Beat that Drum / Mambo Jambo: each
Composer: Tuck Kevin
Two Short Cadences which can be played together
These Cadences are written for:
- Snare Drums
- Trio Tenor Drums (can be adapted to quads)
- Two Bass Drums (can be rearranged if you have more
“Beat That Drum” opens with a vocal count in, and then a four bar phrase, which is ideal for some simple movements. It can be memorised easily for a Street March or a Stage Performance.
There is a feature section for each instrument in the group, so if in a Stage Performance the Snare Line can come to the front, then the Tenors and Basses in turn. There is a two bar break betweeen solos to allow the other section to come to the front. Have a look and listen to this Snare feature section, which includes some backsticking (p.s I didn’t know how to notate backsticking correctly, so I wrote them as square notes – the students understood it clearly so I left it!)
What I found when developing these pieces that the most important thing was Flexibility. Students in the ensemble needed to learn that they sometimes had to repeat pieces, sometimes had to extend pieces, and their repertoire had to be able to fit into exacting performance requirements. As you can see in the next example, the end of “Beat that Drum” can finish if required, or flows seamlessly into “Mambo Jambo” with just the vocal chant to signal the change – The choice is yours!
Being a Mambo, the second piece in this set has the opportunity for added Cowbells and extra effects, if you have the hardware. My little Aussie group didn’t have the extras, so they played the Mambo on the rims. There are some unison sections, some feature sections, and a build up towards the end.