Michael Colgrass
Percussion Music 1951-1957

The works contained in this project reflect an important period in the musical development of composer Michael Colgrass from his first composition, Three Brothers written in 1951, to one of his most popular chamber pieces, Variations for Four Drums and Viola written in 1957. During this six-year period, Colgrass studied percussion and compositionat the University of Illinois, spent two years as the timpanist in the Seventh Army Symphony Orchestra in Germany, and became a successful freelance percussionist in New York City.

This recording documents the evolution of Michael Colgrass as he absorbed classical music forms, broadened the musical and expressive possibilities of percussion and developed his concept of the drum as a melodic instrument. While the project has historical importance, it is also much more than a collection of venerated relics preserved as though they were objects in a museum. This recording is a contemporary interpretation shaped by the composer's collaboration with the performers. This is particularly evident in the Variations for Four Drums and Viola, which includes corrections and cuts to the published score as well as a new drum part to Variation III taken from Michael Colgrass's personal score. Patrick Roulet, the Artistic Director of this project deserves kudos for capturing both the subtle gestures and the bravura energy contained within these seminal works.