False Impressions-SAMPLE

DARRIEN SPICAK

False Impressions by Darrien Spicak © 2024 Tapspace Publications, LLC (ASCAP). All rights reserved.

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PROGRAM NOTES

False Impressions is a percussion quartet centered around the concept of ambiguity. This concept is manifested by the feel of the composition not being strictly governed by the information provided in the score. For example, the beginning of the piece is written in 4/4 time with a tempo marking of a quarter note equals 201. While these instructions are explicit in how the performers should read the notation, they do not provide a context for how to perform and feel the music. Meter and hypermeter are purposely left vague, as rhythmic hemiola is always present, with sparse character indications sprinkled throughout to act as an atmospheric guide for the performers. A key ingredient in the piece is the transformation of the interaction between the skin and wood sounds. A majority of this interaction is explored through persistent hocketing among all four parts which culminates in climactic unison phrases. The piece should feel familiar, yet foreign, as one attempts to digest the ever-evolving music.

— Darrien Spicak

PERFORMANCE NOTES

• Possible instruments for player 1’s impact drum include a specifically designed impact drum, a mounted kick drum, a muffled concert bass drum, or even a taiko drum if available. There is no “preferred” instrument. The only important aspect is that whatever instrument is chosen needs to have a rim that is articulate and can be played at loud volumes.

• Player 2 is intended to be set up with the congas closest to the player and the bongos in front of the congas on a high stand. For both the congas and bongos, the high drum should be on the right and the low drum should be on the left.

• The concert toms played by players 3 and 4 are intended to be set up in the same fashion as marching quads. While this is not mandatory, the music was written with this setup in mind and thus will be easier to perform if set up this way.

• The concert toms played by players 3 and 4 do not necessarily have to be tuned to the same pitches, but they should either be the exact same pitches or completely different pitches. The choice is up to the performers.

• It is very important that the woodblocks played by players 3 and 4 have a drastic pitch difference, as their combined parts make up an important melodic component to the piece.

• The unison rhythmic deceleration in m. 118 (players 1, 3, and 4) is not meant to be “clean” but should be as close to rhythmically exact as possible. However, in mm. 120–121, the split entrances of the same figure have been marked with the instruction of “slurred.” The intent is to prevent performers from focusing too much on exact polyrhythms forming from player to player. The unslurred rhythms in this figure should be played precisely.

• At rehearsal D, player 1 is given a solo and the instruction “rubato.” While the player should feel free to lengthen the rests in between each figure, they should try to maintain the overall tempo of a quarter note equals 201 bpm as much as possible. It is very important that the ritardando reaches 134 bpm, as this sets up the return to the opening tempo later in the piece.

PLAYERS AND INSTRUMENTATION

False Impressions requires 4 players with the following instrumentation:

Player 1 — impact drum

Player 2 bongos, 2 congas

Player 3 4 toms, high woodblock

Player 4 4 toms, low woodblock, splash or China cymbal

Mallet Recommendations:

• Player 1 hard mallets: taiko sticks or something similar soft mallets: any sort of soft marimba or felt-covered mallets

• Player 2 — sticks: thin timbale sticks or small-beaded snare drum sticks soft mallets: any sort of soft marimba mallets

• Players 3 and 4 — hard mallets: rubber mallets soft mallets: any sort of soft marimba mallets

NOTATION KEY

SUGGESTED SETUP