little smiling figments (2024) percussion quartet · 5 minutes · intermediate
little smiling figments was commissioned by Matchstick Percussion for their Strike Anywhere Initiative and was premiered on January 13th, 2025 at Rhizome DC in Washington, DC.
You will be emailed a PDF file of the score within 24 hours of your purchase, which can be printed from any computer.
- Each performer has one flowerpot or other resonant bowl-shaped object.
- Ideally, the collection of pitches from all four flowerpots should sound consonant and peaceful.
- If this is performed at a venue that doesn’t have solid flooring (such as outside), plywood can be placed on the floor, as a solid surface to stomp on.
- This piece was written with accessibility in mind. If you or your students cannot practice normal percussion instruments at home (due to to lack of instruments or from living in an apartment), this piece can be practiced with an ordinary flowerpot and tapping the side of the flowerpot with your hands.
When I was younger, I used to hide small plastic toys throughout my potted plants, as if they were little characters exploring a jungle. As I grow older, I find that, as “professional performers”, we still do this, but with trinkets or silly ideas in our percussion setups—from floating ducks hidden in water bins to doodles of birds strewn across drum sets and stuffed octopi hiding on cymbal stands.
It’s nice. I’m happy that the percussion space welcomes these moments of levity and imagination. This piece draws upon those experiences.
Musically, little smiling figments draws upon the Japanese asalato freestyle subculture, uses of body percussion in pop music, marching percussion showcases (such as marching snare ensembles or marching bass ensembles), and the contemporary percussion repertoire.