Little Toy Thunder

for solo snare drum

While doing some reading, I came across a treatise written by Luis Bunuel in 1922. The unique style of this treatise caught my attention, as Bunuel describes each instrument for what he believes it is rather than what they sound like ­or how to write for them. Here are some examples:

“Violins- Pretentious young ladies of the orchestra, insufferable and pedantic. Jagged mountains of sound.

Violoncello – Murmurs of sea and woods. Serenity. Deep eyes. They have the conviction and the grandeur of Jesus’ sermons in the desert.

Trombones – A slightly German temperament. Prophetic voice. Succentors in an ancient cathedral with ivy and a rusty weathervane.

Xylophone – A child’s game. Water of wood. Princesses knitting in the garden, moonbeams.

Cymbals – Light shattered into fragments.

Timpani – Skins filled with olives.

SnareDrum – Little toy thunder. ‘Somewhat’ menacing.”

I felt like the snare drum was boxed into somewhat of a corner here, so I tried to write four movements that each created different pictures of what I think a snare drum can be.