Boccherini-Clockbox arr. Slawson (SP)-B/V/C/X/3M/P

Arranged by Brian Slawson, Clockbox is a medium-easy percussion octet for young performers drawn from the second movement (”Andantino”) of Luigi Boccherini’s Symphony No. 1 in D, Op.12. Clockbox features very basic rhythms and phrasing structures but challenges players with various accidentals throughout and overall musical structure. The piece begins in the key of D harmonic minor, where many of the accidentals in the piece are found. Later the key changes to the relative major (F major), which could be a good introduction to the topic of relative keys. At the end of the F major section, a first ending is present directing players back to the beginning to perform the short work once more. This is a quick piece to put together while providing students with an educational musical experience.

Clockbox ships as a printed, professionally bound score and includes individual parts in PDF format for printing or tablet viewing.

Additional Information:

• Number of players: 8
• Difficulty: Elementary/intermediate
• Instrumentation:
  • Player 1: Chimes
  • Player 2: Glockenspiel
  • Player 3: Vibraphone
  • Player 4: Xylophone
  • Player 5: Marimba 1 (4.3 octave, shared w/Player 7)
  • Player 6: Marimba 2 (4 octave)
  • Player 7: Marimba 3 (4.3 octave, shared w/Player 5)
  • Player 8: 2 temple blocks, or 2 med/low woodblocks