Bourrée

General Info

Composer: J. S. Bach
Arranger: David Steinquest
Publisher: Row-Loff Productions
Series: Malletsicles!
Level: Elementary
Duration: 00:02:02

Instrumentation

Player 1: Glockenspiel
Player 2: Xylophone
Player 3: Vibraphone
Player 4: Marimba 1
Player 5: Marimba 2
Player 6: Timpani

Performance Notes

The piece originally consisted of a melody and a bass line. I've added a harmony part and timpani to give it a feeling of Baroque chamber music. The glockenspiel and xylophone must use complementary mallets and work to seamlessly pass the melody back and forth. The same idea goes for the bass line played by the vibraphone and second marimba. The vibraphone phrasing indicates pedaling down at the beginning and up at the end. The first marimba should always support the melody, never overpower it. The timpanist should use a small, fairly hard mallet to achieve a pointed, articulated sound.