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Royal Quartet (Download)

for keyboard percussion ensemble
Level: Med-Advanced
Duration: 4:15
Personnel: 4 players
State Lists: Missouri | Texas | Florida | Indiana
Release Date: 2022
Product ID : TSPCE22-010DL
Price: $38.00
Item #: TSPCE22-010DL

Formats Available:


Description

Composer Nathan Hawk describes Royal Quartet as "a vehicle for performers to explore emotion and musicality. It takes the players through a melancholic journey, ebbing and flowing subtly to give listeners an intricate soundtrack for their thoughts and feelings."

The piece, scored entirely for mallet instruments, drives forward with an expressive energy. Grooves in 4/4 frequently alternate with 16th note passages in 7/8, leading to an engaging mix of musical ideas. Calmer moments see the vibraphone voices featured in a lyrical fashion, while the "moto perpetuo" of the marimbas provides a wave-like feel. Using every 4-mallet technique in the book, this work provides the opportunity for intermediate-advanced quartets to display a mastery of chamber musicianship skills. A wonderful addition to recitals or contest repertoire!

Use of this product is governed by the license terms outlined here.

Instrumentation

Crotales (low octave)
2 vibraphones
2 marimbas — (1) low E, (1) low A

Reviews

Nathan Hawk’s new mallet quartet is a pleasing intermediate-level work described by the composer as “a vehicle for performers to explore emotion and musicality.” There is certainly a lot of room for musicality, as along with the written dynamics there are opportunities for performers to give the frequent melodic lines a sense of musical direction and shape.

“Royal Quartet” has a tonal minimalist quality to it that will undoubtedly please a large number of listeners and performers. The music follows a standard fast-slow-fast structure, utilizing descriptive words including “contemplative” and “energized” to help set the proper mood.

Each of the parts requires four-mallet facility, with the Vibraphone 2 part being the least “notey,” therefore potentially making it suitable for a slightly less advanced player than the other parts. Each performer needs to be adept at counting in 7/8, with the changing time signatures sounding, according to the composer, “free of mathematical restraint.” Because the groove continues mostly unabated throughout the piece, “Royal Quartet” is an ideal work to perform unconducted.

—Joseph Van Hassel
Percussive Notes
Vol. 60, No. 5, October 2022

Description

Composer Nathan Hawk describes Royal Quartet as "a vehicle for performers to explore emotion and musicality. It takes the players through a melancholic journey, ebbing and flowing subtly to give listeners an intricate soundtrack for their thoughts and feelings."

The piece, scored entirely for mallet instruments, drives forward with an expressive energy. Grooves in 4/4 frequently alternate with 16th note passages in 7/8, leading to an engaging mix of musical ideas. Calmer moments see the vibraphone voices featured in a lyrical fashion, while the "moto perpetuo" of the marimbas provides a wave-like feel. Using every 4-mallet technique in the book, this work provides the opportunity for intermediate-advanced quartets to display a mastery of chamber musicianship skills. A wonderful addition to recitals or contest repertoire!

Use of this product is governed by the license terms outlined here.

Instrumentation

Crotales (low octave)
2 vibraphones
2 marimbas — (1) low E, (1) low A

Reviews

Nathan Hawk’s new mallet quartet is a pleasing intermediate-level work described by the composer as “a vehicle for performers to explore emotion and musicality.” There is certainly a lot of room for musicality, as along with the written dynamics there are opportunities for performers to give the frequent melodic lines a sense of musical direction and shape.

“Royal Quartet” has a tonal minimalist quality to it that will undoubtedly please a large number of listeners and performers. The music follows a standard fast-slow-fast structure, utilizing descriptive words including “contemplative” and “energized” to help set the proper mood.

Each of the parts requires four-mallet facility, with the Vibraphone 2 part being the least “notey,” therefore potentially making it suitable for a slightly less advanced player than the other parts. Each performer needs to be adept at counting in 7/8, with the changing time signatures sounding, according to the composer, “free of mathematical restraint.” Because the groove continues mostly unabated throughout the piece, “Royal Quartet” is an ideal work to perform unconducted.

—Joseph Van Hassel
Percussive Notes
Vol. 60, No. 5, October 2022


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