Gottry-Soca-ing Wet (SP)-B/opt. V/opt. X/2M/2T/P

A happy soca written in D major and utilizing many common 8th-note based cut-time rhythms and cross-accents, Josh Gottry's Soca-ing Wet features an easy to hear melody and solo sections for the percussionists. This ensemble was performed by the VanderCook College Percussion Ensemble in a Middle School Percussion Ensemble Reading Session at the Midwest Band Directors Convention in 2002 and is part of the Edge series from C. Alan Publications. This is an exciting and accessible work for early high school or advanced junior high ensembles.

A Soca is a song and dance genre directly related to Calypso. Singer Lord Shorty's 'Soul Calypso' (abbreviated to 'So-Ca') described the sound which mixed elements of soul and disco drum features with funk, mid-tempo ska and traditional calypso.

Number of Players: 7
Difficulty: Grade 3
Instrumentation:

Player I: Marimba (sub xylophone)

Player II: Bells (sub vibraphone)

Player III: 5 Temple Blocks

Player IV: Bongos

Player V: Congas

Player VI: Snare Drum

Player VII: 2 Timpani

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.