ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Jacob Scheidt, percussion
Jacob Scheidt is currently completing his studies as a Music Performance Major at West Chester University. He is a passionate advocate of solo, chamber, and ensemble repertoire. Jacob currently performs as Principal Percussionist with the West Chester University Wind Ensemble, is a member of the WCU Percussion Ensemble, and was a section percussionist for the WCU Symphony Orchestra in Fall of 2019. Recently, Jacob performed Séjourné’s Concerto for Marimba and String Orchestra with the WCU Symphony Orchestra With the WCU Wind Ensemble, Jacob has recorded four studio albums and traveled with the group to Ubstadt-Weiher, Germany in 2022. With the WCU Percussion Ensemble, Jacob has performed a broad variety of percussion literature and has received coaching from esteemed guest artists, including Michael Burritt and Greg Giannascoli. Jacob actively performs in the Philadelphia region with Suspiro Flamenco as their cajon player and percussionist.
Jacob has a strong passion for contemporary music and new works. With the WCUWE and WCUPE, he has participated in numerous consortia and premieres, including works by Carl Schimmel, James Stephenson, and Christina George. Jacob will soon give the premiere performance of WCU alumnus Luke Thurston’s It Never Goes Away for marimba and electronic accompaniment.
Jacob will soon earn his Bachelor of Music in Performance from West Chester University, where he studies with Dr. Ralph Sorrentino, Dr. Marc Jacoby, and Professor David Nelson. He also receives coaching from and collaborates closely with Dr. Andrew Yozviak. Outside of performing, Jacob loves spending time with his friends and family, cooking, and traveling.
Burn3,NathanDaughtrey(b. 1975)
Burn3 by Nathan Daughtrey is an adaptation of his original work Burn for Alto Saxophone and Marimba, which was commissioned by Robert Faub to be performed at the 2016 North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conference at Texas Tech University, where it received its premiere. Burn3 features a new part for flute, in addition to the alto saxophone part (now played on clarinet), as well as the original marimba part.
The composition features seven brief sections all inspired by the various ways a fire can burn. The titles of the sections include, in sequential order: Spark, Ignite, Dance, Scorch, Smolder, Incinerate, and Extinguish. Many sections feature dovetailing, rising and falling lines between all three instruments, with two sections featuring the marimba. The piece results in a tour-de-force perpetual motion work for all three players.
Well-Groomed,VietCuong(b. 1990)
Inspired by the sound of running your thumb against the bristles of a comb, Viet Cuong created Well-Groomed for solo snare drum in 2019 for the Modern Snare Drum Competition on commission from Tom Sherwood, Marc Damoulakis, and Charles Settle. Rather than using drumsticks, brushes, or other traditional implements, the performer uses just a credit card and plastic comb to create rhythms and textures in innovative ways.
Some of these methods include tapping the drum with the card and comb, running the card along the bristles of the comb, and swirling the card and comb across the drumhead. Cuong’s remarkable ability to create and develop musical motives is featured throughout the piece. After the initial statement of the piece, the listener can easily hear fragments and creative alterations of the motive. Using simple household items, Cuong evokes an engaging and captivating soundscape for the performer and listener.
Rebondsb,IannisXenakis(1922-2001)
Written between 1987-89 for percussionist Sylvio Gualda, Rebonds, by Greek composer Iannis Xenakis, is a landmark work in the multiple-percussion repertoire. The composition is in two parts, designated as “a” and “b”, and are meant to be played in any order. Rebonds b is notated for concert bass drum, tom-tom, tumba, two bongos, and five wood blocks.
For much of the b movement, the performer’s right hand is constantly playing on the high bongo, while the left hand creates a melody between the remaining four drums. These melodies are mathematically altered, occasionally interrupted by flowing lines between the drums and on the wooden blocks. Nearing the end of the movement, the melody morphs into an athletic finale, featuring lines passing between both the wooden and membranophonic instruments.
ItNeverGoesAway,LukeThurston(b. 1998)
It Never Goes Away by Luke Thurston was originally commissioned by Jacob Scheidt in the Summer of 2023 for Marimba and electronic accompaniment. Between the beautiful harmonies, lyrical melodies, and rhythmic ostinati, this work evokes the feelings of a nostalgic summer evening.
The piece is bookended by sounds recorded from Thurston’s grandmother’s backyard supporting a flowing melody in the marimba. Between these parts features a section including more virtuosic marimba writing, underpinned
by a rhythmic, orchestral inspired groove. These three sections culminate in a heartfelt experience for both the listener and performer. Today marks the premiere performance of It Never Goes Away
SevenPillars,AndyAkiho(b. 1979)
Few works in the chamber repertoire can compare to the scope and intensity of Andy Akiho’s Seven Pillars suite. Commissioned by GRAMMY-nominated percussion quartet, Sandbox Percussion, the work premiered on December 3rd, 2021, at Emerald City Music in Seattle, WA. This percussive masterwork is composed in eleven movements, featuring four solo movements, and seven percussion quartet movements. Each movement features inventive use of both traditional percussion instruments and found instruments.
Pillar III features a dancing, hexatonic motive which undergoes various alterations throughout the work. The movement is unrelenting, constantly evolving and introducing new elements. The performance of this movement requires all four performers to work in perfect harmony Featuring melodies split between two players and an intense thirteen-note backbeat, communication is an integral part of this movement. The movement ends on a mysterious, contemplative note.
Merlin,AndrewThomas(b. 1939)
Commissioned by William Moersch in 1985 and premiered in 1987, Merlin is a two-movement work for solo marimba that has become a masterwork in the marimba repertoire. Originally, the work remained untitled, however William Moersch wanted to premiere a work with a title. After reflecting on his recent inspirations, Andrew Thomas retroactively entitled the piece Merlin, inspired by the poem of the same name by Edwin Arlington Robinson.
The work is in two movements, “Beyond the Faint Edge of the World” and “Time’s Way”. The first movement is a slow, dark, chorale-like work, to depict Gawaine “looking from the battlements of Arthur’s castle towards the horizon, sensing the terrible events to come.” The music creates an eerie, anxious atmosphere, setting up a harmonic language for the following movement. In the second movement, Time’s Way, Thomas depicts the nature of time, shifting the perceived downbeat. This movement is less programmatic in nature, however, still maintains an intense drama. The movement is greatly virtuosic, containing intense musical and technical challenges for the performer. As the title suggests, time and rhythm are Thomas’s focus throughout the movement.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to extend my sincerest gratitude to my family, friends, professors, teachers, and colleagues for supporting my ambitious musical endeavors. Without you, this recital would not have been possible.