Cart is empty
Sean Womack’s medium-easy percussion ensemble arrangement of Patapan, a tradtional French carol, is a dark and contemplative piece, perfect for any holiday-themed concert. Written in cut-time, this piece features many layers and textures with an assortment of percussion instruments that can be found in almost any bandroom. Patapan is perfectly suited for an intermediate middle school or beginning high school percussion ensemble.
This piece comes as a professionally printed and bound score and includes individual parts in PDF format for printing or for tablet viewing.
• Glockenspiel
• Chimes
• Vibraphone
• 2 marimbas—(1) 4-octave, (1) low A*
• 3 timpani
• Drums (snare drum or tom, concert bass drum)
• Accessories (tambourine, triangle)
*If two marimbas aren’t available, M1 & M2 can share a 4.3-octave (low A) instrument.
Notwithstanding the “unprecedented-ness” of the year 2020, most music educators typically circle mid-November as the beginning of their holiday concert season. Fortunately, there is a growing body of percussion ensemble repertoire that will suit their needs, and Sean Womack’s arrangement of “Patapan” is a fine new addition. The arrangement is short, at just two minutes in length, which is to be expected from most any arrangement of a Christmas carol. However, middle school directors will find plenty of educational value despite its brevity, and it should also be a pleasant change of pace for young percussionists who have only recently begun to grudgingly accept the interminable counting of rests in band or orchestra class.
Some of the parts in “Patapan” may be suitable for beginning percussionists, while others (specifically the four active keyboard parts and the snare drum part) will likely require someone at the seventh- or eighth-grade level. In particular, a strong keyboard player will be needed to carry the melody as a glockenspiel soloist towards the beginning. One of the more interesting aspects of this arrangement is that it gently scratches the surface of counterpoint, which will allow educators to spend some quality class time reinforcing concepts such as subdividing and listening across the ensemble. I expect that a considerable amount of time may also be dedicated to achieving proper balance; the young percussionists playing bass drum, snare drum, timpani, and tambourine will need to follow the written dynamics carefully so as not to overpower the pitched instruments.
While directors may need to wait a while until the next holiday concert rolls around, I am very happy to recommend this piece to any middle school educator looking for a valuable teaching opportunity, or any high school educator looking for an easy, low-stress Christmas project. Students will enjoy the challenge, and teachers will enjoy a break from the tedium of everyone playing unison parts on the bell kit.
—Brian Graiser
Percussive Notes
Vol. 59, No. 1, February 2021
Sean Womack’s medium-easy percussion ensemble arrangement of Patapan, a tradtional French carol, is a dark and contemplative piece, perfect for any holiday-themed concert. Written in cut-time, this piece features many layers and textures with an assortment of percussion instruments that can be found in almost any bandroom. Patapan is perfectly suited for an intermediate middle school or beginning high school percussion ensemble.
This piece comes as a professionally printed and bound score and includes individual parts in PDF format for printing or for tablet viewing.
• Glockenspiel
• Chimes
• Vibraphone
• 2 marimbas—(1) 4-octave, (1) low A*
• 3 timpani
• Drums (snare drum or tom, concert bass drum)
• Accessories (tambourine, triangle)
*If two marimbas aren’t available, M1 & M2 can share a 4.3-octave (low A) instrument.
Notwithstanding the “unprecedented-ness” of the year 2020, most music educators typically circle mid-November as the beginning of their holiday concert season. Fortunately, there is a growing body of percussion ensemble repertoire that will suit their needs, and Sean Womack’s arrangement of “Patapan” is a fine new addition. The arrangement is short, at just two minutes in length, which is to be expected from most any arrangement of a Christmas carol. However, middle school directors will find plenty of educational value despite its brevity, and it should also be a pleasant change of pace for young percussionists who have only recently begun to grudgingly accept the interminable counting of rests in band or orchestra class.
Some of the parts in “Patapan” may be suitable for beginning percussionists, while others (specifically the four active keyboard parts and the snare drum part) will likely require someone at the seventh- or eighth-grade level. In particular, a strong keyboard player will be needed to carry the melody as a glockenspiel soloist towards the beginning. One of the more interesting aspects of this arrangement is that it gently scratches the surface of counterpoint, which will allow educators to spend some quality class time reinforcing concepts such as subdividing and listening across the ensemble. I expect that a considerable amount of time may also be dedicated to achieving proper balance; the young percussionists playing bass drum, snare drum, timpani, and tambourine will need to follow the written dynamics carefully so as not to overpower the pitched instruments.
While directors may need to wait a while until the next holiday concert rolls around, I am very happy to recommend this piece to any middle school educator looking for a valuable teaching opportunity, or any high school educator looking for an easy, low-stress Christmas project. Students will enjoy the challenge, and teachers will enjoy a break from the tedium of everyone playing unison parts on the bell kit.
—Brian Graiser
Percussive Notes
Vol. 59, No. 1, February 2021
