Twitch (Solo Clarinet + Percussion Ensemble)

Instrumentation
Solo B-flat Clarinet
Bells & Xylophone
Vibraphone 1
Vibraphone 2 & Chimes
Marimba 1 (4-octave)*
Marimba 2 (4-octave)*
Marimba 3 (4.3-octave)*
Marimba 4 (5-octave)*
Timpani & Slapstick
Percussion 1 (snare drum, ribbon crasher, bongos, claves)
Percussion 2 (hi-hat, 4 concert toms, suspended cymbal, temple blocks, wind chimes)
Percussion 3 (bass drum**, tam-tam)

*Marimbas 1 & 3 may share a 4.3-octave instrument. Marimbas 2 & 4 may share a 5-octave instrument.

**A kick bass drum laid flat (or multi-bass drum) may be used in place of the concert bass drum whenever it instructs the player to dampen with a towel. A concert bass drum (without dampening) must be used from measure 108 through 129.

Program Notes
Originally written for solo clarinet and wind ensemble, Twitch was commissioned by DC Tour & Travel (Jon Locke, CEO) for the Spring High School Wind Ensemble (Spring, Texas), directed by Gabe Musella, for performance at the 70th Annual Midwest Band & Orchestra Clinic (Chicago, Illinois) with guest clarinet soloist Sasha Potiomkin of the Houston Symphony. The connecting thread for the piece ended up being the percussion section, who behave much like a percussion quintet in the original version, echoing rhythmic motives heard in both the full ensemble and the solo parts. It seemed a perfect opportunity to turn the piece into a work for percussion ensemble. The excitement from beginning to end is palpable. Even in the calmer sections, fast, syncopated motives are thrown around the percussion section to keep the drive alive.