37?

AS U
s*/°, 3 7 0 '

THE M U L T I - P E R C U S S I O N WRITING OF W I L L I A M KRAFT

IN HIS E N C O U N T E R S SERIES WITH THREE RECITALS

OF S E L E C T E D WORKS OF ERB, PTASZYNSKA,

REDEL, SERRY, A N D O T H E R S

DISSERTATION

Presented to the G r a d u a t e Council of the

University of North Texas in P a r t i a l

Fulfillment of the R e q u i r e m e n t s

For the Degree of

D O C T O R OF M U S I C A L A R T S

By

Barry D. Bridwell, B.M., M.M.

Denton, Texas

May, 1993
 37?
AS U
s*/°, 3 7 0 '

THE M U L T I - P E R C U S S I O N WRITING OF W I L L I A M KRAFT

IN HIS E N C O U N T E R S SERIES WITH THREE RECITALS

OF S E L E C T E D WORKS OF ERB, PTASZYNSKA,

REDEL, SERRY, A N D O T H E R S

DISSERTATION

Presented to the G r a d u a t e Council of the

University of North Texas in P a r t i a l

Fulfillment of the R e q u i r e m e n t s

For the Degree of

D O C T O R OF M U S I C A L A R T S

By

Barry D. Bridwell, B.M., M.M.

Denton, Texas

May, 1993
 $1

Bridwell, Barry D. IT hs_Miiltl-BfiX-Ga.a.slfln_MxlJLing_Q.£.

William Kraft_.±n_fll£ Encounters £ & h itli_lil£££_B££itaJLs

Ql-2 Lks.- <2f ._E£l2 .£££12.2 -&&£.£. X*—3.n d

Others. Doctor of Musical Arts (Performance), May, 1993,

107 pp., 5 tables, 12 musical examples, 7 illustrations,

bibliography, 49 titles.

William Kraft occupies a prominent position in the

history of percussion, in that he was one of the first

percussionists to receive widespread acclaim as both a

performer and a composer. His compositions frequently

feature percussion, and his treatment of these instruments

reflects the knowledge of a consummate performer.

The Encounters series is a collection of ten works

which span the years 1966 to 1992, but the majority were

composed between 1971 and 1982. For the most part, they are

chamber works: six duets, one solo with electronic tape, one

solo with quartet accompaniment, and two unaccompanied

solos. All of the pieces except one utilize at least one

percussion performer, usually playing on multi-percussion

set-ups.

The paper is divided into six chapters. The first two

provide a brief summary of the evolution of multiple

percussion and biographical information about Kraft. The

remaining chapters are an examination of the origin, sound

sources, compositional style, and performance problems of

the ten Encounters pieces. The paper concludes with several

appendices, including a chronological listing of Kraft's

compositions which use percussion, a list of percussion

equipment and notational symbols used in the Encounters

pieces, and a discography of Kraft's music.

Due to the shortage of reference material pertaining to

Kraft, much of the information used was taken from personal

communication between the author and the composer. Copies

of correspondence and a transcript of a taped interview are

included in the appendices. Scores and recordings of

Kraft's compositions,, as well as compositions which

influenced him, also constitute a major portion of the

sources consulted.
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to express my sincere appreciation to the

f o l l o w i n g parties for their a s s i s t a n c e in the p r e p a r a t i o n of
this d i s s e r t a t i o n :

To Robert Schietroma, for his instruction, advice, and

encouragement;

To Paul S t e r n h a g e n , Steve Grimo, John B e c k f o r d , a n d

Robert W i n s l o w , for providing information and research
materials;

To P h i l l i p M c l n t y r e , for the use of f a c i l i t i e s ,

i n s t r u m e n t s , and the computer on which this document w a s
typed;

To John Holloway, for sharing his expertise in c o m p u t e r

technology;

To Karen Burnett, for her tireless efforts in

p r o o f r e a d i n g , d r a w i n g s y m b o l s , pasting up m u s i c a l examples,
and h e l p i n g to prepare this document for s u b m i s s i o n ;

To Steve Gillespie and Greer High School, for assisting

with the p r i n t i n g ;

To S p a r t a n b u r g School D i s t r i c t One of South C a r o l i n a ,

for their support and e n c o u r a g e m e n t , and for making it
possible for m e to complete this p r o j e c t ;

Finally, a special thank-you to W i l l i a m Kraft, for

without his cooperation this project would have been an
i m p o s s i b l e task.

111
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF MUSICAL EXAMPLES v

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS vi

INTRODUCTION 1

Chapter

I. THE BIRTH AND EVOLUTION OF MULTIPLE PERCUSSION . . 3

II. WILLIAM KRAFT 8

III. THE ENCOUNTERS SERIES 14

IV. SOUND SOURCES IN ENCOUNTERS 21

V. COMPOSITIONAL STYLE IN ENCOUNTERS 36

VI. PERFORMANCE PROBLEMS IN ENCOUNTERS 48

Appendix

A. CORRESPONDENCE FROM WILLIAM KRAFT 61

B. INTERVIEW WITH WILLIAM KRAFT 67

C. CHRONOLOGICAL LISTING OF WORKS BY WILLIAM KRAFT

WHICH UTILIZE PERCUSSION 77

D. GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE ENCOUNTERS

SERIES 82

E. PERCUSSION EQUIPMENT USED IN ENCOUNTERS 86

F. PERCUSSION SET-UPS USED IN ENCOUNTERS 89

G. SYMBOLS USED IN ENCOUNTERS 95

H. RECORDINGS OF WILLIAM KRAFT'S COMPOSITIONS . . . 101

BIBLIOGRAPHY 10 4

IV
 LIST OF MUSICAL EXAMPLES

Example Page

1. E n c o u n t e r s III f 1st M o v e m e n t , showing

angular m e l o d i c line 37

2. E n c o u n t e r s III f 3rd M o v e m e n t , showing

conjunct m o t i o n 38

3. Encounters III. 1st m o v e m e n t , showing Landini

cadence . 38

4. E n c o u n t e r s VII. two v i b r a p h o n e s , showing

cluster chords 39

5. E n c o u n t e r s III, 3rd m o v e m e n t , t r u m p e t and

graduated drums, showing hemiola 40

6. E n c o u n t e r s III. 3rd m o v e m e n t , t r u m p e t and

graduated drums, showing p o l y r h y t h m 41

7. E n c o u n t e r s IV f 3rd m o v e m e n t , t r o m b o n e ,
showing use of Morse code 41

8. E n c o u n t e r s I f vibraphone, showing rhythmic

improvisation 45

9. E n c o u n t e r s IV f 3rd m o v e m e n t , p e r c u s s i o n ,
showing pitch i m p r o v i s a t i o n 45

10. E n c o u n t e r s IV f 3rd m o v e m e n t , t r o m b o n e and

percussion, showing cells 46

11. E n c o u n t e r s I, graphic r e p r e s e n t a t i o n of
electronic tape sounds 47

12. E n c o u n t e r s V I . letter "L", roto-tom s o l o i s t

and p e r c u s s i o n quartet, showing d e s i g n a t i o n
of c u e i n g responsibility 60

v
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Illustration Page

1 . Suggested set-up for E n c o u n t e r s I , . . . 90

2 . Suggested set-up for E n c o u n t e r s III . . . ., . . . 91

3 . Suggested set-up for E n c o u n t e r s V , . . . 91

4. Suggested set-up for Encounters IX . . . . . . . . 92

5. Suggested set-up for E n c o u n t e r s VII . . . ., . . . 93

6 . Suggested set-up for E n c o u n t e r s VIII . . . . . . . 94

7 . Suggested set-up for E n c o u n t e r s IX . . . . . . . . 94

VI
 INTRODUCTION

In the notes p r e f a c i n g his score for C o n f i g u r a t i o n s :

Concerto fr»r F n ' i r p p m n s s i n n i st.s and Jazz O r c h e s t r a . W i l l i a m

Kraft wrote:

The days of p e r c u s s i o n i s t s being s e c o n d - c l a s s citizens

in the musical society are clearly over. The last of
o r c h e s t r a l families to be exploited, they have come of
age in the twentieth century--not u n l i k e the v i o l i n in
the s e v e n t e e n t h and e i g h t e e n t h centuries."'"

There have been three major d e v e l o p m e n t s in p e r c u s s i o n

writing during the twentieth century:

1) The evolution of the role of p e r c u s s i o n

2) The increased density of p e r c u s s i o n scoring

3) The search for new sounds

The transformation of the orchestral p e r c u s s i o n section from

supportive role to prominent feature led to the creation of

chamber music for independent percussion e n s e m b l e s and,

eventually, solo p e r c u s s i o n literature. Throughout this

evolution, c o m p o s e r s gradually increased the density of

percussion scoring by (1) including more players in t h e i r

scores, (2) w r i t i n g more complex parts, and (3) d e v e l o p i n g

the concept of multiple percussion. The exploration of new

percussion sounds was an outgrowth of the other two trends.

1. Kraft, Conf i g u r a t i o n s (New York: MCA, 1968) .

 William Kraft occupies a prominent position in the

history of p e r c u s s i o n , in that he was one of the first

percussionists, if not the first, to r e c e i v e widespread

acclaim as both a p e r f o r m e r and a composer. As one m i g h t

expect, his compositions frequently feature percussion, and

his treatment of these i n s t r u m e n t s reflects the k n o w l e d g e of

a consummate performer. Numerous percussionists have taken

up c o m p o s i t i o n for p e d a g o g i c a l p u r p o s e s , but Kraft has

distinguished himself as a creator of truly artistic works.

Kraft's c o n t r i b u t i o n to p e r c u s s i o n literature includes

approximately 16 u n a c c o m p a n i e d solos, 5 concertos, 9

percussion ensembles, and 15 chamber p i e c e s . This p a p e r

will examine a group of his p i e c e s which share a c o m m o n

title: Encounters. Specifically, the paper will e x p l o r e the

sound sources used in these c o m p o s i t i o n s , Kraft's

compositional style, and suggestions for their p e r f o r m a n c e .

There are several a p p e n d i c e s which will provide u s e f u l

information to those wishing to pursue further study of this

important composer.
 CHAPTER I

THE BIRTH AND EVOLUTION OF MULTIPLE P E R C U S S I O N

In 1918 Igor Stravinsky composed a chamber w o r k

entitled Histoire du Soldat^, which included a p e r c u s s i o n

part calling for one player to cover a battery of seven

instruments. This innovation opened the door to new

possibilities in scoring for p e r c u s s i o n . One player,

assigned to cover m u l t i p l e instruments, could:

1) switch from one instrument to another between

m u s i c a l passages

2) p e r f o r m a single rhythmic line which incorporated

several different instruments

3) p e r f o r m two or more lines simultaneously

4) play rhythmic unisons on two or more instruments

The last point was not new in the twentieth century; some

Romantic composers, such as Rossini, had specified that

It has become a common practice to refer to this work as

L ' h i s t o i r e du Soldat f but Stravinsky himself never used
the definite article. Cf. the letter from Robert Craft
to William Kraft in Kraft's edition of the p e r c u s s i o n
part (Van Nuys: New Music West, 1992). "Histoire" means
"history," as in the history of the universal soldier.
"L'histoire," on the other hand, means "story," as in the
story of one particular soldier, which is the case with
S t r a v i n s k y ' s composition. Although it is grammatically
incorrect to omit the article, the author has chosen to
do so in respect of the composer's p r e f e r e n c e .
t h e i r bass drum and cymbal parts b e p e r f o r m e d by one p l a y e r .

Stravinsky is a c k n o w l e d g e d as the first to write for

multiple percussion, but the p r a c t i c e itself had been in

existence for more than a quarter of a century when

Histoire first appeared. Even longer, if one wishes t o

include the a f o r e m e n t i o n e d bass d r u m / c y m b a l p a r t s , which

date back to the early nineteenth century, or kettledrums,

which had been played in pairs for centuries. There h a d

even been concertos written for t i m p a n i , in which the

soloist played as many as ten drums.^

Credit for originating the concept of m u l t i p l e

percussion, and guiding its d e v e l o p m e n t during the early

stages, rightfully b e l o n g s to the first drum set players, a

g r o u p of forgotten performers whose imaginations

revolutionized the art of d r u m m i n g . Drum set playing was a

b y - p r o d u c t of jazz, which o r i g i n a t e d in the late nineteenth

century with the brass bands of New O r l e a n s . These groups

performed frequently in parades, so they usually had t w o

drummers--one for the snare and one for the b a s s . Their

playing style reflected a strong m i l i t a r y influence; the

bass drummer kept the pulse and reinforced the syncopated

accents of the music, while the snare d r u m m e r p l a y e d

rudimental patterns. This d i v i s i o n of responsibility

2. J. G. Kastner, M e t h o d e de T i m b a l e s (Paris: 1845), 72,

cited in James B l a d e s , P e r c u s s i o n Tnstmmftnt-s and T h e i r
(London: Faber and Faber, 1984), 258.
 o
continued even when they were not m a r c h i n g .

At some p o i n t , a drummer p o s i t i o n e d the bass and snare

side by side and p e r f o r m e d both functions simultaneously.

