Moon

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Description +
- Duration: 5 min.
  
  Moon is an intermediate solo for 4.3 octave marimba, based on the Chinese mythological mid-autumn festival story of Chang'e and her husband Houyi.
  
  It is tonal, with simple themes that are embellished as the piece progresses, building up to an emphatic climax in the middle with parallel octaves before whittling down to a quiet and poignant end. Recommended for intermediate players who are familiar with four-mallet technique.
  
  If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at my website www.adamtanpercussion.com.
  
  Adam Tan
Instrumentation +
- Marimba (4.3 octave)
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About the composer +
- Adam Tan is a marimba soloist, educator and composer based in Perth, Western Australia. Adam is most known for being a YouTube content creator on THE STUDIO, a self-produced YouTube show uploading weekly episodes for education and entertainment relating to percussion.
  
  Adam has performed and presented in-person in Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan and the United States, and has also presented online classes in Argentina, Central America and the United Kingdom. Highlights include solo performances at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention (PASIC), inc. percussion days (Japan), PAS Hong Kong Days of Percussion and Oh! Asian Percussionists Series (Hong Kong), Malaysia Percussion Festival, Chosen Vale Percussion Seminar (USA), Australian Percussion Gathering and masterclass presentations at the 505A Percussion Gathering (Hong Kong), MalletLab Summer Intensive (USA), WA Day of Percussion (Australia) and various universities and schools across Taiwan.
  
  As a composer, Adam's works for percussion are performed regularly as they appear in repertoire lists for auditions, examinations and competitions around the world, such as the UIL Texas Prescribed Music List (PML). Adam’s works can be listened to on all music streaming platforms and stores.
  
  Adam is the founder and director of Marimbafest Australia, a non-profit organisation dedicated to the promotion of percussive arts in Australia, curating various events including the annual marimba festival and competition Marimbafest, as well as the annual concert series Percussion All-Stars.
  
  Adam has a Master of Music (Research, Percussion) and Bachelor of Music (1st Class Hons) from the University of Western Australia Conservatorium of Music.
  
  Adam is a Marimba One Premier Artist and a Signature Artist of Encore Mallets with his own signature series of mallets. Adam's compositions are published by Edition Svitzer.
Reviews +
- Review (Percussive Notes, June 2020)
  
  Adam Tan explains that “Moon” is “based on the Chinese mythological mid-autumn festival story of Chang’e and her husband Houyi.” A synopsis of the story is included at the beginning of the score. For the majority of the work, except the middle section, both hands play lines in similar, yet not identical, rhythm using quarters, eighths, and sixteenths. The theme is quite simple and beautiful and is expanded as the piece continues. This builds to the aforementionedmiddle section, which serves as a climax. The section features fortissimo parallel octaves in the right hand. The music then settles back down and fades to a soft ending. The octaves present a technical challenge, while the piece as a whole allows for exploration of musicality.
  
  This is a beautiful, intermediate marimba work that is appropriate for a studio class, jury, or recital. Only requiring a 4.3-octave instrument allows more students the ability to learn and perform it. There are many musical and technical challenges that will allow for introspective study.
  
  —Justin Bunting
Credits +
- Front Cover graphics and layout: Gaia Rodrigues
  Photo: Wilson Ng
  Engraving: Adam Tan & Johan Svitzer
  Printed in Copenhagen, Denmark
  Copyright ©Adam Tan

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