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The term “duende” has supernatural connotations. In the world of flamenco dancing, it is used to describe a state of extreme inspiration that takes over a dancer. Francisco Perez has captured this feeling in his ensemble piece Duende, which is a tribute to a performance of flamenco dancing he witnessed during the summer of 2013 in Madrid. In it, he fuses different musical idioms such as Afro-Cuban grooves, flamenco, and a bit of the 1980’s music of Steve Reich. This piece requires intense dedication from the performers, who are expected to play each note “with tribal vigor” and relentless energy.
This piece was commissioned by Dr. Andrew Eldridge and the University of Texas at Arlington Percussion Ensemble and premiered in November 2017.
Use of this product is governed by the license terms outlined here.
• Crotales (complete low octave + 1 high F#)
• Glockenspiel
• 2 vibraphones
• 4 marimbas—(2) low A, (2) low C*
• Cajon
• Sizzle cymbal
*Also playable on (2) low A, (1) low F, and (1) low C
“Duende” is not for the faint of heart. This piece requires seven talented percussionists to be on the same page when it comes to balance, groove, and rhythmic accuracy for six minutes of unrelenting high energy. A successful performance provides both the audience and performers an incredibly electrifying experience, perfect for a concert closer to bring the house down.
The piece follows a standard mallet quartet setup with an additional three players (the score provides an option to play one of the 5-octave marimba parts on a low-F instrument with some low notes omitted). The cajon player, who also plays glockenspiel as well as a marimba in the beginning, is a featured solo voice for much of the second half of the piece, serving to enhance the rhythmic groove underneath while also providing a surge of energy along with additional timbral opportunities.
The piece is composed in an additive style, with a contrasting middle section led by the cajon soloist and the low marimbas. The introduction and ending sections are developed out of a repeating rhythmic figure that permeates the work, leading various voices to play against it, including low marimba patterns, serving to create different senses of tempi against the beat as well as vibraphone and marimba melodies that soar above the lattice of sixteenth notes underneath. Perez is a master at creating multiple layers of tempi that combine in exciting moments of climax, methodically placed throughout the work to create emotional impacts that relax into new ideas or build even further to bigger moments.
Francisco Perez is establishing himself as a compositional force in the percussion community with his unique voice of intense grooves juxtaposed against intentionally misleading metric subdivisions, and “Duende” continues the pattern as another installment in the Perez catalogue of excellent ensemble works. If your upper-level ensembles are up to the challenge, “Duende” is the next piece you need to play.
—Matthew Geiger
Percussive Notes
Vol. 56, No. 2, May 2018
The term “duende” has supernatural connotations. In the world of flamenco dancing, it is used to describe a state of extreme inspiration that takes over a dancer. Francisco Perez has captured this feeling in his ensemble piece Duende, which is a tribute to a performance of flamenco dancing he witnessed during the summer of 2013 in Madrid. In it, he fuses different musical idioms such as Afro-Cuban grooves, flamenco, and a bit of the 1980’s music of Steve Reich. This piece requires intense dedication from the performers, who are expected to play each note “with tribal vigor” and relentless energy.
This piece was commissioned by Dr. Andrew Eldridge and the University of Texas at Arlington Percussion Ensemble and premiered in November 2017.
Use of this product is governed by the license terms outlined here.
• Crotales (complete low octave + 1 high F#)
• Glockenspiel
• 2 vibraphones
• 4 marimbas—(2) low A, (2) low C*
• Cajon
• Sizzle cymbal
*Also playable on (2) low A, (1) low F, and (1) low C
“Duende” is not for the faint of heart. This piece requires seven talented percussionists to be on the same page when it comes to balance, groove, and rhythmic accuracy for six minutes of unrelenting high energy. A successful performance provides both the audience and performers an incredibly electrifying experience, perfect for a concert closer to bring the house down.
The piece follows a standard mallet quartet setup with an additional three players (the score provides an option to play one of the 5-octave marimba parts on a low-F instrument with some low notes omitted). The cajon player, who also plays glockenspiel as well as a marimba in the beginning, is a featured solo voice for much of the second half of the piece, serving to enhance the rhythmic groove underneath while also providing a surge of energy along with additional timbral opportunities.
The piece is composed in an additive style, with a contrasting middle section led by the cajon soloist and the low marimbas. The introduction and ending sections are developed out of a repeating rhythmic figure that permeates the work, leading various voices to play against it, including low marimba patterns, serving to create different senses of tempi against the beat as well as vibraphone and marimba melodies that soar above the lattice of sixteenth notes underneath. Perez is a master at creating multiple layers of tempi that combine in exciting moments of climax, methodically placed throughout the work to create emotional impacts that relax into new ideas or build even further to bigger moments.
Francisco Perez is establishing himself as a compositional force in the percussion community with his unique voice of intense grooves juxtaposed against intentionally misleading metric subdivisions, and “Duende” continues the pattern as another installment in the Perez catalogue of excellent ensemble works. If your upper-level ensembles are up to the challenge, “Duende” is the next piece you need to play.
—Matthew Geiger
Percussive Notes
Vol. 56, No. 2, May 2018