The new t e c h n i q u e was r e f e r r e d to as "double drumming." Its

date of o r i g i n is u n k n o w n , but it was in w i d e s p r e a d use by

1893, and continued to be used by some players into the

1920's, well after the invention of the bass drum pedal.^

Double d r u m m e r s began to use their ingenuity to d e s i g n

devices which would facilitate their task, and their efforts

attracted the attention of other w o u l d - b e inventors. Some

of the innovations were short-lived, but others b e c a m e

permanent fixtures. The snare drum stand was p a t e n t e d in

1898,"^ and the suspended cymbal mount in 190 9. The b a s s

drum pedal, the most important addition, appeared in a

n u m b e r of p r o t o t y p e s before 1910, when William F. Ludwig

perfected the basic mechanism used today.®

Since these inventions facilitated p e r f o r m a n c e on

multiple instruments, d r u m m e r s experimented with other

percussion sounds; these were called novelty instruments, or

"traps." A trap rack or trap table, full of assorted sound

3. "The Great Jazz D r u m m e r s : Part 1," M o d e r n D r u m m e r IV/3

(June/July 1980), 17.

4. T h e o d o r e Dennis Brown, A H i s t o r y and A n a l y s i s nf

D r u m m i n g to 19 42. 2 vols. (Ph.D. d i s s e r t a t i o n ,
U n i v e r s i t y of M i c h i g a n , 1976; Ann Arbor: U n i v e r s i t y
M i c r o f i l m s , 77-7881), 98-99.

5. Brown, 64. 6. Brown, 106-107.

effects, came to be a standard part of the drummer's set-up.

Specialty items, such as a set of graduated cowbells or

Chinese temple blocks, were often identified as a particular

player's trademark. The one-man percussion section played

an integral part in early jazz and ragtime groups, as well

as v a u d e v i l l e shows, circus acts, and silent movies.^

It w a s inevitable that multiple percussion would make

its way into more serious forms of music, but it did not

happen until European composers started to t a k e an interest

in A m e r i c a n jazz. Stravinsky's Histoire was the first

jazz-influenced composition to employ a solo percussionist,

and it was followed in 1923 by William Walton's Facade and

Darius Milhaud's La Creation du M o n d e . It w a s Milhaud who,

in 1929, wrote the first concerto for a multi-percussion

soloist, the C o n c e r t o p o u r h a t t s r i s et- i 1-

When the New York Philharmonic was preparing to p l a y the

American premiere of this piece, the percussion section

thought the percussion part was supposed to be split among

several players.®

Bela Bart6k was another composer who advanced the cause

of m u l t i p l e percussion, from his use of four graduated

cymbals in his First Piano Concerto (1926) to his celebrated

7. B r o w n , 95-9 8.

8. M i c h a e l R o s e n , " T e r m s Used in P e r c u s s i o n : W i l l i a m Kraft

C o m m e n t s on M i l h a u d ' s P e r c u s s i o n C o n c e r t o , "
N o t e s . X X V I 1 / 2 ( W i n t e r 1989), 3 9 .
S o n a t a for Two P i a n o s and P e r c u s s i o n (1936).

The 1930's and 1940's saw the emergence of t h e

percussion e n s e m b l e as a legitimate compositional genre.

The works of A m a d e o Roldan, Edgard Varese, W i l l i a m Russell,

Henry Cowell, Lou Harrison, John Cage, Carlos Chavez, and

Alan Hovhaness paved the way for the lasting success of this

medium, while continuing to e x p a n d the p o s s i b i l i t i e s of

multiple percussion.

There were composers, p a r t i c u l a r l y at the P a r i s

Conservatory, who f o l l o w e d the example of M i l h a u d and

created solo works for m u l t i p l e p e r c u s s i o n . These

compositions for p e r c u s s i o n with piano accompaniment

required the p e r c u s s i o n i s t to play a wide array of

i n s t r u m e n t s , but rarely more than one at a time. In

general, these pieces have more p e d a g o g i c a l than artistic

value .

The big b r e a k t h r o u g h for solo p e r c u s s i o n came in 1959,

when Karlheinz Stockhausen wrote Zyklus. This composition

is n o t e w o r t h y because of its use of cyclic form, graphic

notation, pictographic symbols, indeterminacy, and

improvisation, as well as the fact that it was written for

an u n a c c o m p a n i e d p e r c u s s i o n soloist. Coincidentally, the

American premiere of this m a s t e r p i e c e was p e r f o r m e d by

William Kraft.^

9. W i l l i a m Kraft, taped interview, July 5, 1991.

 CHAPTER II

WILLIAM KRAFT

William Kraft was born on September 6, 1923 in Chicago.

His family name was originally Kashareftsky, but his parents

Americanized it to Kraft after emigrating from Russia. The

family moved to California when Kraft was three years old,

where he began his study of piano. He later took some music

courses at San Diego State College and UCLA, and studied

percussion with Murray Spivack in Los Angeles."*"

In 1943, Kraft entered the armed forces, where he

served as a pianist, drummer, and arranger in military

bands. While he was in Europe with the Army he took some

courses at Cambridge University. After being discharged he

began to make a living as a percussionist in various jazz

bands.

In the summer of 1948 Kraft enrolled in the Berkshire

Music Center in Tanglewood. There he studied composition

with Irving Fine and conducting with Leonard Bernstein. The

following year he entered Columbia University, where he

earned his bachelor's and master's degrees (1951, 1954).

1. "Kraft, William," Baker's Biographical. Dictionary of

MliaijQ., 8th ed., revised by Nicholas Slonimsky (New
York: Macmillan, 1992), 958; William Kraft, telephone
interview with the author, Jan. 5, 1993.
 9

His composition teachers there included Jack Beeson, Seth

Bingham, Henry Brant, Henry Cowell, Otto Luening, and

Vladimir Ussachevsky. Kraft also studied privately with

Saul Goodman (timpani) and M o r r i s Goldenberg (percussion) at

o

the Juilliard School while he was attending Columbia.

Goldenberg so respected Kraft that he e n l i s t e d his help

when he w r o t e his classic m e t h o d book, Modern School for

Snare Drum (published 1955). Kraft wrote the section

entitled "Guide Book for the Artist Percussionist," up to,

ironically, the part dealing with multiple percussion.

When one considers Kraft's teachers, it is l i t t l e

wonder that he developed into a composer who liked to

experiment with new sounds. Henry Cowell is remembered for

introducing percussive e f f e c t s on the p i a n o ; his experiments

paved the way for the development of the prepared p i a n o by

pupil John Cage. Cowell was also one of the first composers

to w r i t e for p e r c u s s i o n ensemble; his O s t i n a t o P i a n i s s i m o

appeared in 1934, just three years after Roldan's Ritmicas

and Varese's Ionization. Cowell's music included such

unorthodox instruments as graduated rice b o w l s , automobile

brake drums, and thunder sticks.^

2. " K r a f t , W i l l i a m , " B a k e r ' s , 958; New M u s i c W e s t ,

b i o g r a p h y o f W i l l i a m K r a f t , (Van N u y s , CA); J o h n V i n t o n ,
D i c t i o n a r y of C o n t s m p o r a r y M u s i c (New Y o r k : E. P.
D u t t o n , 1974), 4 0 7 .

3. R o s e n , Percussive Notes XXVII/2, 39.

 10

Henry Brant was an early advocate of spatial music and

placed musicians in unusual c o n f i g u r a t i o n s for p e r f o r m a n c e s .

His pieces called for tin cans and kitchen u t e n s i l s to be

C
used as i n s t r u m e n t s . Otto L u e n i n g and Vladimir Ussachevsky

were pioneers in the field of electronic music. Their

Rhapsodic Variations, which a p p e a r e d in 1954 before the

premiere of V a r e s e ' s P e s e r t s r was the first work to ever

combine real sounds on an electronic background.®

After his graduation from C o l u m b i a in 1954, Kraft

accepted a position as a percussionist with the D a l l a s

Symphony. The following year he began an a s s o c i a t i o n that

was to last for thirty years when he joined the Los A n g e l e s

Philharmonic Orchestra. Kraft served in Los Angeles as a

percussionist for eight years and as t i m p a n i s t for eighteen.

From 1969 to 1972, he was also the Assistant Conductor of

O

the orche stra.

In 1956 Kraft organized the First Percussion Quartet, a

g r o u p which he believes was a c t u a l l y the first percussion

4. G e r a l d Abraham, The C o n c i s e Oxford H i s t o r y nf ytn.cHr f

(Oxford U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1990), 853; Karl P e i n k o f e r and
Fritz Tannigel, H a n d b o o k of P e r c u s s i o n Instruments,.
(Mainz: Schott, 1976), 79, 137, 173.

5. "Brant, Henry," Baker'sr 2 37.

6. "Luening, O t t o , " Baker's, 1091-1092.

7. P a t r i c k Wilson, "Kraft: The Composer as O r c h e s t r a l

T i m p a n i s t , " P e r c u s s i v e W n t e s XXV/1 (Fall 1986), 37.

8. New Music West, biography.

 11

quartet. It consisted of the percussion section from the

Los Angeles Philharmonic: Walter Goodwin, Forrest Clark, Leo

Hamilton, and Kraft. When Leo Hamilton left the group, he

was replaced by Robert Winslow. The quartet performed

numerous programs in the public schools and frequently

appeared on the Monday Evening Concerts, a Los Angeles

Q
series committed to the performance of new music.

As the group began to expand its repertoire and perform

works which required more players, Kraft changed the name to

the Los Angeles Percussion Ensemble and Chamber Players.

They presented a number of important premieres and made

several recordings. During this period, Kraft had the

opportunity to perform the American premieres of

Stockhausen's Zyklus and Boulez's Le marteau sans maitre, as

well as record Histoire du Soldat under the direction of

Igor Stravinsky.^®

Kraft is an expert on the subject of Histoire. When

Chester Music issued a new edition of the work in 1989,

edited by John Carewe and James Blades, Kraft wrote a review

of it for Notes. a journal published by the Music Librarian

Association. His analysis, in which he compared the edition

to the original, was so detailed and so articulate that he

won the Eva Judd O'Meara Award for the best review of the

9. William Kraft, telephone interview, Jan. 5, 1993.

10. New Music West, biography.

 12

11
year . x •L

Kraft's a s s o c i a t i o n with Stravinsky was unquestionably

the single most influential factor in his m u s i c a l career,

both as a performer and as a composer. On the title page of

T r i a n g l e s . he w r o t e : "To Igor Stravinsky, my constant

inspiration, in greatest a d m i r a t i o n and in d e e p e s t gratitude

for his p e r s o n a l encouragement." Inside the score he

further t h a n k e d Stravinsky "for the incomparable gift of

m u s i c he has m a d e to our time."

Kraft retired from p l a y i n g in 1981 to b e c o m e the Los

Angeles Philharmonic's first Composer-in-Residence, a

position he held for four years. In doing so, he also

b e c a m e the first d i r e c t o r of the New Music Group, the

orchestra's performing ensemble for contemporary music

From 1985 to 1988, Kraft was a composer-in-residence

for Chapman College in O r a n g e , California. From 1988 to

1991, he was a visiting professor at UCLA and U C - S a n t a

1 *3

Barbara. In 1991, he b e c a m e chairman of the composition

d e p a r t m e n t at Santa Barbara.

As a composer, Kraft has written music for most m e d i u m s

of live p e r f o r m a n c e , as well as for radio, television, and

11. The r e v i e w appeared in N o t e s X L V I / 1 (Sept. 1989), 212-

216. It was r e p r i n t e d in its entirety in P e r c u s s i v e
Notes XXX/5 (June 1992), 47-54.

12. New Music West, biography.

13. W i l l i a m Kraft, letter to the a u t h o r , July 5, 1991.

 13

motion pictures. His commissions include the Ford

Foundation, Library of Congress, United States Air Force

Band, Schoenberg Institute, and Boston Pops Orchestra. His

symphonic works have been p e r f o r m e d by m a j o r o r c h e s t r a s in

the United States, Europe, Japan, Korea, Israel, Australia,

and the former Soviet Union. His p e r c u s s i o n works are among

the most performed in the literature. Over thirty-five of

his c o m p o s i t i o n s have been recorded, some m o r e than once.

Kraft has received several p r e s t i g i o u s awards during

his long and d i s t i n g u i s h e d career, including two K e n n e d y

Center Friedheim Awards: second prize in 1984 for his

Timpani Concerto and first prize in 1990 for V e i ] s and

Variations. He has received fellowships from the

Guggenheim, Huntingdon Hartford, and N o r l i n / M a c d o w e l l

Foundations; and grants from the R o c k e f e l l e r Foundation,

National Endowment for the Arts, and the A m e r i c a n Society of

C o m p o s e r s , Authors, and P u b l i s h e r s . In 1990, the Percussive

Arts Society inducted him into its Hall of Fame for his

a c c o m p l i s h m e n t s as a performer, composer, conductor, and

teacher. ^

14. New Music West, biography.

 CHAPTER III

THE ENCOUNTERS SERIES

In 1966, William Kraft was invited to present a program

of his music for a concert series at the Pasadena Museum of

Art in Pasadena, California. The series was called

Encounters, and each concert featured the music of a

different composer. Such prominent musicians as Luciano

Berio participated in the series when they visited the area,

but other concerts featured promising local composers such

as Kraft.

