Bang A Drum

By Mark Chilla

Published September 23, 2019 at 3:53 PM EDT

A potpourri of premium percussive pieces this week on a show we're calling  "Bang A Drum"!

Did you know...

The "Drum Roll" symphony (named because of the fermata timpani drum roll that starts the work) by Franz Joseph Haydn was written while Haydn was living in London.

The "Anvil Chorus" from Il Trovatore by Giuseppe Verdi was originally called the "Gypsy Chorus," and popularized the use of anvils in the percussion battery.

Ionisation by Edgard Varèse is the first major work written for percussion ensemble, and features odd instruments like the siren, the whip, and the lion's roar.

In his ballet Daphnis et Chloe, Maurice Ravel utilizes the wind machine or "aeoliphone"—an odd percussion instrument made out of a barrel, a crank, and a piece of cloth—to represent the wild god Pan.

See the full playlist below:

And don't forget to check out the "Bang A Drum" podcast from last week!