Solomon-Hitchhiker Etudes-SD

This book contains eighteen snare drum etudes that hitchhike along with other pieces of music. Each etude follows an excerpt of a different orchestral, chamber, solo, or recorded work—beat-by-beat, measure-by-measure—so drummers who come along for the ride can easily steal musical ideas to enhance their snare drum performances.

I have always drawn from my musical imagination to color and shape my performances. In my mind, Delécluse, Peters, and Pratt etudes have imaginary melody, harmony, and full orchestrations. This gives me a vast palette of colors, shapes, and articulations to try to model in my playing. These Hitchhiker Etudes explicitly explore this idea to make it easy for any performer hear more richly and perform more musically.

The first nine etudes are of a level similar to Mitchell Peters’s Intermediate Studies for Snare Drum or Anthony Cirone’s Portraits in Rhythm. The final nine etudes are of a level similar to Jacques Delecluse’s Twelve Etudes for Snare Drum.

- Samuel Solomon

• Number of players: 1
• Difficulty: Intermediate
• Instrumentation: Snare drum