Kraft decided to schedule his Double Triof which was

over twenty-four minutes long, on the program. He needed a

short piece to fill out the allotted thirty minutes, so he

wrote a solo for unaccompanied tuba to feature Roger Bobo,

who was one of the performers in Double Trio . He entitled

this composition Encounters II to acknowledge the concert

series. He added the "II" because another composer had

already written a piece called Encounters for the series.

About five years later, Kraft's wife Barbara was

working on an article for a magazine, and she asked him

about the creative process of a composer. Kraft had just

received a commission to write a duet for trumpet and

percussion for Thomas Stevens and Mitchell Peters, so he

14
 15

b e g a n to explain the different options available in w r i t i n g

a piece for two p e r f o r m e r s . He could have them work in

concert with one another or be in conflict. If they were in

conflict, they could represent two warring p a r t i e s . By the

time he f i n i s h e d his explanation, he had f o r m u l a t e d most of

the ideas he n e e d e d to write the c o m p o s i t i o n , which he

called E n c o u n t e r s III: D u e l for T r u m p e t and Percussion . 1 In

the score, the initials "D.L.A." appear between the t i t l e

and subtitle; this is a reference to the cities of Dallas

and Los A n g e l e s , because Stevens, Peters, and Kraft played

together in both the Dallas S y m p h o n y and the Los A n g e l e s

O

Philharmonic.

E n c o u n t e r s III is based on the p r i n c i p l e s of m e d i e v a l

warfare. The trumpet acts as the attacking force, and the

percussion is the d e f e n d i n g force. The piece is d i v i d e d

into three m o v e m e n t s : "Strategies," "Truce of God," and

"Tactics." Strategy, according to classical theories, is

the way one side gets the other side to come to b a t t l e .

Tactics are the methods used in f i g h t i n g the battle. The

truce refers to a m e d i e v a l custom, supervised by the Pope,

in which fighting was suspended from sundown Thursday to

sunrise M o n d a y .

"Strategies" is a series of t w e l v e exchanges between

1. Kraft, taped interview, July 5, 1991.

2. Kraft, letter to the author, Feb. 24, 1992.

 16

the two p e r f o r m e r s . The trumpet chooses the order of the

attacks, and the p e r c u s s i o n i s t must recognize each attack

and r e s p o n d with the appropriate counterattack. "Truce of

God" evokes p e a c e f u l and holy images by imitating the sounds

of church bells and distant b u g l e s . "Tactics" is a series

of s k i r m i s h e s and b a t t l e s which require v i r t u o s i t y on the

part of both p e r f o r m e r s . Following solo cadenzas and a

final battle, the t r u m p e t w i t h d r a w s in defeat and peace is

O
restored.

Stevens and Peters recorded E n c o u n t e r s III f but it was

percussionist Karen Ervin, one of Kraft's former students,

who p l a y e d the premiere in 1972, together with t r u m p e t e r

Malcolm McNab.^ (According to Kraft, Stevens shunned live

performing except with the orchestra.)^ The next year,

Ervin had an o p p o r t u n i t y to record an album of duos, so she

and her husband Thomas, a trombone player, commissioned

Kraft to write a piece for them.^ Kraft was so p l e a s e d with

E n c o u n t e r s III that he f o l l o w e d the same format in w r i t i n g

the new p i e c e , which he called E n c o u n t e r s IV: D u e l for

3. Kraft, Encounters III (Van Nuys: New Music West, 1973),

composer's notes.

4. New Music West, catalogue of Kraft's music (Van Nuys,

CA) .

5. Kraft, telephone interview, Jan. 5, 1993.

6. Kraft, E n c o u n t e r s IV (Van Nuys: New M u s i c West, 197 5),

composer's notes.
 17

E n c o u n t e r s IV repeats the concept of the attacking and

defending forces, and it also has the same three movement

titles. One notable difference is the addition of a t a p e

collage in the middle m o v e m e n t . The collage, put together

by W i l l i a m Malloch, is a collection of speeches and songs

from World War I and later p e r i o d s . The Ervins p e r f o r m e d

the premiere of the work in March 1973 at the U n i v e r s i t y of

Arizona in Tucson and r e c o r d e d it the same year.®

1975 marked the addition of two more c o m p o s i t i o n s to

the series. The Ford Foundation c o m m i s s i o n e d Kraft to write

a piece to feature cellist N a t h a n i e l Rosen. The result was

a duet for cello and p e r c u s s i o n called E n c o u n t e r s V: In the

M o r n i n g of the W i n t e r Sea. The subtitle refers to a p o e m

written by Carl Faber, a psychotherapist and friend of the

composer. The premiere took place on J a n u a r y 6, 1976, at

the Alice Tully Hall in New York, with Rosen and Kraft
, Q

perf o r m x n g .

Before the p r e m i e r e of E n c o u n t e r s V, Karen Ervin came

to Kraft with another commission. This time she w a n t e d a

solo piece she could perform at the 197 5 P e r c u s s i v e A r t s

7. Kraft, taped interview.

8. Kraft, E n c o u n t e r s IV f composer's notes.

9. Kraft, E n c o u n t e r s v (Van Nuys: New Music West, 1982),

title page; Kraft, letter, Feb. 24, 1992.
 18

Society N a t i o n a l Conference, which was to be held in C h i c a g o

at R o o s e v e l t University on D e c e m b e r 20 of that year.-^ In

response, Kraft wrote a piece for p e r c u s s i o n and e l e c t r o n i c

tape. He called the piece E n c o u n t e r s I to put an end to all

the queries about why there was no E n c o u n t e r s I . ^ When it

came time to p u b l i s h the work, he thought it would do b e t t e r

c o m m e r c i a l l y with a more poetic title, so he renamed it

19

Soliloquy.

The following year, drumhead manufacturer Remo B e l l i

c o m m i s s i o n e d Kraft to write a composition for p e r f o r m a n c e at

the M u s i c Educators National Conference in A t l a n t i c City.^

The p u r p o s e of the piece was to feature the Remo

Corporation's line of roto-toms, which had been e x p a n d e d to

include seven sizes.^ (A r o t o - t o m is a s i n g l e - h e a d e d ,

shell-less drum whose pitch can be altered by rotating its

metal frame.) Kraft wrote E n c o u n t e r s VI, a concertino in

which the soloist plays seven roto-toms and is a c c o m p a n i e d

by a p e r c u s s i o n quartet.

was written in 1977, when Steve Grimo

10. " P e r c u s s i v e Arts Society N a t i o n a l C o n f e r e n c e 1975,"

P e r c u s s i v e N o t e s XIV/2 (Winter 1976), 21-22.

11. Kraft, taped interview.

12. Kraft, letter, Feb. 24, 1992.

13. New Music West, catalogue.

14. John J. Papastefan, "Publications and P r o d u c t s , "

XIV/1 (Fall 1975), 28.
 19

and Pat Hollenbeck, two percussion students at the New

England Conservatory in Boston, decided to pool their

resources to commission a percussion duet they could perform

on their senior recitals. They agreed upon Kraft and

contacted him through the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Despite

the fact that they were both unknown college students with

limited financial resources, Kraft consented to write the

piece and even flew to Boston to supervise the final

rehearsals and attend the premiere, which took place on

January 22, 1978.

Subtitled "Blessed Are the Peacemakers," Encounters VII

is based on various anti-war poems, making it somewhat the

antithesis of Encounters III and Encounters IV. Each

section of the work, except the opening, begins by quoting

the first words of a poem in Morse code. The use of a

narrator to recite the passages is optional.^

In 1978, the members and alumni of the Wisconsin Youth

Symphony Orchestra commissioned Kraft to write a work for

unaccompanied percussion in honor of their musical director,

Jim Latimer. Encounters VIII: The Latimer Encounter was the

17

result. The work was performed, but is no longer

available because Kraft was dissatisfied with it. The

15. Steve Grimo, telephone interview with the author, Aug.

21, 1992.

16. Kraft, Encounters VII (Van Nuys: New Music West, 1977),
composer's notes.
 20

composer has stated that, at some point in the future, he

1 ft
p l a n s to rewrite the piece.

Four years passed b e f o r e the c o m p o s i t i o n of E n c o u n t e r s

IX in 1982. The piece, a duet for alto saxophone and

percussion, was commissioned by Baylor University, to b e

p e r f o r m e d by two of their faculty members, David Hastings

and Larry Vanlandingham, at the International Saxophone

Congress in N u r e m b e r g , G e r m a n y on July 9, 1982. ^

The final work in the series thus far, E n c o u n t e r s Xf

was written in 1992. A "duologue" for violin and marimba,

it d i f f e r s from the eight previous pieces in that it has no

multiple percussion. It was c o m m i s s i o n e d by Marimolin, a

duo made up of violinist Sharan Leventhal and m a r i m b i s t

Nancy Zeltsman, and received its p r e m i e r e p e r f o r m a n c e on

November 13, 1992, at the P e r c u s s i v e Arts Society

O
International Convention in New O r l e a n s , Louisiana.

17. Kraft, E n c o u n t e r s V I I I (Van Nuys: New Music West, 1978),

title page.

18. Kraft, taped interview.

19. New Music West, catalogue.

20. Kraft, E n c o u n t e r s X (Van Nuys: New M u s i c West, 1992),

title page.
1
 CHAPTER IV

SOUND SOURCES IN EWnOTTWTF.PR

"-^he r ole of timbre cannot be minimized in twentieth-

century music. It is comparable to the role of melody,

harmony, and form in previous generations. The desire to

find new timbres is one of the reasons percussion has

experienced such a surge in this century. Composers have

increased their vocabulary of sounds through unusual

instruments, graduated sounds in one timbre, diversity of

striking implements, new techniques for playing traditional

instruments, and new combinations of sounds.

Unusual T nat- y-nnpont- Q

While Kraft is noted for being a composer who has

constantly searched for new sounds, the EnnnnntPrs series

uses surprisingly few exotic instruments. A look at the

chart i n Appendix E will show that there are only

twenty-five different types of instruments used in the

entire collection of ten pieces, and most are conventional.

The following are exceptions.

1) Xuned gongs. Balinese gongs are among Kraft's

favorite percussion sounds. One of his complaints about the

current state of percussion is that some of the most

21
 22

beautiful instruments, such as tuned gongs, are so expensive

that the cost prohibits them from being readily available to

performers.-*" Obviously, this fact has not deterred Kraft

from including them in his own compositions, for his music

abounds with them. Tuned gongs appear in such early works

as Suite for Percussion (1963), Double Trio (1966), and

(1967), in addition to

and XJ£, which use three and nine of these

instruments, respectively. Pes Imagistes, a masterful work

for six percussionists and two reciters, written for the

1974 Percussive Arts Society National Conference, calls for

thirteen gongs of specific pitch.

2) Song bells. This obsolete keyboard percussion

instrument, once manufactured by the J. C. Deagan

Corporation, had resonators and a stand like a vibraphone,

but no sustaining pedal. Its written range was the same as

a standard glockenspiel, but it sounded an octave lower.

The following description appeared originally in Deagan

Catalogue R: "Deagan Song Bells are at once a charming solo

instrument and exceptionally fine when used in playing an

obligato to a vocal number. The wonderful success along the

latter lines suggested the name, Song Bells.

1. Kraft, taped interview, July 5, 1991.

2. Percussive Notes Research F.rjptflon XXIV/3 (March/

September 1986), 1.
 23

Kraft used song bells in S u i t e for P e r c u s s i o n (19 63)

and C o n c e r t o for F o u r P e r c u s s i o n S o l o i s t s and O r c h e s t r a

(1964) prior to i n c l u d i n g them in the second movement of

Encounters III . A footnote to his performance instructions

in the Concerto cautions that this instrument is "not to be

confused with the toy instrument of the same name."

eleven metal m i x i n g bowls of specific p i t c h , which Kraft

suggests should range in size from four to f i f t e e n inches in

diameter. The pitches must be exact, because there are

several instances when bowls and gongs are struck

simultaneously, and the resultant intervals are i n t e n d e d to

be c o n s o n a n t . In the first and second movements, the b o w l s

are p l a c e d in an upright position (so they will resonate

freely) and struck with a soft yarn mallet on the inside

edge. In the third movement they are t u r n e d over, m u t i n g

them, and played on the b o t t o m with medium v i b r a p h o n e

mallets.

4) R o t o - t o m s . Kraft wrote for these instruments as

e a r l y as 1967, when he i n c l u d e d them in C o n t e x t u r e s :

Riot S - D e c a d e but E n c o u n t e r s V I elevates them to a solo

position. The score calls for seven drums, sized in

two-inch increments from six to e i g h t e e n inches. Those

particular sizes constituted the e n t i r e line of r o t o - t o m s

manufactured at that time by the Remo Corporation, who

c o m m i s s i o n e d the p i e c e .
 24

5) Spring coil . While writing Pes Imagistesr Kraft

went to a junkyard and struck several different objects

until he discovered a sound he liked--an automobile coil

q
spring. He used three of them in Pes Imagistes, and one

each in Encounters V through VII. Encounters V calls for a

spring approximately five inches in diameter and at least

twelve inches long. Encounters VI requests dimensions of

about six inches by fourteen inches. Encounters VII does

not specify a size. The spring coil, which is fairly heavy,

should be suspended, so that it can resonate freely, and

struck with a metal hammer.^

unlikely instrument for a startling accent effect in the

final movement of Encounters IV. He had previously used it

in Pouble Triof with the player holding it by the handle and

C
striking it with the fleshy part of the fist.

