percussion and live audio media - 8 min.
Program Notes:
To grapple is to engage in a struggle for dominance, often in a physical manner, with someone or something. Grāpple is also the brand name of a suspiciously tasty, grape-flavored apple, obviously the result of some kind of unnatural, mad-science experimentation. The word is a perfect encapsulation of this piece. The percussionist must struggle for dominance over both a glockenspiel and a drum-kit, creating an unnatural synthesis of the two instruments. Furthermore, the percussionist’s sound is processed with live electronics, using a variety of techniques to hybridize both the different instruments and the different sections of the piece.
Performance History
Canadian Premiere: November 21, 2024
Thursdays at Noon - Walter Hall, University of Toronto
Dustin Donahue, percussion
November 14, 2024
Percussive Arts Society Int'l Convention, Indiana Convention Center
Dustin Donahue, percussion
March 3, 2016
University of Washington
Dustin Donahue, percussion
World Premiere: October 24, 2011
Conrad Prebys Experimental Theatre, University of California, San Diego
Dustin Donahue, percussion
Recording