Opportunities for a modern percussion ensemble?

lockyhawkins

Junior Member
Hi everyone,

Greetings from Australia! It's great to be back on the forum.

This year I have formed my own percussion quartet. We have started writing our own original pieces (mallets, drumming, body percussion, novelty pieces) and are really committed to creating something different. We are very much influenced by more commercial groups like STOMP.

We are all very committed, but I sometimes worry that this group does not have an audience. Do you have any advice on possible performance opportunities for this kind of group? And perhaps ways we could engage with and ways we can build an audience? In the future, we are interested in:

- Corporate functions
- School workshops
- Showcase concerts
- YouTube covers/arrangements of pop songs
- Collaboration with filmmakers

Gear is also an issue as we are only university students, but I would appreciate any ideas that would make this ensemble truly stand out and make a difference in the community.

Here's a clip so you can see what we're all about - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08eiCg55nYU&feature=plcp

Lachlan
 
My initial thought is try to work your compositions in via the back-door. I'm sure you're familiar with Steve Reich's marimba compositions. Plenty of other modern 'name' composers would have suitable material too. Headline with a program of music like that and then include a few of your own compositions.

Reich has a guaranteed audience. If a fair chunk of your repertoire is by established composers, you stand more of a chance getting on the bill at established festivals/venues...might even get Arts Council funding (or whatever the equivalent is in Oz).

Perhaps approach some up-and-coming Aussie composers to write short pieces. Again, a step in the right direction towards getting funding.

Glad to hear you're writing your own stuff. Personally I'd love to hear more thumb-piano rhythms and melodies transcribed for marimba(s), and expanded into compositions. There's always an audience for rhythmic stuff.

The vid was a good idea, by the way. Your calling card (easy to link to in an email).

Good luck, I like the concept.
 
PS You could try contacting some modern dance ensembles and find out if they're interested in collaborating on something. They'll already have established contacts etc, although don't be afraid to work with amateurs too (all good experience and they could possibly become professional in the future).
 
The dance angle is a good one— I know a couple of guys who have built their careers around that. You can also pursue grants. Emphasizing the educational angle will help with that. There is no blueprint for making a percussion ensemble work commercially, really, so you have to look to other one-off types of projects and see how they build their thing. Generally they try to be spectacular and easy-to-understand, and to play for a big effect, more along the lines of Blue Man Group than William Kraft.

Also you seriously have to be in it for the long haul— you could do it for 5 or 10 or 15 years before you start to really feel you have an established thing that is getting by financially and is fully-realized artistically.

As for the instruments, accumulating them is a long process with a lot of begging, borrowing and stealing along the way. If you become an educational non-profit you might stand a better chance at getting some grant money to help with that.
 
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