Chapter 1
The kings of the kitchen
Chapter 2
The mighty kettles that sing
Chapter 3
From battlefield to concert hall
Chapter 4
The physics of making a racket
Chapter 5
Stealing the spotlight
YOUR GOAL
Master of Thunder in the back row
Ch 5 · Stealing the spotlight
maestro Dueling Timpani
Dueling drums on the left and right! (Oh-oh!) / Stealing the symphony's spotlight! (Yeah-yeah!)
maestro Mallets strike wooden xylophone bars to recreate the sound of rattling skeleton bones
maestro Polished timpani drums float against a cosmic backdrop of glowing nebulae and stars.
Fun Fact
Kagel's dramatic finale: In Mauricio Kagel's 1992 piece, the composer instructs the timpanist to end the performance by physically jumping head-first through the paper head of the drum.
Glossary
solo (noun)
A musical composition or passage performed by a single instrument or voice. Ludwig van Beethoven gave the timpani an unprecedented, dramatic solo role in his 1824 Ninth Symphony.
A musical composition or passage performed by a single instrument or voice. Ludwig van Beethoven gave the timpani an unprecedented, dramatic solo role in his 1824 Ninth Symphony.
Quiz
Which movement of Gustav Holst's The Planets features two timpanists playing a relentless 5/4 march of war?
Quiz
What instrument did Camille Saint-Saëns use in Danse macabre to mimic the sound of rattling skeleton bones?
Quiz
Which 1913 Igor Stravinsky ballet is famous for its visceral, physically demanding, and rhythmically chaotic percussion parts?
Quiz
Which composer shocked audiences in 1824 by giving the timpani a prominent solo dialogue in his Ninth Symphony?
Quiz
How many timpanists are required to play the thunderous cosmic march in Holst's 'Mars'?
Quiz
What terrifying event does the massive bass drum represent in Giuseppe Verdi's Dies irae from his Requiem?