A Xylophone is made out of rosewood or synthetic material. It has a bright, loud, piercing sound and is often used in orchestral music. The marimba is more of a solo instrument because it is made out of wood and has a much softer resonance. Lastly, a vibraphone has a resonator, or vibrator effect pedal, and a damper so playing a vibraphone is a lot different.
Xylophone
Marimba 7
Vibraphone
Percussion Families There are so many types of percussion instruments that they are grouped into families to make it easier to describe them. Drums Drums include a wide variety of percussion instruments that are played with drum sticks or with your hands. All of the drums on a drum kit or in a marching band are played with drum sticks. Cymbals The cymbals that hover over drum kits are played with drum sticks. Other cymbals include the suspended cymbal which are played with threaded beaters to sustain the sound, orchestral crash cymbals that are played by banging them together, the gong, a big loud cymbal played with a big threaded mallet. Timpani Timpani drums are tuned and accompany an orchestra. They are played with threaded mallets to ring out a definite pitch. Mallet Percussion The mallet percussion family includes the xylophone, marimba, vibraphone, glockenspiel and tubular bells. Hand Percussion This includes all shakers and instruments that are struck with a beater, or with your bare hands like the triangle, tambourine or cowbells. African drums are also usually considered hand percussion. Shakers Shaker percussion instruments includes maracas, egg shakers, rain sticks, and many various types of studio shakers. Yourself!! Clapping your hands and stomping your feet are actions considered as body percussion. Sometimes whistling and blowing in whistles are actions that percussion sections perform.
Percussion with Cups! There are games that are fun to play because of the noises and sounds that are made with cups! See if you can get a group to play these games. The Cup Game / Beat - How To Play - “Cups” Song from Pitch Perfect https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Grb1oa72kmk “The Irish Cup Game” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-52PJKy3hV4
Want to make your own drum? There are lots of ways you can make your own percussion instruments. Here’s an easy and fun way to make some drums that are pitched differently. What makes a drum pitch higher? Or lower? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-COHNyFTOnc 8
E M O C L WE o the t so h
Concert Etiquette counts
How to be a good audience member! Etiquette is a big word for “manners.” Everyone has a certain set of “manners” to follow. The musicians on the stage have a certain set of rules they follow, even down to their clothing so that they all look as if they are part of one large instrument – the orchestra! Rules are made to make everything exciting so that there are no problems or interruptions. It is important that the audience members remain quiet during the performance.
Before you take your seat: 1. Take care of all rest room needs. 2. Leave all food, drink and gum outside of the concert hall. 3. Leave all cameras and recording devices outside of the concert hall as well. There are strict copyright guidelines about recording concerts, the symphony pays an annual licensing fee to be able to perform the copyrighted music. 4. Turn off all cell phones, pagers and watch sounds, alarms, or anything that might make a noise. The only sounds that should be heard are the ones that appear in the musical score (and the audience reaction after the music). 9
Once you take your seat: 1. Think about the things you learned at school (or home) before the concert. 2. Show appreciation by applauding when the concertmaster enters to tune the orchestra, and applaud again when the conductor enters the stage. 3. Watch the conductor carefully to see the cues he gives the orchestra to get them to play the music. 4. Remain seated quietly while the musicians are playing. Be sure to sit without fidgeting or kicking the chairs in front of you so you don’t distract your neighbors or the performers on stage. Sometimes the conductor may ask you to participate by clapping along or singing along. Participating is a big part of what makes YPCs fun! 5. Show your appreciation by applauding at the end of the compositions. If you really enjoyed a particular musical selection, you can stand up and applaud.
have you ever seen a chorus perform a song about what to do when you go to a concert? Watch this! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RxxjE4oas8
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