Grand Train is a show style-inspired cadence that’s all about groove; whether it’s loud or soft, whether the licks are dense or sparse, whether it’s a section feature or an ensemble moment, there is groove to be conveyed… therefore, your rhythmic precision must be impeccable! The challenge of the written music is to play it so well in time that all the parts fit together, which is a greater challenge than is suggested by the somewhat standard rudimental vocabulary, thus earning this piece a “Challenging” rating. Make no mistake, though; this one goes hard, and the payoff is in fat beats more than hot licks.
Hike
Hike is a university-level street beat that takes you on a syncopated journey through boisterous grooves and minimalist ditties based on a rhythmic motif that permeates your percussive adventure. High risk, high reward… nothing ventured, nothing gained.
The Furnace
The Furnace is a heavy stadium groove that plays with timing and feel to create moments of build-up and release. Some things in here are deceptively easy, while others are unavoidably challenging. Tread carefully.
Bass Cadence
This Bass Cadence served as the introduction to NC State’s arrangement of Spider for many years. It has since been retired, so I want to share it here, since I have not written anything else quite like it. It is arranged for 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, and 4-drum bass lines. The NC State version is the 9-drum arrangement, while the VDL recording is the 6-drum arrangement; I am providing both for reference.
Emeritus
Emeritus is a slamming street-beat that adds low-humming tom drums to the typical battery instrumentation, inspired by the extra bit of punch that a lot of show-style drumlines bring to the table. Creative use of triplet feels and transitions to duple feels create suspense and release while maintaining a strong pulse to march to.
Fun fact: the snare part in the first measure of rehearsal letter C is stolen from an early version of Murray Gusseck’s “Electric Wheelchair,” which had that lick in place of the loud 32nd-note singles that you’ll recognise in every later version. Great choppy 90’s notes to set up the rest of that snare soli. If you’d like, you can also view the first two beats of the following measure as an homage to the old SCV “Threes” exercise.
Quit It
Quit It is a lot jam adapted from the classic NC State cadence “Hit It” by taking the main ideas and fitting them to 7/8 time. I wrote this as a tongue-in-cheek birthday present for John Antonelli, the my drumline instructor at NC State (and pedagogical godfather). There’s some hard stuff in here, but there are also some really cool moments that could be easily adapted into a stadium groove or onfield warm-up.
Thunder Horse
Thunder Horse is a rhythmic tour-de-force that employs variations on some very basic swiss triplet patterns to create a range of groovy feels that relentlessly push forward. Add some Agogô bell in the quads to really bring the funk, and make sure you've got a good handle on different dynamics, because you're gonna need it.
Mud
Mud is a stadium groove based on the groove from Primus's My Name is Mud. Tenors definitely have to do the most work here, but there should be a good payoff once all the parts fit together correctly.
Quad Damage
Quad Damage is a groovy street beat with plenty of advanced soli licks supported by battery impacts that tie everything together, so there's never a dull moment. This is a "new" piece, but all the elements existed in an old Finale file (pre-2011) that I recently dug up, where I had collected ideas that never made it into other pieces.
¡Bust!
¡Bust! is a street beat based on an old NCSU Drumline classic called "Hit It"—a long-time staple of the line's repertoire that has since been retired. I wanted to embellish some ideas from that piece as well as expand on the Latin feel with some heavy grooves to breathe new life into an old favourite.
Cadence in 4/4 for Marching Percussion
Cadence in 4/4 For Marching Percussion is a street beat consisting of four short movements—ideas I've been fleshing out over the years—that I've managed to work into a cohesive piece. The third movement is based on Annie's Theme by DJ Afrojack, and the fourth is based on a song by a band I played bass in while I was a teenager. It all adds up to a cadence... in 4/4.
Five Why?
Five Why? is a street beat composed entirely in 5/4 time. It includes a lot of 10-beat phrases, and the whole idea behind it is kinda silly, but I think it turned out pretty well!
Turbulent Flow
Turbulent Flow is an advanced street beat that packs some serious groove. Face-melting tenor licks and mind-bending syncopation will keep everyone feeling the pulse!
