Compositions
Percussion Ensemble
The Final Boss (7-8 Players - Medium-Easy)
“Overture” to The Barber of Seville (10 Players - Medium)
Quartet (4 Players - Medium-Advanced)
Vignettes (4 Players - Medium-Advanced)
Solos
June Bug - Medium-Easy 4-Mallet Marimba Solo
Swan Song - Advanced 4-Mallet Solo
A Tribe Called Quads - 8 Progressive Solos for the Marching Tenor Drums
“A Tribe Called Quads”
8 Progressive Solos for the Marching Tenor Drums
A Tribe Called Quads by Andrew Smit is designed to help the beginner-to-intermediate rudimental player get their start in basic marching tenor drumming. The book starts with a foundation of basic drumming skills that are then applied to various quad logistics, skills, and variables. Each solo addresses a new skill unique to tenor drumming while progressively getting more and more challenging. This book is suitable for private lessons or for sectional rehearsals in marching band or indoor drumline. A Tribe Called Quads allows students to be fluent in many of the motions, shapes, and overall vernacular of playing the marching tenor drums.
Program Notes
A Tribe Called Quads was written with the beginner/intermediate tenor drummer in mind; someone who is not new to marching percussion literature/vocabulary, but might be new to the added variables that playing quads brings to the table. These solos are designed to help introduce the performer to the motions, shapes, vocabulary, and overall vernacular of playing the marching tenor drums. The goal is that by progressing through these solos, you will have a great sense of how to move around the drums and perform confidently.
Level: Medium-Easy to Advanced
Instrumentation
Marching Tenor Drums (5 or 6 drums)
This collection is available for purchase through Tapspace Publications
“This collection of eight progressive solos for marching tenors is “designed to help the beginner-to-intermediate rudimental player get their start in basic marching tenor drumming. The book starts with a foundation of basic drumming skills that are then applied to various quad logistics, skills, and variables. Each solo addresses a new skill unique to tenor drumming while progressively getting more and more challenging.”
These solos are perfect for students who have no experience with marching tenors but are ready to dive in. Unlike many existing collections, A Tribe Called Quads is truly progressive, giving students the opportunity to focus on good fundamentals while navigating their way around the drums. The first solo, “Maiden Voyage,” focuses on 5- and 9-stroke rolls, single flams, and paradiddles, while introducing basic motion around the drums. More advanced concepts such as crossovers and scrapes don’t appear until the sixth and seventh solos, allowing students to grasp the fundamentals first. The final solo of the collection puts together all of the skills while still being achievable by students who are new to the tenors.
The cover art (and art used throughout the book) by Eddie Montoya adds an especially delightful layer that is targeted perfectly for the late middle school to early high school level. Perfect for solo or sectional work, A Tribe Called Quads should be considered essential for any directors looking to build their marching tenor pipeline.”
—Joe Millea
Percussive Notes
Vol. 61, No. 5, October 2023
“Quartet” - for percussion quartet
Program Notes
Andrew Smit’s Quartet for percussion was written in January of 2020 as a compositional exploration of expand upon one simple, repetitive idea. Smit drew his inspiration from Steve Reich, the father of minimalist percussion music, specifically his piece Music for 18 Musicians.
Smit used Reich’s technique of adding one note at a time to a melody as well as a limited range for the melody. Another element at work in the piece is Smit’s use of polyrhythms, which he explores brilliantly by having certain parts feel as though they’re written in 3/4 time and others as though they’re written in 4/4. The result is a meditative and rhythmically complex fabric, tightly woven with relentless groove.
Level: Medium Difficult | Duration: 2:30
Instrumentation - 4 Players
• 4 crotales (A, E, A, E)*
• 2 glockenspiels
• 2 xylophone
• 3 concert toms
• Accessories (triangle, tambourine, 6 temple blocks)
*A & E from both octaves.