One of the aspects of Stravinsky's Histoire that

fascinated its first listeners was its employment of four

graduated drums. Kraft claims that he was so influenced by

this work that he used the same set-up in his first multiple

3. Kraft, taped interview.

4. Kraft, telephone interview, Jan. 5, 1993.

5. Kraft, telephone interview, Jan. 5, 1993.

 25

percussion solo.^ In fact, graduated drum sounds form the

core of most of Kraft's multi-percussion parts. The

Encounters collection, like many of his other works, include

five to seven drums in each piece. Encounters VI is the

only one which omits them, featuring roto-toms instead.

The drums Kraft normally calls for--snare drums, tenor

drums, field drums, and bass drums--share one important

characteristic: they are double-headed. Kraft, like

Stravinsky, prefers the lively, "pinging" sound of double-

headed drums, as opposed to the "tubby" sound of single-

headed instruments. The one exception is his use of

bongos, but the tension of bongo heads counteracts the tubby

quality.

Kraft's fascination with graduated sounds extends

beyond drums to include other percussion instruments. The

Concerto for Four Percussion Soloists and Orchestra, written

in 1964, features five graduated drums, five graduated

metals, and five graduated woods. Triangles (1968) employs

graduated groups of three--three tam-tams, three cymbals,

three triangles, and three woodblocks--in its array of

thirty-nine instruments. Pes Imagistes (1974) boasts a

mammoth set-up of over one hundred instruments, among which

are six drums, six brake drums, six cowbells, and six metal

6. Kraft, taped interview.

7. Kraft, taped interview.

 26

bowls--all graduated.

A m o n g the E n c o u n t e r s pieces, nos. IV t h r o u g h VII all

use three to four g r a d u a t e d tam-tams. These are not to be

confused with the tuned gongs discussed earlier. Kraft is

very careful to distinguish b e t w e e n gongs of definite pitch

and tam-tams of g r a d u a t e d pitch. Four of the p i e c e s - - n o s .

Ill, VI, VII, and IX--call for three to five graduated

cymbals. Encounters III also specifies three cymbals, five

t e m p l e blocks, and five cowbells. E n c o u n t e r s V I I I makes use

of five g r a d u a t e d woods--three temple b l o c k s and two

woodblocks .

Kraft has a remarkable a b i l i t y to suggest melody using

only non-pitched sounds. Nowhere is this b e t t e r

demonstrated than in French Suite (1962) and E n g l i s h S u i t e

(1973), two m u l t i - m o v e m e n t solos for unaccompanied

percussion which imitate the style of the traditional

Baroque dance suites. French Suite employs six g r a d u a t e d

drums and two cymbals; E n g l i s h Suite uses six g r a d u a t e d

drums, four cymbals, and tambourine.

Berlioz was one of the first composers to d i s c o v e r the

degree to which implement selection affected percussion

timbre, and he indicated his p r e f e r e n c e s when writing for

those instruments. Four decades later, Stravinsky obtained

his own p e r c u s s i o n i n s t r u m e n t s and experimented with

 27

different implements until he found the desired sounds for

his compositions. 8 Kraft's career as a symphonic

percussionist made him even more aware of the sonic

potential of different implements. What follows is a

listing of some of his unusual requests.

1) vihraphone. In addition to vibraphone and marimba

mallets, Kraft frequently calls for two other types of

implements to produce special effects on the vibraphone:

bass bows and cluster mallets. Bass bow refers to the bow

used to play the bass viol, and it is actually used to bow

the bars of the vibraphone. The sound produced is an

ethereal one, devoid of percussive attack.

Cluster mallets are special T-shaped mallets Kraft

designed for use in Encounters V, VII, VIII, and £&.

Instead of the usual yarn or rubber heads, cluster mallets

have long wooden dowels attached to the shafts. These

dowels can strike as many as nine adjacent notes

simultaneously.

2) Crotales. These instruments are obviously among

Kraft's favorites, as he includes them in the majority of

his compositions. They appear in six of the Encounters

pieces, with directions to strike with glockenspiel mallets,

yarn-wrapped xylophone mallets, rattan, the butt ends of

8. James Blades, Percussion Instruments and Their History,

revised edition (London: Faber and Faber, 1984), 338.
 28

timpani mallets wrapped in m a s k i n g tape, and the m e t a l loop

ends of b r u s h e s . They are also bowed with bass b o w s .

3) r.himss are p l a y e d with regular chime hammers,

v i b r a p h o n e mallets, and cluster m a l l e t s .

4) T u n e d gongs are usually played with the m a l l e t s in

hand at the m o m e n t , but in E n c o u n t e r s III Kraft gives the

performer the option of striking them with the fleshy part

of the fist. This is to avoid switching mallets back and

forth, but there is precedent for this particular mode of

playing. Javanese gamelans sometimes use this type of

Q
stroke for playing the large suspended gongs.

5) T i m p a n i are played with snare drum sticks, wire

brushes, rattan, and fingertips, as well as regular felt

m a l l e t s.

6) D r u m s are p l a y e d with a wide array of implements—

snare drum sticks, felt mallets, keyboard percussion

mallets, cluster m a l l e t s , rattan, wire brushes, knitting

needles, fingernails, fingertips, and the tips of bass bows.

Sometimes the implement specified is a m a t t e r of

convenience, but often it is a c o n s c i o u s choice to produce a

specific timbre.

As m e n t i o n e d b e f o r e , most of the instruments used in

9. B l a d e s , 101.
 29

the Encounters pieces are conventional, but Kraft manages to

elicit unconventional sounds out of these instruments

through an assortment of special techniques. While some of

these techniques were borrowed from other composers or

performers, his employment of them is strikingly effective

and musical.

The vibraphone is the central instrument in all of the

Encounters multi-percussion parts. To increase the

expressive potential of this instrument, Kraft utilizes

several methods :

particular effect is used in every Encounters composition

that features a vibraphone. Kraft is not sure who

originated the technique, but he named it for Larry Bunker,

a Los Angeles percussionist noted for his work on motion

picture soundtracks, because Bunker was the person who

showed it to h i m . ^

The Bunker trill is a vibrato effect in which the peak

volumes of the accidental bars and the natural bars occur

alternately instead of coincidentally. This is achieved by

setting the rotating discs of the two manuals so that they

are perpendicular to each other--i.e. the accidentals in a

horizontal position and the naturals in a vertical position.

Adjusting the motor to slow speed enhances the effect. By

10. Kraft, taped interview.

 30

t u r n i n g the drive pully so that both rows rotate forty-five

degrees, the p e r f o r m e r can play all of the bars at almost

full volume when the motor is off, and yet be ready for the

Bunker trill when the motor is turned o n .

2) N o t e - b e n d i n g . Before striking, the performer places

the head of one mallet firmly against the nodal point of the

bar. Immediately after striking the center of the same bar

with another m a l l e t , the performer slides the first m a l l e t

toward the tip of the bar, while a p p l y i n g p r e s s u r e . The

result is a slight downward "bending" of the pitch.

3) H a r m o n i c s . Harmonics, pitches which sound two

octaves higher than the actual notes struck, can be obtained

by m o r e than one means. Kraft's suggestion is to hold one

mallet pressed against the center of the bar, then lift it

quickly after striking either the nodal point or the tip of

the bar with a n o t h e r mallet.

4) M u t i n g • Muting occurs in a variety of forms in the

Encounters, series. Several of the compositions e m p l o y "dead

strokes," in which a mallet r e m a i n s pressed against the bar

after striking it, thus preventing the bar from r e s o n a t i n g .

Dampening bars with the fingers or the head of a m a l l e t is

another m e t h o d ; in E n c o u n t e r s TX r a fortissimo cluster chord

is r e d u c e d to a solitary pitch of almost imperceptible

v o l u m e by dampening the ringing bars one by one. In

L, the p e r f o r m e r "prepares" the v i b r a p h o n e by

 31

attaching small metal spring clamps to twenty-one designated

bars, and also by covering the entire instrument with a

rubber-backed rug. The latter effect is repeated in

Encounters VI and VII.

5) Oral vibrato. Encounters VIII calls for holding

one's face directly above a struck bar, in order to use the

oral cavity as a resonating chamber. Opening and closing

the mouth produces a wah-wah effect.

6) iiuperball "glissando" . Again, in Encounters VIII,

the performer is directed to scrape various bars with a

Superball to produce an exotic effect.

In Encounters VI, Kraft employs two interesting effects

using crotales. One involves placing the crotales in the

centers of several roto-toms, and striking the crotales with

yarn-wrapped xylophone mallets. Different harmonics are

produced, depending on whether the flat portions or the

domes are struck. Another effect requires placing the

crotales, which have been muted with moleskin, in an

inverted position on the roto-toms, so that the dome of each

crotale touches the center of the roto-tom head, then

striking the crotales with the taped butt ends of timpani

mallets. A third technique, found in Encounters VTTr calls

for the crotales to be placed, inverted, on the edge of the

timpani heads. While moving the timpani pedal up and down,

the performer draws a rosined bow across the lip of the

crotale.
 32

Other special effects involving the pitched instruments

include muting the glockenspiel with a rubber-backed rug

(Encounters VI); muting the tuned gongs by laying them on a

flat, covered surface and striking the domes (Encounters

IV); and striking the chimes on top of the tubes to produce

harmonics (nos. VI, VII, VIII).

The following are three techniques which Kraft applies

to several instruments:

Stravinsky demonstrated an awareness that the edge of the

bass drum produces a different timbre than that of the

center. Bartok applied the same principle to snare drums

Various Encounters pieces feature edge and center strokes on

the aforementioned instruments, as well as on tam-tams.

Kraft also uses the shells and rims of various drums as

alternative striking areas.

2) Open and closed sounds. Instruments which resonate,

such as large membranophones and virtually all metallic

idiophones, produce markedly different sounds when they are

muffled. For instance, by placing one's hand on the head of

a tenor drum while it is being struck, as in Encounters VTT r

a performer can alter the harmonic produced. "Open" refers

to the normal sound of an instrument, while "closed" refers

to a muffled tone.
 33

3) m i ssandi. Kraft uses the term "glissando" to refer

to sounds produced by scraping or sliding m o t i o n s . The

scraping agents include fingertips, fingernails, mallet

heads, rattan, wire brushes, and S u p e r b a l l s . Particularly

effective is the relaxing sound of brushes scraping in a

continuous circular motion on rough-coated drumheads, heard

in E n c o u n t e r s IX.

Timpani, Kraft's primary performing instrument, are

used very little in the E n c o u n t e r s series. However, when he

does use them, he m a x i m i z e s their e f f e c t i v e n e s s by employing

open and closed sounds, muted strokes, scraping sounds, buzz

rolls, rim shots, pedal runs, and p l a y i n g on the b o w l s . The

muted stroke is executed by h o l d i n g the base of the p a l m

against the edge of the head and m a k i n g the m a l l e t head

strike the center of the drum. Rim shots can be achieved by

striking the edge of the drum with a flat stroke, but

performers should guard against p r a c t i c i n g this t e c h n i q u e

excessively, as it can damage the t i m p a n i b o w l s .

One final technique which should be m e n t i o n e d b e f o r e

concluding this section is the "rattan snap." The rattan

snap is e x e c u t e d by placing a rattan shaft against the head

of a drum; as one hand m a i n t a i n s a downward pressure on the

shaft, the other hand lifts the rattan off the head and

releases it. This technique works especially well on the

bongos, as used in E n c o u n t e r s III, IV, and V I I .

 34

The final way in which new sounds are c r e a t e d is by

combining two or m o r e p e r c u s s i o n instruments in such a way

that their timbres blend together. Var^se referred to these

c o m b i n a t i o n s as "aggregates"; Kraft calls them "doublings."

While a catalogue of all the doublings used in the series is

beyond the scope of this study, a few g e n e r a l remarks will

be n o t e d .

In an interview with the author, Kraft r e m a r k e d that he

did not like "bald" percussion sounds, b e c a u s e the color

spent itself so quickly, and that doublings were an

effective way to warm up or change the color.11 One e x a m p l e

of this t e c h n i q u e is the doubling of drum sounds with

c y m b a l s or tam-tams, which gives the i m p r e s s i o n of

lengthening the drum sound. Striking several drums

simultaneously is also a way of increasing the depth a n d

volume of an a c c e n t .

What is even more characteristic of Kraft in these

pieces is a combination of two metallic sounds. On o c c a s i o n

one can hear v i b r a p h o n e paired with tam-tam, cymbal, song

bells, tuned gong, or mixing bowl. One of K r a f t ' s favorite

doublings is that of the low register of the glockenspiel

with the high register of the v i b r a p h o n e on a unison p i t c h .

According to K r a f t : "Because the frequency waves are not in

11. Kraft, taped interview.

 35

sync, they go against each other and create a vibrato, a

19
warmer sound."

12. Kraft, taped interview.

 CHAPTER V

COMPOSITIONAL STYLE IN ENCOTTNTF.R.c;

This chapter will present an overview of Kraft's

compositional tendencies in t h e E n c o u n t s r s series, with an

emphasis on h i s treatment of p e r c u s s i o n . It is b y no m e a n s

an a t t e m p t to analyze the pieces in detail, as that would

constitute enough m a t e r i a l for another study.

