Harrison — Canticle No. 3
Canticle No. 3 by Lou Harrison for percussion septet. The composer’s original intent was that these “parts were written for musicians…who played many instruments” and that the original scoring may be adhered to by employing 5 performers. This can be accomplished without difficulty by combining parts for Player 1 with Player 2, and that of Player 4 with Player 5.
Instrumentation:
Player 1 – Ocarina (or flute)
Player 2 – 6 Iron Pipes, 5 Woodblocks
Player 3 – 5 Brake Drums (muted), 3 Brake Drums (suspended), Small Xylophone, 5 Dragon’s Mouths (Temple Blocks), Maracas, Small Elephant Bell
Player 4 – Guitar
Player 5 – 6 Water Buffalo Bells, Wooden Box, 2 Sistrums, Medium Elephant Bell
Player 6 – 5 Tongued Teponazli (or 5 Marimba Tones), Large Tam-Tam, 5 Cowbells (muted) Player 7 – Snare Drum, Bass Drum, 5 Tom-toms, Large Elephant Bell
-Annotated by Noah Rosen