Gottry-Small Box (SP)-2-4M

J.S. Bach is quite possibly the greatest composer in the history of music. His chorales are studied by first year music majors as a model for four-part writing. His works have been frequently transcribed and performed by percussionists looking to extend the history of our literature. Conversely, mimimalism only recently became formalized in the mid-1900s but immediately had a willing foothold in the field of percussion. Its rhythmically driven melodic and harmonic fragments can be sustained without break on percussion instruments, and the syncopated figures and complex time signatures are ideal for study and performance by percussionists. Small Box, quite simply, is a combination of these two historically and musically significant elements into a short, but challenging, marimba quartet. Every harmonic and melodic element was derived from the chorale, Jesu, wahres Brot des Lebens from Bach's Cantata, Schmuke dich, o liebe Seele (BWV 180) including the initial statement of the chorale in its original form. This work is rhythmically demanding, melodically and harmonically intriguing, and extremely interesting and enjoyable for any audience.

Number of Players: 4
Level of Difficulty: Grade 4
Instrumentation:

Player I:Marimba

Player II:Marimba

Player III:Marimba

Player IV:Marimba

Josh Gottry's (b. 1974) first composition, Irrelevant for solo marimba, earned him an ASCAP Young Composer Competition grant in 1995. Since that time, he has been selected for seven ASCAP Plus awards and has created over thirty published works that have been performed extensively at universities, junior high and high schools, and multiple national conferences. Mr. Gottry earned his BM in Percussion Performance at Northern Arizona University and his MM in Composition at Arizona State University. He is currently an adjunct professor of music at Chandler-Gilbert Community College, teaching percussion and composition as well as courses in music history and theory. Additionally, he maintains a private percussion studio and performs regularly throughout Arizona as a soloist and participant in various local ensembles.

Mr. Gottry is a member of the Percussive Arts Society (PAS) and the American Society of Composers, Authors, & Publishers (ASCAP). He is a clinician for Mike Balter Mallets, Pro-Mark Sticks, and Yamaha Percussion. Mr. Gottry served six terms as the Vice President for the Arizona State Chapter of PAS and is currently a member of the PAS Education and Composition Committees. He has been published several times in Percussive Notes and presented a keyboard percussion clinic at PASIC 2007.