In c o m p a r i n g the Encounters compositions, o n e of the

most striking characteristics is the element of c o n t r a s t .

There are contrasts between:

1) C o n s o n a n c e and dissonance

2) M e t e r e d and free rhythm

3) L o u d and soft dynamics

4) S i n g l e pitches and dense textures

5) T r a d i t i o n a l notation and graphic representation

These contrasts, as well as o t h e r s , are largely responsible

for the effectiveness of the m u s i c .

Pitch

Pitch is a secondary factor in the E n c o u n t e r a s e r i e s .

These are atonal compositions, whose intervallic content,

both vertical and horizontal, is c h a r a c t e r i z e d by seconds

and sevenths, giving the m u s i c an angular shape (as shown in

36
 37

Example 1). Much of the m u s i c is built on p i t c h sets and

tone rows. For instance, Encounters I is a d o d e c a p h o n i c

work which features complete and p a r t i a l statements of the

row in p r i m e and retrograde forms.

E x a m p l e 1. Encounters III, 1st m o v e m e n t , showing angular

melodic lines.

ATTACKS i Tr it • p r I) - COUNTERATTACKS (Percussion)

short

= f c =
—ygp f*t *
-Jf hr

There are passages in c o n j u n c t motion, but these are

the exceptions rather than the rule. An excellent example

occurs near the end of E n c o u n t e r s III, where the vibraphone

and muted trumpet play in unison. The section is marked

"Quasi Gillespie," a r e f e r e n c e to jazz m u s i c i a n Dizzy

Gillespie (see Example 2).

Consonant intervals appear sporadically to p r o v i d e

momentary relief from the dissonance which usually pervades

these works. The p e r f e c t fifths and octaves in t h e m i d d l e

movement of E n c o u n t e r s IV are particularly effective in

creating the t r a n q u i l atmosphere one would expect in a p i e c e

entitled " T r u c e of God." The melodic m a t e r i a l in this

movement is b a s e d on "Beata V i s c e r a , " a thirteenth-century

 38

Example 2. E n c o u n t e r ? Til, 3rd movement, showing conjunct

motion. ^
TIGHT CUP MUTE
(ROBINSON)

3 6l .Quasi Gillnspi
48

conductus composed by P e r o t i n . 1 The c o r r e s p o n d i n g movement

rn E n c o u n t e r s TTT features a recurring three-note motive

that is commonly referred to in f o u r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y music as

a Landini cadence (see E x a m p l e 3 . ) 2

Example 3. E n c o u n t e r * 111, 2nd movement, showing Landini

x
cadence. ^

Vibra.(large soJ

The most extreme form of dissonance Kraft uses is the

tone cluster, produced in several of the pieces with the aid

1. Kraft,
(Van Nuys: New Music West, 1975),
composer notes.

2. Kraft, E n c o u n t e r s I T ! (Van Nuys: New Music West 197^

composer notes. west,
 39

of c l u s t e r m a l l e t s . (It is noteworthy that Henry Cowell,

one of K r a f t ' s teachers, was the p e r s o n responsible for

i n t r o d u c i n g the idea of tone clusters back in 1912/ he

executed them on the piano, using flat hands, forearms, and

q

wooden b o a r d s . ) The p a s s a g e shown in E x a m p l e 4 is p l a y e d

by two vibraphonists, each using a pair of 1 6 - i n c h cluster

mallets, striking full force and h o l d i n g the pedals down.

After the attack, both m o t o r s are switched on to take

advantage of the Bunker trill effect while the sound d e c a y s .

E x a m p l e 4. E n c o u n t e r s VII. two v i b r a p h o n e s , showing

cluster c h o r d s .

Rhyt hm

Percussionists who are acquainted only with

Weatherkings, F r e n c h Suite, E n g l i s h Suite, and M o r r i s Dance

are often surprised by the amount of r h y t h m i c freedom in

3. P e i n k o f e r , 79; A b r a h a m , 853
 40

Kraft's other compositions. Much of the E n c o u n t e r s music is

unmetered, and there is considerable improvisation. One

must remember that, in French Suite and the other pieces

mentioned, Kraft was trying to re-create the style of

specific dance movements without the benefit of m e l o d i c

instruments; metric regularity and recurring rhythmic

patterns were essential. The goal of the E n c o u n t e r s works,

on the other hand, is to imitate the nature of r e a l - l i f e

human encounters, which are often spontaneous and

unpredictable.

Despite the frequent absence of a t i g h t l y - c o n t r o l l e d

rhythmic structure, there are some interesting rhythmic

devices in these pieces. One is cross-rhythm, the

i m p o s i t i o n of a metric feel contrary to the one suggested by

the meter signature. Hemiola, as shown in E x a m p l e 5, is an

example of cross-rhythm.

Example 5. Encounters III. 3rd movement, trumpet and

graduated drums, showing hemiola.

fdi frrrrrr*rfpr%?ff|^
slide

Another device used frequently in this series is odd

groupings, such as quintuplets, septuplets, or nontuplets.

 41

Occasionally, two c o n t r a s t i n g rhythms are played against

each other, creating a polyrhythm (see E x a m p l e 6).

E x a m p l e 6. E n c o u n t e r s III, 3rd m o v e m e n t , t r u m p e t and

graduated drums, showing p o l y r h y t h m .

t 813 - 7ie 1
a1

L
Possibly the most unusual rhythmic device found in

t h e s e pieces is Morse code. The first instance of this

technique is in E n c o u n t e r s IV, where the t r o m b o n e ' s o p e n i n g

statement in the first m o v e m e n t is the rhythmic spelling of

the phrase "Make war to make p e a c e " in M o r s e code on a low

E. The p h r a s e is p l a y e d four times and crescendos from

triple-piano to double-forte; the first three s t a t e m e n t s are

played on three different mutes, and the fourth is p l a y e d

with the bell open. The t r o m b o n e ' s final statement in the

t h i r d movement is a spelling of the word "peace" on the same

E (see E x a m p l e 7). The symbolism is clear: the t r o m b o n e is

the aggressor at the b e g i n n i n g and the retreating party at

the end.

E x a m p l e 7. E n c o u n t e r s IV. 3rd m o v e m e n t , trombone, showing

use of Morse code.

E A C E

tJjJJJiJJ i
 42

Kraft m e n t i o n s these two examples in his preface to the

score, and each individual letter is p r i n t e d above the Morse

code rhythm which c o r r e s p o n d s to it. One other e x a m p l e of

Morse code can be found in the first m o v e m e n t , although it

is not m a r k e d . In the seventh exchange between the two

combatants, the t r o m b o n e spells out "Karen," to which the

percussionist answers "Ervin." Karen Ervin was t h e

percussionist who c o m m i s s i o n e d E n c o u n t e r s IV and p e r f o r m e d

its p r e m i e r e .

E n c o u n t e r s VI m a k e s no m e n t i o n of M o r s e code, but at

performance letter "P" one of the m e m b e r s of the quartet

accompaniment b e g i n s to lightly tap the Morse code rhythm

for "Jennifer N i c o l e Kraft" on the vibraphone. Jennifer

Kraft is the d a u g h t e r of William Kraft, and E n c o u n t e r s VI

includes a d e d i c a t i o n to her above the t i t l e .

Morse code is an i n t e g r a l part of E n c o u n t e r s VII. as

the composer's notes carefully point out. The work is based

on five q u o t a t i o n s taken from four different sources. Each

new section of music begins with one of the two

percussionists tapping out a quotation in Morse code on

vibraphone, crotales, or tenor drum.

Encounters VIII contains two brief instances of M o r s e

code, both played on the lip of a small tam-tam. The first

is a spelling of "Jim L a t i m e r , " the man for whom the p i e c e

was written. The second is the abbreviation "WYSO," w h i c h

stands for W i s c o n s i n Youth S y m p h o n y Orchestra, the group

 43

which commissioned the work. Both examples are m a r k e d in

the m u s i c .

E n c o u n t e r s X also contains one brief Morse code

episode, the s p e l l i n g out of "Marimolin." Marimolin is the

name of the duo which commissioned and p e r f o r m e d the w o r k .

The first six letters of the word are s p e l l e d on the

marimba, and the last three on the violin.

T i m b r e . T e x t u r e , and D y n a m i c s

In past centuries, the structural organization of music

centered a r o u n d melody, harmony, and rhythm, but

t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y music often transfers this responsibility

to other parameters, such as timbre, texture, and dynamics.

For g e n e r a t i o n s of composers, timbre called attention to a

change in melodic or harmonic material. Now, a t i m b r e

change can be a musical statement by itself. The same is

true of t e x t u r e and dynamics.

The preceding statements certainly apply in the case of

Kraft's E n c o u n t e r s . These pieces are a t o n a l and rhapsodic,

yet they do not lack form. Timbre and t e x t u r e have taken

the p l a c e s of pitch and rhythm as o r g a n i z i n g elements.

Given Kraft's fascination with sounds, this is a l o g i c a l

approach for him to take toward composition.

E n c o u n t e r s T p r o v i d e s a good e x a m p l e of how t i m b r e can

be used as the foundation for formal o r g a n i z a t i o n . The

following is a brief synopsis of the way the piece unfolds:

 44

Table 1. Organization of ., using timbre,

0:00 Vibe trill, bowed n o t e s

Tam-tam

2:09 TAPE
Vibe chords, note-bending, dead strokes,
trill

4:08 Vibe open/closed t r e m o l o

4:50 Vibe double stop dead strokes (mixed w i t h

open notes and Drums) in 16ths

6:09 TAPE

8:45 TAPE
Vibe muted (rug)
Drums muted, rims, finger strokes

10:11 Drums nail scrapes (mixed with finger strokes

and Vibe t r i l l )

11:54 TAPE
Vibe mixture of muted (spring clips) and open

i l l u s t r a t e s how a composer can m o d u l a t e

from one t i m b r e to another in a continuous stream of s o u n d .

The other compositions are evenly divided between this

approach and one that is more sectional.

Regarding dynamics, much of this music is p e r f o r m e d at

soft dynamic levels, which e n h a n c e s the subtle e f f e c t s

mentioned in C h a p t e r IV. All of the E n c o u n t e r s except I X

and X have an o v e r a l l dynamic shape similar to the curve of

a bell; they p r o v i d e e n c l o s u r e by b e g i n n i n g softly and

fading out on the e n d i n g .

 45

Improvisation

As has already been m e n t i o n e d , improvisation is an

important element in these c o m p o s i t i o n s . In this

discussion, the term improvisation refers to sections where

the composer r e l i n q u i s h e s some of the d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g to the

performer. Kraft's i m p r o v i s a t i o n a l sections are u s u a l l y

structured; he m a i n t a i n s control by establishing boundaries

in at least one p a r a m e t e r . Sometimes p i t c h e s are given, but

without any p a r t i c u l a r rhythm (as shown in E x a m p l e 8).

Sometimes rhythm is indicated without pitch (see Example 9).

E x a m p l e 8. Encounters If vibraphone, showing rhythmic

improvisation.

poco accel. 2:54 3:00

cresc.
//

Sustain D# until tape

plays the same pitch

E x a m p l e 9. E n c o u n t e r s IV f 3rd m o v e m e n t , percussion,
showing pitch i m p r o v i s a t i o n .

Mix bowls with muted gongs lo facilitate reaching tam tarns

Gong Tam Tam Gong Tam Tam

There are occasions when both rhythm and pitch are left

to the discretion of the performer. When that occurs,

 46

however, there will generally be i n s t r u c t i o n s defining other

boundaries. The following are examples:

1) " V i b r a p h o n e - - a l l double s t o p s - - a l w a y s in sixteenths"

2) "Mix muted drums with vibraphone, play rims for

variety"

3) "Play entire keyboard—avoid diatonic patterns"

4) "Rapid random staccato"

5) "Virtuosic patterns"

6) "Continue with some i m p r o v i s a t i o n — a d d occasional

tam-tam softly"

Even those sections which Kraft labels "Run amuck!" have

some element of organization, if only to specify the d y n a m i c

level. For instance, E n c o u n t e r s IV i n s t r u c t s the performer

to "run amuck in 16ths with much t a m - t a m s . . . mixed with

bowls and gongs."

Indeterminacy plays a part in E n c o u n t e r s IV. as b o t h

players are a l l o w e d to randomly select the p e r f o r m a n c e order

of a series of cells (see Example 10) . Indeterminacy can

E x a m p l e 10. E n c o u n t e r s IV, 3rd m o v e m e n t , t r o m b o n e and

p e r c u s s i o n , showing cells.

s
Wt
trash c a n
 47

also be seen in the first m o v e m e n t s of E n c o u n t e r s III and

UL; this was m e n t i o n e d in Chapter III and will be explained

in g r e a t e r detail in Chapter VI. Even the use of Morse code

demonstrates indeterminacy, in that the composer chooses

rhythms on the basis of the l e t t e r s in a m e s s a g e .

Kraft, like many contemporary composers, frequently

uses graphic s y m b o l s to notate his suggestions for the

improvisatory sections. In E n c o u n t e r s If he uses visual

r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s of the electronic tape sounds to cue t h e

soloist (see E x a m p l e 11).

