Drum Set (bass drum, snare drum, hi-hat, floor tom, crash cymbal)
2 (or more) cymbals (“hard“ cymbals or china), specially mounted
Police whistle
Apito (samba whistle)
If available: a siren (or another suitable soundeffect for NYC)
Sticks, brushes and 1 (violin, cello or double bass) bow
Duration: approx. 14 min.
The Whistle Drummer is dedicated to my friend and colleague, Christian Wissel, whose surname provided me with the inspiration for the play on words in the title.
The piece has three movements (NYC, PARI´, RIO), encompasses various playing techniques (as well as whistling with the mouth) and musical styles and is a kind of „musical journey“.
The markings above the systems are intentionally written in the respective language, so english, french and portuguese.
While NYC and RIO feel „realistic“, PARI´ is more an „illusion“. All three movements provide space for improvisation.
The publication of this piece is my contribution to the "Year of the Drum Set". It aims to showcase the drum set as a solo instrument and demonstrate the musical stories we can tell with it, combined with a few effect instruments.
My special thanks go to Thorsten Blumberg for the fantastic video production and EDITION SVITZER for the wonderful layout.
I wish all performers and audiences a great experience and a lot of fun with THE WHISTLE DRUMMER.