Larger Percussion Ensemble Music

John Herndon's Begin Transmission is an exciting work for percussion ensemble designed for students with about one year of experience. The mallet parts primarily feature step-wise motion and lay

Face off against the strongest opponent - dramatically inspired by the final levels of older video games, this piece is great for developing players to portray action and excitement!

On Thin Air depicts what it might feel like to fly. The music evokes images of gliding, breathtaking views, and soaring high above the clouds. It is meant to evoke a sense of freedom, hopefulness,

Composed for young or intermediate ensembles, this piece can stand alone as a percussion octet, or it has the option of being played with a full wind ensemble.  While certain parts are more challenging

At the core of Escape Artist is a funky groove. From this groove, younger students will have the opportunity to hone their timing skills along with rhythmic accuracy playing the four most common

HeliX was written with the intent of focusing on the first few learned techniques of four-mallet keyboard playing. To that end, a fair amount of four-mallet playing occurs throughout the piece, but

Some of the ocean's most mysterious and elusive creatures possess the flexible appendages known as tenticles. Written for 6 to 10 beginning percussionists, Tentacles depicts these creatures. John

Scuttlebutt utilizes fairly basic instrumentation found in most band rooms. It relies heavily on a half-time snare backbeat while exploring various syncopated rhythms and triplet figures in the

Meaning "Thus always dragons" in Latin, Sic Semper Draconis was inspired by fairy tales and fantasy novels. It moves through many different moods and textures to depict an epic tale of dragon

Carol of the Bells, originally written by Ukranian composer Mykola Leontovych, is one of the most famous pieces of holiday music in existence and was consequently the most famous piece he composed.

Toboggan is a magical work for young percussionists depicting a short, fast ride on a small sled. The piece starts by capturing the excitement of finding new-fallen snow. The descent swishes and

Crazy Dance is a fun and crowd-pleasing piece, geared toward younger players. The overall feel of the piece resembles circus march with a catchy melody and simple harmonic structure. The mallet

Avalanche Lake was inspired by views of the forest, mountains, and waterfalls that surround and lie within Glacier National Park. The piece features a standard array of percussion instruments which

This is a large percussion ensemble piece that requires a strong sense of groove. Due to the rhythmic variety within individual parts, players must be aware of how their rhythms fit into their fellow

The title of this piece is taken from the famous lyric, "like a diamond in the sky" from the children's song Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. The use of metallic instruments throughout conjures the

Originally written as a set of duets, these three scenes have been adapted with optional parts for up to five players.

Standard Candles by John Herndon is a programmatic ensemble work inspired by a unique type of star. Cepheid variables are stars that illuminate and dim at a regular, known interval. This means they

In Disguised, things are definitely not what they seem! The players manipulate their own instruments in order to create new and interesting sounds. The marimba players, for example, use mutes over

An upbeat and catchy work to introduce middle school players to mallet runs and drumset playing. The piece is made up of simple rhythms and melodies, but the tempo is quick and will push the technical

John Willmarth’s Rhythm Rocket is a great piece for beginning percussion performers. It comes with two versions, short and long. Both versions are accompanied by funky and fun play-along