E x a m p l e 11. E n c o u n t e r s I, graphic representation of

e l e c t r o n i c tape sounds.

"""Titin'minrnti
Fix pedal in down (open) position place rug on vibraphone
 CHAPTER VI

PERFORMANCE PROBLEMS IN ENCOUNTERS

Without a doubt, William Kraft is a performer who is

well acquainted with what is possible and impossible on

percussion instruments. Consequently, the works in the

Encounters series, unlike many twentieth-century

compositions, do not pose outlandish problems for the

percussionist. This chapter will present suggestions to

assist the performers in the preparation of these pieces.

Choosing Eguipment-

Kraft is a composer who is deeply concerned with

timbre. Sound is all-important to him. Because of this

fact, the performer should take great care in choosing the

instruments, as well as the implements, for these pieces.

As was pointed out in Chapter IV, most of the required

instruments are conventional, but a few may be somewhat

difficult to obtain. Fortunately, in many of these cases,

Kraft has suggested possible substitutions.

The Deagan song bells used in the middle movement of

Encounters TTI are extremely rare, as they are no longer

manufactured. In the event of their unavailability, which

is most likely, Kraft recommends using glockenspiel instead.

48
 49

He also a d v i s e s the performer to play notes intended for

song bells one octave lower.

E n c o u n t e r s III calls for three gongs of specific pitch

and a large cowbell tuned to a low D. Kraft prefers t h e

Balinese-type gongs, which have a raised center.

Chinese-type gongs, which have a flat surface and look

identical to t a m - t a m s , are a v a i l a b l e commercially. The

d i f f e r e n c e between the two types is that Balinese gongs have

a more focused pitch, whereas the sound of C h i n e s e gongs

spreads following the attack. Kraft s u g g e s t s using chimes

(tubular b e l l s ) or porcelain bowls if tuned gongs are

unavailable.

There is really no adequate substitute for the tuned

cowbell, heard prominently at the end of the first m o v e m e n t ,

and Kraft offers none. The e x a c t n e s s of the pitch is

critical, as the cowbell and trumpet form the interval of an

octave. Tuned cowbells, or A l m g l o c k e n , may be p u r c h a s e d

individually or in sets.

E n c o u n t e r s IV calls for nine tuned gongs and eleven

stainless steel bowls of definite pitch. According to the

explanatory notes in the score, the metal mixing bowls can

be found in stores which sell kitchen a p p l i a n c e s or

restaurant supplies. However, finding e l e v e n bowls of the

precise pitches specified in the score will take more than a

little searching.
 50

Several of the pieces call for crotales, for which a

glockenspiel will work as a suitable replacement. The

problem with this substitution is that there will be no

difference in sound between the glockenspiel and crotale

parts in the three pieces which use both instruments.

It is up to the performer to decide whether using

substitute instruments compromises the desired character of

the composition to such an extent that performance is no

longer valid. It is the opinion of the author that the

aforementioned substitutions work in Encounters IIIr but

that the success of Encounters IV hinges upon the exotic

sounds of the tuned gongs, bowls, and crotales. Likewise,

no one should attempt a performance of Encounters VI without

having the required seven roto-toms, as they are the focal

timbre of the composition.

Regarding the selection of drums, the performer should

keep in mind Kraft's preference for double-headed drums.

Even though the pieces do not require use of the snare unit

on the snare drum, a graduated set of four tom-toms is not a

satisfactory substitute for a snare drum, tenor drum, field

drum, and bass drum. Drums should be tuned for maximum

resonance and with a discernible separation of pitch between

instruments.
11

Performance of an Encounters composition will usually

require procuring a few special items, such as knitting

 51

needles, d o u b l e bass bows, rubber-backed rugs, metal spring

clamps, trash can lids, brake drums, and coil springs.

As for implements, Kraft is c a r e f u l to specify the type

and h a r d n e s s of mallet desired; o c c a s i o n a l l y , he even

suggests brand names and model n u m b e r s . Like Stravinsky, he

p r e f e r s the livelier sounds p r o d u c e d by mallets w i t h

flexible rattan shafts. Some of the pieces call for

double-ended mallets, such as the combination snare d r u m

stick and timpani m a l l e t . Some d o u b l e - e n d e d mallets are

commercially available, but others will need to b e

c o n s t r u c t e d by the p e r f o r m e r .

Several of the pieces require cluster m a l l e t s . These

are available from New Music West, Kraft's p e r s o n a l

publishing company, but they are fairly easy to make. To

construct cluster m a l l e t s , cut a 1 - i n c h dowel into lengths

of 9 or 16 inches (Kraft indicates which in his scores) .

Mark the c e n t e r of the dowel and drill a 1/4-inch hole 1/2

inch deep. Cut a 1/4-inch dowel into lengths suitable for

mallet shafts (Kraft suggests 12-inch l e n g t h s to facilitate

manipulation of the mallets, which are somewhat cumbersome).

A p p l y a small amount of glue to the tip of one end of the

1/4-inch dowel and insert it into the d r i l l e d hole. Due to

the harshness of the impact sound of the cluster mallets, it

is a d v i s a b l e to wrap the 1-inch dowel with a soft material.

E n c o u n t e r s V s u g g e s t s using yarn, but a couple of layers of

moleskin produces similar results.

 52

With the exception of E n c o u n t e r s V I r all of the

m u l t i - p e r c u s s i o n parts in the series include a set-up

diagram in the score. However, these d i a g r a m s are only

suggestions, and many p e r f o r m e r s will find it n e c e s s a r y to

make a d j u s t m e n t s to accomodate their equipment or their

particular playing style. Additionally, some of the

diagrams contain errors which will make performance most

difficult.

For instance, Encounters I suggests placing the p e d a l

bass drum directly behind the vibraphone, but this makes it

extremely difficult to m a n i p u l a t e both pedals (see A p p e n d i x

F). Placing the pedal bass drum slightly to the left of the

tenor drum, and moving the v i b r a p h o n e back about eight

inches, is a much more workable arrangement. Another

possible solution is the substitution of a c o n c e r t bass

drum, which eliminates the awkwardness of p e d a l i n g with both

feet and p r o v i d e s a more resonant sound for the bass d r u m

accents.

Encounters III indicates five graduated cymbals in its

instructions and diagram, but it makes no m e n t i o n of t h e

need for a sizzle cymbal. The third m o v e m e n t calls for a

sustained sizzle effect, in a d d i t i o n to the five graduated

sounds.

Encounters V includes four t a m - t a m s and a sizzle cymbal

in its set-up diagram, but the piece a c t u a l l y requires only

 53

three tam-tams and no sizzle cymbal.

E n c o u n t e r s VII gives no indication of where to suspend

the spring coil. In fact, the instructions do not even

indicate who plays the spring coil, but it is Player II.

The diagram is also unclear as to what s h o u l d be done with

the crotales. The p i c t u r e shows one crotale on one t i m p a n o

in each set-up. What is actually required is for each

player to set all four of his crotales on the indicated

timpano.

The list of i n s t r u m e n t s required for E n c o u n t e r s VIII

m a k e s no m e n t i o n of any type of drum, but the set-up d i a g r a m

includes s y m b o l s for a field drum and a tenor drum. The

piece actually calls for a snare drum and a pair of b o n g o s

in a d d i t i o n to the other two drums mentioned.

The d i a g r a m for E n c o u n t e r s IX shows the tam-tam a n d

cymbals placed to the i m m e d i a t e right of the vibraphone, but

all of the notes played on those instruments are m a r k e d to

be e x e c u t e d with the left hand. Transferring the tam-tam

and c y m b a l s to the other side of the vibraphone is the

logical and correct solution.

The errors m e n t i o n e d are minor, undoubtedly the result

of o v e r s i g h t . Knowing that they exist will save the

performer much time and prevent unnecessary confusion.

As with much c o n t e m p o r a r y music, part of the challenge

 54

in studying a new work is familiarizing oneself with that

particular composer's method of notation. Many compositions

require the inclusion of detailed instructions. This is

especially true in the case of multi-percussion, where each

piece utilizes different instruments, and the composer must

inform the performer how and where the notes for each

instrument will appear.

Kraft, knowing the problems which can arise when

performers are left to their own interpretation, provides

valuable information. His scores include a list of the

required instruments and implements, a sample staff showing

which lines or spaces will be used to notate each

instrument, a chart explaining the various abbreviations and

symbols found in the music, and detailed descriptions of any

unusual techniques. Many of his compositions also include

material for program notes, telling the history and intent

of the work.

Unlike much of the early multi-percussion music, which

had a separate staff for each instrument, Kraft writes his

parts on a single staff, assigning each instrument to a

different line or space. If two instruments occupy the same

place on the staff, he eliminates the possibility of

confusion by inserting an abbreviation or pictographic

symbol for the correct instrument. It is important for

performers to study the explanatory notes for each piece, as

Kraft has modified some of his symbols over the years.

 55

Ironically, the wealth of information in Kraft's scores

sometimes opens the door for p e r f o r m a n c e errors. There is

so m u c h to read—instrument symbols, implement symbols,

technique symbols, pitches, rhythm, dynamics, articulations,

sticking, meter, tempo—that it is quite p o s s i b l e to

overlook something.

Aside from the instructions, the music is fairly

straightforward. There are u n m e t e r e d sections, boxed

configurations which are repeated, and even some graphic

notation, but these are all n o t a t e d in m a n n e r s quite

c o m m o n p l a c e in contemporary m u s i c .

Technical Considerations

The challenges posed by the E n c o u n t e r s compositions

are more mental and musical than p h y s i c a l , but that is not

to say there are no technical demands. Kraft often calls

for synchronized attacks between two diverse instruments,

using i m p l e m e n t s of different weights, which requires great

concentration. The fact that the two i n s t r u m e n t s may not b e

located conveniently next to one a n o t h e r further complicates

the situation.

Chapter IV listed some special vibraphone techniques--

bowing, bending notes, and p r o d u c i n g harmonics. These are

not simple procedures and require practice for the player to

develop consistency. Manipulating a cluster mallet is a

fairly awkward technique; it requires a steady hand to keep

 56

the mallet perfectly parallel to the bars throughout the

stroke.

On the subject of bowing, here are a few suggestions:

(1) make sure the bow is well-rosined, (2) hold the bow with

an underhand grip, (3) keep the bow perpendicular to the

bars, and (4) use downstrokes as much as possible. Often it

is necessary to bow two notes at once. This can be

difficult, especially if the notes are far apart or on

opposite rows. In Encounters IX. where it calls for a high

double stop to be sustained for several seconds, use

repeated downstrokes with feather-light attacks to keep the

bars vibrating.

The greatest technical demands come in the area of

coordination. Kraft frequently calls upon the percussionist

to perform two simultaneous tasks. Usually, one hand is

required to perform a sustain sound—a tremolo, a glissando,

a bowed stroke--while the other hand plays single

articulated notes. For instance, in the opening of

Encounters L, the player must sustain a pianissimo trill on

the vibraphone with the left hand by means of a mandolin

roll, while bowing another bar with the right hand. Without

stopping the trill, the player must put the bass bow down,

pick up a pair of mallets with one hand, play a few notes

(including a one-handed flam where the grace-note is a dead

stroke), put the mallets down, pick the bow up, and repeat

the process. This type of activity goes on for more than a

 57

minute. Later in the piece, the same t e c h n i q u e is used, but

with the r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s of the two hands reversed.

Another challenging coordination exercise r e q u i r e s the

performer to s u s t a i n a circular scraping motion on drum

h e a d s with fingernails, mallet heads, or brushes, while the

free hand plays single notes or double stops. S o m e t i m e s the

scraping motion, which Kraft refers to as a g l i s s a n d o , moves

from one drum to another without a break. Sometimes the

free hand, instead of p l a y i n g , removes mutes from equipment

or e n g a g e s snare m e c h a n i s m s .

Almost every one of the E n c o u n t e r s contains

coordination problems similar to those mentioned. The key

to successful execution lies in being able t o keep the

sustained sound, whether it is a trill or a g l i s s a n d o ,

smooth and u n i n t e r r u p t e d , while executing a contrasting

melodic line. Here are two tips to keep in m i n d : (1) make

sure one's center of gravity is located near the site of the

intended sustain, and (2) keep the side of the b o d y

performing the sustain as m o t i o n l e s s as possible. Practice

the sustaining motion to the point where it can b e executed

without thinking about it, so that the attention can b e

focused on the moving line.

Ensemble Coordination

The fact that much of the E n c o u n t e r s music is u n m e t e r e d

might lead some to the conclusion that there are very few
 58

ensemble challenges. While it is true that there is v e r y

little c o u n t i n g to be done, these p i e c e s present several

ensemble problems.

Sections which are rhapsodic in c h a r a c t e r still c a l l

for m u s i c a l events to occur in some sort of p r e s c r i b e d

order. A performer must keep close watch upon the other

player's part in order to recognize certain musical cues.

These sections also occasionally f e a t u r e unison a t t a c k s

between the performers, making eye contact a necessity.