This piece is available for purchase through Tapspace Publications
“In his program notes to “Quartet,” Andrew Smit identifies the music of Steve Reich as being a primary source of inspiration for the work, and it won’t take long for listeners to make that connection for themselves. Most, but not all, of the piece is an exploration of the additive techniques Reich pioneered in works like “Music for 18 Musicians” and “Drumming,” although other elements (such as phasing) are absent. The piece is essentially a keyboard quartet for the first half, although the instrumentation of two glockenspiels and two xylophones deviates a little from what one might otherwise expect, and then it becomes a mixed ensemble for the second half, with the addition of toms, temple blocks, and more. Even then, thanks to Smit’s Varèse-ian melodic treatment of the temple blocks, the minimalist harmonic texture loses very little when the switch happens.
The demand on the performers is high; although the parts themselves are not overly demanding in a physical sense, concepts such as polyrhythmic integrity, consistent subdivision, and careful listening will be the order of the day for all players. For concert attendees, the piece is going to serve as something of a between-course sorbet; the piece is not even three minutes long, but before it winks out of existence, it presents a satisfying and pleasant rhythmic vignette that could prepare the aural palate for the heavier entrée to follow.
The thing to appreciate about this work is how contained it is. By limiting the instrumentation and timbral landscape to dry woods and high metals (with the exception of the toms, used sparingly and therefore effectively), the composer is able to paint exactly the picture he wants, without adding unneeded dross.
The only thing that confuses me about the piece is why it is so incredibly short; one of the hallmarks of this kind of minimalist, process-driven piece is the time it takes to unfold and crystallize, but after two minutes and change, I feel like the piece has only begun to reveal itself before, without warning, it suddenly ends. The composer should take this as a compliment, though; in under three minutes, he builds up a musical engine that I found engaging and colorful, and I wish it could keep going.
This would be an excellent project for an advanced high school or college ensemble looking to explore the world of minimalism, without the girth that often accompanies it.”
—Brian Graiser
Percussive Notes
Vol. 59, No. 1, February 2021
“Swan Song” - for solo marimba
Program Notes
Swan Song, ironic to its name, is Smit’s first marimba solo composition. It is dedicated to Kevin Bobo who taught him composition techniques during his undergraduate studies at Indiana University. Smit states “I owe a lot to him for recognizing in me an interest in composing and working with me to develop that skill.”
Completed in February of 2019, Swan Song has a constant forward motion throughout the piece. There is a steady build of energy with little time for rest for both the audience and the performer. Although the music eventually calms the techniques used by the performer do not, paying homage to the second movement of Bobo’s Two Fountains.
Level: Medium Difficult | Duration: 4:15
Instrumentation
Marimba (5-octave)
This piece is available for purchase through C-Alan Publications
“The Final Boss” - for percussion ensemble
Program Notes
In The Final Boss, composer Andrew Smit takes dramatic inspiration from the final levels of older video games, in which the player faces off against their strongest opponent. This piece provides an engaging opportunity for developing players to explore an aggressive, urgent feel. It also serves to strengthen the players’ comfortability with syncopated rhythms and the Phrygian mode. Perfect for younger groups or college methods courses!
Smit dedicates this piece to his junior high school band director, Kim Coughlin, with gratitude.
Level: Medium Easy | Duration: 2:45
Instrumentation - 7-8 Players
Glockenspiel
Xylophone
2 marimbas—(1) 4-octave, (1) low A
3 timpani
Drums (snare drum, 4 concert toms, concert bass drum*)
Cymbals & gongs (hi-hat, 2 suspended cymbals, tam-tam)
Accessories (triangle, cabasa*)
*Optional
This piece is available for purchase through Tapspace Publications
”Inspired by the music of arcade-style video games, The Final Boss is a quality piece for less experienced ensembles that is ‘meant to evoke the aggressive and anxious music that would be playing in the background of the last level of a game as you face off against the final boss.’ With driving rhythms and Phrygian-mode melodies throughout, Andrew Smit successfully creates this type of tension and atmosphere.
Consisting of a through-composed form, the melodic material stays in a B-Phrygian mode throughout. This consistency works well for the experience level the piece is written for. Keyboard parts require only two mallets, and while there are some solo moments, most of the mallet parts double each other at the octave, allowing for younger students to reinforce each other in performance. Even areas where mallet parts consist of a single player, that part is always accompanied by a percussion part that helps to strengthen the mallet part.
