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Inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic book Treasure Island, John Herndon brings us Mutiny! — a seaworthy tale of adventure for young percussionists.
Mutiny! is equal parts drum and keyboard-driven, scored so that the twelve players remain active throughout. Set to a moderate tempo, Herndon employs eighth-note triplets and occasional quarter-note triplets to conjure the iconic seagoing feel, making the work a solid study on these rhythms in a fun context. And at right around three minutes in length, the piece will make for an exciting closer in your next concert.
Mutiny! ships as a fully bound score and includes individual parts in PDF format for either printing or tablet viewing.
Glockenspiel
Vibraphone
Chimes
Xylophone
2 Marimbas — (1) 4-octave, (1) low A (or may share one marimba)
4 Timpani
Drums — concert bass drum, 4 concert toms, snare drum
Cymbals and gongs — China cymbal, crash cymbals, splash cymbal (optional), suspended cymbal
Accessories — mark tree, sleigh Bells, triangle
Unabashedly embracing pirate-related musical tropes in the name of creating an entertaining work in the spirit of the Robert Louis Stevenson classic Treasure Island that inspired the piece, “Mutiny!” is a roughly three-minute work that will have audiences humming the tune.
Scored for large percussion ensemble, John Herndon does a great job of varying orchestration throughout the piece as well as shifting the focus between the mallets and percussion. Also well-handled is the pacing of the work; from driving mallet sections and powerful percussion-driven areas to ethereal moments with swelling dynamic gestures, this piece has a good amount of variety throughout. One other area of credit is the percussion parts, which are all well written and interesting but also supportive of the mallet ensemble. None of the percussion parts are ever overbearing or feel as though they were added just to give a player something to play.
All mallet parts will require only two-mallet technique, and all parts are very idiomatically written. The biggest technical challenge is achieving the written dynamic range and shapes written, but this is by no means difficult to achieve. The timpanist will have to deal with some tuning changes, but ample time is given for them to be made, and they are all clearly notated. The timpanist will also need to execute some glissandi that move from one pitch to a second specified pitch.
“Mutiny!” is a fun-filled work that will be enjoyed by performers and audience members alike. This piece would work well on any middle or high school percussion ensemble program and will be a great vehicle for the musical development of students as well as the entertainment of their audiences.
—Brian Nozny
Percussive Notes
Vol. 62, No. 2, April 2024
Inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic book Treasure Island, John Herndon brings us Mutiny! — a seaworthy tale of adventure for young percussionists.
Mutiny! is equal parts drum and keyboard-driven, scored so that the twelve players remain active throughout. Set to a moderate tempo, Herndon employs eighth-note triplets and occasional quarter-note triplets to conjure the iconic seagoing feel, making the work a solid study on these rhythms in a fun context. And at right around three minutes in length, the piece will make for an exciting closer in your next concert.
Mutiny! ships as a fully bound score and includes individual parts in PDF format for either printing or tablet viewing.
Glockenspiel
Vibraphone
Chimes
Xylophone
2 Marimbas — (1) 4-octave, (1) low A (or may share one marimba)
4 Timpani
Drums — concert bass drum, 4 concert toms, snare drum
Cymbals and gongs — China cymbal, crash cymbals, splash cymbal (optional), suspended cymbal
Accessories — mark tree, sleigh Bells, triangle
Unabashedly embracing pirate-related musical tropes in the name of creating an entertaining work in the spirit of the Robert Louis Stevenson classic Treasure Island that inspired the piece, “Mutiny!” is a roughly three-minute work that will have audiences humming the tune.
Scored for large percussion ensemble, John Herndon does a great job of varying orchestration throughout the piece as well as shifting the focus between the mallets and percussion. Also well-handled is the pacing of the work; from driving mallet sections and powerful percussion-driven areas to ethereal moments with swelling dynamic gestures, this piece has a good amount of variety throughout. One other area of credit is the percussion parts, which are all well written and interesting but also supportive of the mallet ensemble. None of the percussion parts are ever overbearing or feel as though they were added just to give a player something to play.
All mallet parts will require only two-mallet technique, and all parts are very idiomatically written. The biggest technical challenge is achieving the written dynamic range and shapes written, but this is by no means difficult to achieve. The timpanist will have to deal with some tuning changes, but ample time is given for them to be made, and they are all clearly notated. The timpanist will also need to execute some glissandi that move from one pitch to a second specified pitch.
“Mutiny!” is a fun-filled work that will be enjoyed by performers and audience members alike. This piece would work well on any middle or high school percussion ensemble program and will be a great vehicle for the musical development of students as well as the entertainment of their audiences.
—Brian Nozny
Percussive Notes
Vol. 62, No. 2, April 2024