In the first m o v e m e n t of both E n c o u n t e r s III and IV,

the performers have three options: (1) p l a y i n g the m u s i c

exactly as it written, (2) d e c i d i n g on a d i f f e r e n t order for

the t w e l v e pairs of attacks and counterattacks, and (3)

letting the brass p l a y e r choose the order spontaneously

during performance. If the last option is c h o s e n , the

percussionist is faced with a unique d i l e m m a , that of

memorizing the sound of the brass player's various attacks

in order to respond immediately with the appropriate

counterattack. This third option, though the most difficult

to p r e p a r e , is certainly the most characteristic of a war

game, which is the way the composer chose to describe these

pieces. ^

Encounters—1, written for solo p e r c u s s i o n i s t and

electronic tape, is not exempt from e n s e m b l e problems. The

1. Kraft, taped interview, July 5, 1991.

 59

performer must become familiar with the tape, which begins

with two minutes of complete silence and then alternates

between sections of musique concrete and sections of

silence. There are tape cues in the score, but these are

not always helpful, as they are graphically notated

representations of the sound's shape. Of more help are the

timing cues, which indicate when various events occur. It

is a good idea for the performer to place a stopwatch on the

music stand for periodic reference.

There are a number of metered passages in this series.

The majority of Encounters VI, IX, and X are metered, and so

are large sections of XIX and Kraft is fond of such

rhythmic devices as syncopation, cross-rhythms, odd

groupings, and polyrhythms, all of which require a good

sense of time for ensemble execution. Encounters VIf due to

the number of players, utilizes a special symbol in the

score to indicate who is responsible for cueing (see Example

12) .

Finally, it should be mentioned that there are several

printing errors in the published scores of these pieces.

Many of the errata are pointed out to the performers in

addenda stapled inside the scores. However, there are some

which have been overlooked. Most of the uncorrected errors

are in the form of dotted notes with dots omitted,

improperly labeled odd and borrowed groupings, or rests of

 60

E x a m p l e 12. E n c o u n t e r s VI, l e t t e r f,Llf, r o t o - t o m s o l o i s t

and p e r c u s s i o n quartet, s h o w i n g d e s i g n a t i o n of c u e i n g
responsibility .
Climax
Soto

p z

P 3

P 4

Ped

incorrect length. In g e n e r a l , they are the types of

mistakes performers can correct by using common sense

Conclusion

Kraft's Encounters series represents an important

contribution to percussion chamber l i t e r a t u r e by a respected

composer. The compositions demand facility, agility,

flexibility, and versatility from the p e r c u s s i o n performer.

One must be able to master new techniques, coordinate

sustained sounds in one hand with articulated passages in

the other, make rapid instrument and implement changes in a

confident and graceful manner, and communicate subtle

effects to the audience in order to successfully perform

them.
 APPENDIX A

CORRESPONDENCE FROM WILLIAM KRAFT

61
 62

18 D e c e m b e r 1990

Dear Barry--

O . K . - - L e t ' s give it a go. Send your list of q u e s t i o n s , and

I'll do m y best to answer them all. The idea of
N o t e s sounds good. I'm c u r i o u s - - w h e r e did you get my
address? Write to me at home.

All my best,

Bill Kraft

May 7, 1991

Dear Barry,

I must tell you that I am e m b a r r a s s e d not to have taken care

of your r e q u e s t to respond on tape to the q u e s t i o n s about
the E n c o u n t e r s series. It is something I'd be i n t e r e s t e d in
d o i n g and would be p l e a s e d if it were to end up in

I have been on deadline for so long that the only way I get
anything done is to have a friend who comes over to help me
with my c o r r e s p o n d e n c e — a s is the case at this m o m e n t . I
must tell you that I am also at this moment l o o k i n g
f r a n t i c a l l y around for that tape. Now that I can't find it,
I wonder if it wouldn't be better for you to submit the
q u e s t i o n s to m e and I'll respond in writing.

I hope this meets with your a p p r o v a l . I think it suggests

the s t r o n g p o s s i b i l i t y that the project will be c o m p l e t e d !

Sincerely,

Bill Kraft
 63

July 5, 1991

Well Barry--

My secretary gave up on the d i c t a t i n g i d e a — t o o v o l u m i n o u s a

prospect. Then I s t a r t e d to tape here in this m o t e l room in
Eugene . . . batteries dead!! This is a m o n s t r o u s project
you propose, but I'll do my best to do something w h i l e I've
started. I've even forgotten what this was for! Tell me
again.

[The most recent b i o g r a p h i c a l information on you that I have

read was w r i t t e n in 1985. What have you been doing in
recent y e a r s ? ]

Look at the 1985 and 1990 editions of the B a k e r ' s D i c t i o n a r y

for an u p - t o - d a t e bio. The G r o v e ' s is totally i n a d e q u a t e .
In b r i e f :

1985-88, composer in residence, C h a p m a n College

in O r a n g e , CA
1988-91, visiting professor, UCLA and U C - S a n t a
Barbara

I'll have to tell you in a month or so about the f u t u r e .

R e m i n d me when I return to L.A., or better yet, write to N e w
M u s i c West to get m y list of a c t i v i t i e s .

You might look for the N o n e s u c h CD titled " W i l l i a m K r a f t . "

T h e r e are three pieces with liner notes that will be
informative. Veils and V a r i a t i o n s for horn and o r c h e s t r a
(premiere 1986) won first prize in the K e n n e d y F r i e d h e i m
c o m p e t i t i o n in 1990, and will be p e r f o r m e d and r e c o r d e d
January 1991 by the Alabama S y m p h o n y O r c h e s t r a , t o be on a
CD along with my piano and t i m p a n i c o n c e r t o s . (The latter
two have already been m a s t e r e d and will be c o u p l e d with

[You have been the recipient of a n u m b e r of h o n o r s ,

i n c l u d i n g two G u g g e n h e i m Fellowships and three NEA grants.
What was the direct result of each of these a w a r d s ? What
did they e n a b l e you to do?]

The first G u g g e n h e i m allowed me to take off from the L . A .

P h i l h a r m o n i c and go to southern France to write Triangrles.
The second allowed me to go to London to write the Piano
C o n c e r t o , as well as catch up on the c o n t e m p o r a r y music
scene there. NEA g r a n t s - - o n e to do the Tuba Concerto, one
to do G a l l e r y '83, and a n o t h e r to do Q u a r t e t for the L o v e of
Time .
 64

[Of all the m u s i c a l experiences you have had, which o n e s

were the most r e w a r d i n g ? ]

Playing for Edward Van B e i n u m (L.A.P.O., 1957).

P r e m i e r e s of m y C o n c e r t o for Four P e r c u s s i o n S o l o i s t s and

Orchestra, Contextures: R i o t s - D e c a d e L£Q., T i m p a n i C o n c e r t o ,
I n t e r p l a y , Piano Concerto, V e i l s and V a r i a t i o n s , D o u b l e
Trio, and Contextures II: The Final Beast.

W i n n i n g the Kennedy F r i e d h e i m : second prize in 1984 for the

T i m p a n i C o n c e r t o , first in 19 90 for V e i l s and V a r i a t i o n s .

P l a y i n g for and working with S t r a v i n s k y ; in p a r t i c u l a r ,

r e c o r d i n g H i s t o i r e du Soldat with him. Early days as
t i m p a n i s t with Zubin Mehta were e x c i t i n g .

To the tape n o w — I ' v e got new batteries! Hope all is c l e a r .

R e m i n d me to look for the P.A.S. speech. It should be in m y

files .

Let me know if you have questions.

Bill Kraft

26 N o v e m b e r 1991

Dear Barry:

Don't worry about a p o l o g i z i n g for t a k i n g so long. I

s o m e t i m e s never answer l e t t e r s . The i n t e r v i e w is fine. I'm
f l a t t e r e d that you want to use my m u s i c for your l e c t u r e
recital and am pleased with the idea of giving it to

One c o r r e c t i o n you must m a k e - - t h e r e is no d e f i n i t e article

in H i s t o i r e du S o l d a t . If you have a copy of my part to the
piece, you can learn all about that. Stravinsky never used
it, and Bob Craft says it was some smart British e d i t o r who
thought it was grammatically incorrect not to add the
article.

Keep me i n f o r m e d .

With thanks,

Bill Kraft
 65

February 24, 1992

Dear Barry,

Sorry to have taken so long, but I have been busy since your
letter arrived, with my honeymoon, two residencies, and a
major concert commemorating my investiture in the Corwin
Chair at UCSB [University of California-Santa Barbara].

Here are the answers to your current questions:

1) Encounters I was the original title for jjoliloquy •

When I put out the work as more or less a conversation with
oneself, I thought it would do well with a more poetic
title.

2) Regarding the initials D.L.A. on Encounters III,

they stand for Dallas and Los Angeles. This was Thomas
Stevens' request, because he, Mitchell Peters, and I all had
been in the Dallas Symphony and then moved to the Los
Angeles Philharmonic.

3) William Malloch in Encounters IV. Malloch had made

a record of anti-war speeches and songs. I asked his
permission to incorporate some of this material in

4) Carl Faber, the author of the poem in

is a psychotherapist who was very helpful to me during the
separation from my ex-wife.

Keep me informed of your progress, Hope it's going well and

hope to meet you someday.

Sincerely,

Bill Kraft
 66

January 16, 1993

Dear Barry,

I still have your letter of 23 July and I saw a couple

of t h i n g s that I might not have r e s p o n d e d to, p r i m a r i l y
r e g a r d i n g the L. A. P e r c u s s i o n E n s e m b l e and r e c o r d i n g s . One
is the Los Angeles P h i l h a r m o n i c ' s recording of two V a r ^ s e
p i e c e s c o n d u c t e d by Mehta ("Integrales" and " I o n i z a t i o n " ) .
T h e r e is also G i n a s t e r a ' s "Cantata for M a g i c A m e r i c a , "
c o n d u c t e d by Henri Temianka but p r e p a r e d by m e — B o b can tell
you the story b e h i n d it.

Early jazz groups I played with were mostly in San

D i e g o in clubs, but I did a short stint with Alvino Rey
b e f o r e moving to New York. Let me know if I sent you a copy
of E n c o u n t e r s 8. There is a new E n c o u n t e r s - - 1 0 , for v i o l i n
and m a r i m b a , c o m m i s s i o n e d and premiered by M a r i m o l i n . New
M u s i c West would have copies.

All best wishes,

William Kraft
 APPENDIX B

INTERVIEW WITH WILLIAM KRAFT

67
 68

The following is a transcript of an interview between

William Kraft and the author. The author submitted the
questions in writing, and Kraft recorded his responses on an
audio cassette on July 5, 1991.

BB: Who (or what) influenced you most as a composer of

percussion music?

WK: I would certainly say Stravinsky's Histoire du Soldat.

having played it so much in my early days. That had quite
an influence. In fact, the first multiple percussion piece
I wrote used the same set-up, the same graduated drums.
Varese, not so much, although it fIonization1 is an
important work to me. And the same thing with Chavez's
Toccata. But it was Stravinsky's Histoire du Soldat most of
all.

In the 50's, when I started to compose, it was sort of

"in the air," and I just started to do it.

BB: What goes through your mind when you write for
percussion?

WK: Just like with any other piece--what is this piece

about, and what is the idiom? So, essentially, it's not
different from other works.

BB: You have always used pictographic symbols in your works

to indicate specific instruments, implements, and
techniques. Where did you get the idea to do this?

WK: In the 50 's and into the 60's, composers were getting
more and more into the use of pictographic symbols, as well
as other kinds of new notatio n — a n y t h i n g they could think
of. I played the American pr emiere of Zyklus, and that is
full of pictog raphic symbols, Earl Brown and all these
people had inf luence on me in this sense. But it was also a
way of saving time and space in putting it down. Sometimes
it would be ju st too much to write out the names of things,
The idea came from being in t he air, and I didn't invent it.

BB: Which symbols did you invent that are now used
universally?

WK: I really don't know. I did invent a lot of those I

used in the French Suite—the ways of playing the
cymbal--with the shank of the stick, the tip of the stick,
across the dome, on the side, on the face of the cymbal.
All that certainly was invented by me, I know it's been
used by other composers. I can think of three works, one by
Charles DeLancey. There was a former percussion student of
 69

mine--Rick Tagawa--who wrote a piece fInspirations

Diaboliquel. Both of them copied the French Suite. Also,
Ingolf Dahl utilized a lot of the symbols. In fact, he
called me up to get permission . The other two did not.
How other composers have done, I don't know.

Besides those cymbal indications, [there are] the stick

indications. When I want to indicate the kind of sticks, [I
use] the X shape with balls on the end. If it's two
[sticks], it's an X. If it's four, it's a double X. In the
bottom opening [of the X], I put a letter to indicate the
kind of stick--G for glockenspiel, V for vibraphone, etc.
And in the top opening, [I put] a number from 1 to 3 — 1
being soft, 2, medium, and 3, hard. I did make the mistake
on one piece of reversing that.

For timpani sticks, I used 1 to 6 and identified each

number. 1 was a big ball mallet. 2 and 3, if I remember
correctly, were general [general-purpose m a l l e t s ] — 2 being a
wood-core general and 3 being a felt-core general. (I'm
sorry, I don't have my scores with me. You would have to
look at something like the Nonet. 4 would be staccato; 5,
ultra-staccato; 6, wood.

A spiral was a circular gliss one would do on a

drumhead. An N prior to the spiral indicated fingernails
and an S, skin.

I use a line with a dip in the center to indicate a

crotale. In other words, it's in the shape of the crotale--
inverted.