While the focus for most of the piece is on the melodic elements, one section contains features for the snare drum and timpani. These solos are both idiomatically written, stylistically appropriate to the piece, and help to add some variety to the work.
While the mallets players only have to deal with eighth notes as their smallest subdivision, the percussion players need to deal with sixteenth-note rhythms and triplets. All players need to have a good command of dynamic contrast, as well as be comfortable switching between instruments, as almost all parts utilize at least two instruments, except for the snare drum and one of the marimba parts.
The Final Boss is a high-quality work for younger percussion ensembles that exposes the ensemble to a variety of musical concepts while keeping the piece accessible for audiences and fun the the ensemble members. At just under three minutes, it would be a great addition to any middle or high school program’s library.”
-Brian Nozny
Percussive Notes
Volume 60 No. 1 February 2022
“June Bug” - for solo marimba
Program Notes
Smit wrote June Bug in anticipation of the birth of his daughter, with the title referring to a June birth date. He intends for the piece to “commemorate the start of her learning how to do everything.” So, much of the musical inspiration is derived from nursery songs; the main rhythmic motif is meant to mimic the baby babble of “dada” or “mama.”
The piece is very simple, with a straightforward melody and repeating ostinato. Only two techniques are used throughout: double vertical strokes and single independent strokes. Basic interval changes are also explored, ranging from 4ths to 6ths. It’s an ideal etude for percussionists who are early in their four-mallet development!
Level: Easy | Duration: 2:00
Instrumentation
Marimba (4.3 octave- Low A)
This piece is available for purchase through Tapspace Publications
“June Bug is perfect for those looking to simultaneously sharpen their technical skills and musicality. This medium-easy piece contains only double-vertical and single-independent strokes, and includes intervallic changes in each hand; 4ths, 5ths, and 6th. June Bug can easily teach students how to find a melody that is interwoven between the left and right hand, common in marimba music, by following the melodic line (no matter what hand it’s in) and bringing it out of the texture. Additionally, there are a variety of dynamic markings included, perfect for students to work on touch on marimbas. Since the material is repetitive and ostinato-based, the differences that the performer makes in volume and touch are clear.
The sentimental program notes for this piece are beautiful and a great motivation for adding musical expression, especially for students who are learning to divine composers’ intent when preparing for a performance. June Bug makes a lovely addition to the developing marimbist’s repertoire.”
-Cassie Bunting
Percussive Notes
Volume 60 No. 2 April 2022
“Vignettes” - for marimba quartet
Program Notes
Vignettes is a marimba quartet inspired by the art of photography. Each of the four vignettes are intended to be a musical setting for four photographs contrasting in color, setting, and texture, but sharing common themes such as tone and point-of-view. Performers are encouraged to project their own images or colors onto a backdrop during Live performances so that the shapes, colors, and textures of each vignette are consumed both audibly and visually by the audience.
Level: Medium Advanced | Duration: 6:10
Instrumentation - 4 Players
Marimba 1 (4.3 oct.) + Garden Weasel
Marimba 2 (4 oct.) + Bamboo Wind Chimes
Marimba 3 (4 oct.) + Ocean Drum
Marimba 4 (5 oct.)
This piece is available for purchase through C-Alan Publications
“Overture” to The Barber of Seville - for Percussion Orchestra
Program Notes
This overture is one of the most recognizable pieces of classical music as it still finds itself being used and referenced in today’s pop culture. Originally composed for opera in 1816, it has now been arranged for a percussion orchestra consisting of marimbas, vibraphones, glockenspiel, xylophone, and timpani. All performers use only two mallets throughout this composition and while the notes themselves are not challenging, the amount of notes and the musicality needed to perform it effectively are a challenge in itself. Your students and audience will be sure to enjoy this one.
Level: Medium | Duration: 5:30
Instrumentation - 10 Players
Xylophone
Glockenspiel
(3) Vibraphones
(4) Marimbas (1 of which needs to be a 5.0 oct. All others can be 4.3 oct.)
Timpani (2 or 4 drums)
This arrangement is available for purchase directly from Andrew Smit - $35
A PDF of a conductor’s score and all individual parts will be sent electronically