To Beginnings & To Beginnings Two

To Beginnings was written with the understanding that its rehearsals would be some of the first interactions between four unacquainted participants of the 2019 Sō Percussion Summer Institute. Preparing for summer festivals is in many ways anxiety-inducing, a feeling that I best quell by focusing on what I consider the most crucial elements of the festival—new relationships, big ideas, and gut-busting revelry. This happens in rehearsals as much of as it does around libations.

The lifecycle of an aluminum can consists of wildly unbalanced timespans. An unceremonious formation and hasty filling leads to weeks or months of waiting, which is followed by a brief period of use. Cans stay in our hands for only a few minutes, but their relationship to us defines neither their beginning nor—as I learned by moving to a state with no bottle deposit—their end.

To Beginnings Two is both an arrangement of and an expansion of To Beginnings, written for percussion quartet instead of trio. Following the same premise as To Beginnings, the materials diverge as the fourth percussionist gains greater and greater influence over the trajectory of the work.

Additional performances:

John Zazo, Daulton Mattingly, & Kyle Brenn @ Princeton Record Exchange, Princeton NJ
students of Lindenwood University under Dr. Sebastian Buhts @ Emerson Blackbox Theater, St. Charles MO

All solo, chamber, and large ensemble works have score, parts, & relevant media available for purchase. Please contact me at nikodschroeder@gmail.com with inquiries. I’m happy to get my music in your hands!

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