PACHYDERM
for concert snare drum solo
Publisher: Gottry Publications (2015)
Composed: 2015
Duration: 1′
Difficulty: Medium-Easy
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD

Pachyderm is one of three short pieces originally composed for Rhythm! Scene, a publication of the Percussive Arts Society. It is posted here as a free digital download that includes the music, a link to a video performance by the composer, and program and performance notes directed toward for pre-collegiate students preparing this solo on their own.

Pachyderm opens with a rhythmic motive–short, short, long–that appears throughout the solo and, not coincidentally, is the same rhythm in which the title would be spoken. Set at a moderate tempo in 4/4 time throughout, this solo explores rolls, buzz strokes, accents, dynamics, flams, drags, stick shots, and divisions of the beat into two, three, four, and six. Pachyderm is an excellent introduction into the many facets of sound and rhythm that can be realized in a short concert snare drum solo.