A squiggly vertical line indicated wind chimes. A W

over it meant wood; M, metal; G, glass. You might look at
which is full of that.

Do get a score, and you will see all the symbolism that
I ever created.

BB: What are some of your favorite percussion sounds?

WK: One is the doubling of the vibraphone in its uppermost

register with the lowest register of the glockenspiel,
either in a unison stroke or, more likely, in a tremolo in a
melodic line. Because the frequency waves are not in sync,
they go against each other and create a vibrato, a warmer
sound. Doubling is something I'm always very interested in
to create new sounds.

I also enjoy the technique I put into the bass drum,

where one plays with a hard mallet--possibly a large marimba
 70

mallet--in the left hand, and in the right hand, a rattan

shank, striking flatly against the head. [See third
movement of Suite for Percussion.1 In both hands, the base
of the palm muffles the head so that it gets a sharp blow
and a sharp high sound.

I would say, in a negative way, that I don't like

"bald" percussion sounds, because the color spends itself so
quickly. So I always look for doublings to warm up or
change the color.

There's so many sounds I like that it's impossible to

say any more about favorites.

BB: What percussion sounds are you responsible for

introducing to formal composition?

WK: I haven't looked at enough percussion music in the last

decade, or perhaps longer than that, to see what other
composers have taken from me. I've been so busy composing
my own stuff, and I haven't had my ensemble for twenty years
now.

You know, I never thought about what I was responsible

for introducing to formal composition. It was just that I
was writing a piece, and I did what was necessary. In Pes
Imagistes, which was the most demanding piece, there are a
lot of things. I mean, striking the spring coil. I simply
went to a junkyard and tried everything. When I had my
ensemble in the late 50's and 60's, I had my head on the
ground all the time to see what people threw away in the
trash. I just picked up things that I thought would be
possible. Of course, the different kinds of pipes—that was
in the air, so I didn't start that.

Possibly the different ways of playing the cymbals was

a unique invention of mine. That was 1959--the French
Suite. And in the Nonet--that's about the same time--the
graduated triangle beaters. Mount them in a box and strike
them in stepwise fashion with a pair of beaters—that's used
in the fifth movement of the Nonet.

BB: I have heard that you dislike the sound of single-

headed drums. Is that true? If so, why?

WK: That was true, because of--again, from Histoire du

Soldat--the graduated drums there. I learned that the
double-headed drums have a more lively sound—a more
"pinging" sound—and what I didn't like about single-headed
drums was that they were "tubby." My ears are changing a
little bit now, because if I write a piece that has several
 71

percussion sounds, I need other drum sounds, and single

heads seem to come in. I think I'm getting used to that
sound and finding a good use for it. In fact, I'm using a
set of graduated single-headed drums in the piece I'm
working on now that will be titled Songs of Flowers, Bells,
and Death. I'm doing that for Brigham Young University, the
Barnwell Foundation .

BB: How has your use of percussion changed over the years?

WK: Probably more towards regular instrumental writing, and

possibly a little less characteristic of percussion. I'm
always trying to be more and more, shall we say, musical,
and I find that it affects the concept more as I go on.

BB: Which composition do you feel represents your best

percussion writing?

WK: That's hard to say. As far as timpani goes, there's no

question that the Timpani Concerto does that . As far as
percussion writing, I certainly still appreciate what I did
in the Concerto for Fnur Permission Soloists and Orchestra.
I also feel that Momentum makes very good use of percussion.
And Pes Imagistes. certainly. Those four works seem to
stand out. I am fond of Soliloquy, which is also called
Encounters I, but I think the others cover more territory.

BB: How did the Encounters series come about?

WK: Simple. Somewhere around '66 or '67, I was asked to do

a concert on the series in Pasadena called Encounters, and
they were one-man shows. I remember they had Luciano Berio
and people like that. When they came to town, they did it.
And then there were local composers that were also on the
series. So I had my Double Trio being played on the
program, and they needed five more minutes of music. They
needed a half-hour, and the Double Trio is 25 minutes. So I
wrote this piece for Roger Bobo--an unaccompanied tuba
solo--and called it Encounters II. I knew that Carl Cohen
had written a piece called Encountersf so I called mine
It started from there. It was after
that I did Encounters I. because everybody kept
asking me, "Where is Encounters I?"

After the tuba piece, it came to mean encounters

between percussion and another instrument, because of
Encounters III, which was written as kind of a war game, so
that it was an encounter between the two people. It caught
on, and I just stuck with it.
 72

BB: The dates o£ publication foe nos. I, II, and III are
1975, 1966, and 1971, respectively. Was this the order in
which they were composed?

WK: II, III, IV, V, I, VI, VII, VIII, IX. I think it's
VIII that I've withdrawn. I didn't like it, and I'll do it
again someday.

BB: Nos. II and VIII are unaccompanied solo pieces. What

made you decide to call them "encounters"?

WK: II was the first one on the series called Encounters.

VIII is called Encounters because it was is the line of
percussion solo works, and it seemed to join into the other
Encounters works. And I can always say, if necessary, that
it's an encounter with oneself. But that's really begging
the question. There's no logic to VIII being called
Encounters--iust that it's in the series of pieces.

BB: Most (if not all) of the Encounters were commissioned.

Did the individuals who commissioned them ask you to write
"a piece like Encounters III." or was that your idea?

WK: No. No one ever asked me to write a certain way. That

was my idea about Encounters III. I'll tell you quickly how
it came about. My ex-wife was going to do an article on
creativity. So she told m e — I just realized the article
never came out. She was probably just picking my brain.
But she asked me how a piece came into being. And just off
the top of my head, I said, "Well, Tommy Stevens asked me to
write a piece for trumpet and percussion. So I start
thinking . . . What is this piece about? There are two
people involved. I could say that it's a duet, or I could
say they're in opposition. If they're in opposition, they
could be two warring parties—an attacking force and a
defending force." Next thing I knew, I had described the
entire piece to her.

BB: Is there a common thread that runs through all these

pieces?

WK: For the most part, it is the idea of percussion and

another instrument. Otherwise, no. Except for III and IV,
which are very much alike. IV was patterned after III,
because I enjoyed III so much.

BB: In what ways has the concept behind the series evolved
since the first composition?

WK: That's hard to say. I hadn't thought about it. I

can't say that the concept has changed.
 73

BB: Why is Encounters VIII no longer available?

WK: Simply because I was dissatisfied with it. I thought I

could do better, and I hope I will someday.

BB: You use the Bunker trill in all of the Encounters. Who
invented this technique--you or Larry Bunker?

WK: I'm not sure who invented it. It may have been
somebody like Gary Burton. All I know is that it was Larry
Bunker who showed it to me. That's why I call it the Bunker
trill.

BB: Which of the Encounters is your favorite?

WK: There are two that are my favorites: Soliloquy and

Encounters III. Encounters IV comes close when it is
done--it's so hard to get the instruments together, I'm
sorry about that--and when it's done well. I must say that
I've never heard a bad performance. It's always different,
unique, because the performers have so much to with it.

BB: Will there ever be an Encounters X?

WK: If somebody asked me to. I would like to go back and

do another VIII first, but that's neither here nor there.
VIII would have to be another solo, though, because it was
written for Jim Latimer. He commissioned it, and although
he has played it, I would still like to change it.

BB: What is your opinion of the current state of

percussion? What aspects please you? disappoint you?
surprise you?

WK: You have to understand one thing, Barry. These

questions are of such a large nature that we could spend
hours and hours doing this. Several individual questions
invite a half-hour response. I don't know if I'm
exaggerating or not, quite honestly. When you ask a
question about the current state of percussion--what pleases
me, what disappoints me--one things leads to another. But I
will try to get some essence going.

If you realize that when I started to study percussion

in the late 40's and into the 50's, there were no ensembles.
I don't know if Paul Price had even started his. It was
shortly after he had his that I started my percussion
quartet in Los Angeles, which then became the Los Angeles
Percussion Ensemble. That was '56.
 74

The lack of material then was appalling, and now it's

voluminous--almost too much. But I am so pleased that there
are so many prominent composers that have written fine works
for percussion, as well as in their symphonic works. Not
just ensemble pieces, but large percussion usage in
orchestral works. And of course, in new music ensembles the
percussion usage is really incredible. It's really a great
pleasure to see that many gifted composers have utilized
percussion in a very musical way.

What disappoints me--one small item--is that we can't

get more graduated tuned instruments more readily available.
Like tuned gongs--the good ones, the Balinese ones. They're
just so expensive it's prohibitive. I love to write for
those things--the sounds are beautiful. You can go back to
that previous question about sounds that I like, and
certainly Balinese gongs are one of the sounds that I love.

What also disappoints me is that percussionists

sometimes consider themselves to be composers when they
don't know enough about composition, and they tend to write
what I call "rat-a-tat-boom-boom music." It's too obvious,
it's too simplistic, and at the same time, pretentious in
its conception and intention. I wish that they would take a
little more time to study composition before they go out and
write works that really don't make good music. At the same
time, I could be being a bit of a prig about this, because I
look at the programming of many ensembles, and I see that
they like to program lighter works than those that please
me. I think of Michael Colgrass being a fine composer.
Christopher Rouse is the composer-in-residence with the
Baltimore Symphony, and he has written some fine works.

What surprises me is that percussion has come to such a

high level of performance. The knowledge of percussion and
the integrity of percussionists is so grand now. You know
that there were no percussion departments before the 50's,
and now almost every college seems to have a percussion
department, a percussion ensemble, and there are professors
of percussion, many of whom have doctorates--very well
educated, very fine musicians. And now we have what I call
"the twentieth-century phenomenon"--the percussionist/
composer. People would call me that. Michael Colgrass,
Chris Rouse. Conductors like Harold Farberman and Lucky
Moskos. Jan Williams is an administrator. So we have
percussionists now as well-educated musicians, as opposed to
what they were before the Second World War. They came out
of bands and pits then, but they were not as educated as
they are now. They were rudimentally trained drummers; now
we have really incredible musicians.
 75

BB: Have you noticed a change in recent years in the

attitude of composers toward percussion? Are they beginning
to take more seriously the idea o£ percussionists as
soloists, or do they still look upon us as supporting
players?

WK: Not necessarily, not in recent years. It's been going

on since the 5 0's. When you look at the works of Boulez,
Stockhausen, Moderna, Berio--the knowledge they have of
percussion, and the knowledge most of the major composers
have, has certainly increased. They are writing for the
instruments in a much more musical way than they had
formerly.

I think you will see that there are more and more
soloists--if not as individual soloists, then certainly as a
section in the orchestra. You see so many more soloists
than you did. You look at an orchestral work, and you might
see xylophone soloists, snare drum soloists. William
Schuman's Third Symphony is just like the Bolero. I hadn't
thought of Bolero, but that was certainly taking percussion
very seriously. Many composers have taken percussion
seriously and used it in their works in soloistic ways .

BB: If you had your career to do over again, is there

anything you would do differently?

WK: Sure. I would have started studying seriously much

sooner. I would have gotten out of San Diego sooner. I
would have gone to New York sooner. I would have studied
much more music, read much more than I did. Score-reading,
for one thing. Everything that makes a fine musician, I
would have done. As well as getting into other fields which
help a composer's awareness of possible subject matter. I'm
talking about literature, math, physics. All those things I
would have liked to have gone into sooner and more intently.

BB: What advice do you have for young percussionists?

WK: Do what I just said that I would do. They should

always realize that it's difficult to make a career in
music, and you have to be very, very good, and perhaps lucky
as well. I would say lucky, too, when I think of how many
fine players show up at auditions, and only one is chosen.
It's a profession where there is no middle ground. I always
advised my students at USC [University of Southern
California], when I taught there in the 60's, to have
another major--something to fall back on, something to cover
them while they're looking for work. Most likely, pick up
an education degree, so they could teach.
 76

Fortunately, most of them did get into the p r o f e s s i o n .

A c t u a l l y , one who got into the p r o f e s s i o n chose t e a c h i n g .
That was Barry S i l v e r m a n — a fine t i m p a n i s t , fine
p e r c u s s i o n i s t - - b u t he p r e f e r r e d t e a c h i n g , and because of his
e d u c a t i o n , he was c a p a b l e of c o n d u c t i n g , and that's what he
does a lot now in the s c h o o l s .

So I say get a very good and w e l l - r o u n d e d e d u c a t i o n ,

and have a second degree in something to fall back on.

BB: What does the future hold for William Kraft? What are
some of your goals?

WK: The immediate future I will know about in a c o u p l e of

months, I hope, about a chair position at U C - S a n t a B a r b a r a .
So keep in touch with me on that. I w o u l d n ' t talk about it,
except it seems to be pretty much in place. But it's not in
p l a c e yet, and you can't count your chickens before t h e y
hatch.

More composing, certainly. I always c o m p o s e , and I

hope that I will c o n t i n u e forever and ever to compose and
have performances.

My goals are to write some larger w o r k s . I'd love to

do an opera, and p e r h a p s another large o r c h e s t r a l work.
I've thought of writing a s y m p h o n y . I don't know why, but I
t h i n k a lot of us A m e r i c a n c o m p o s e r s feel that we really
have arrived if we write a symphony, a l t h o u g h the symphony
is e s s e n t i a l l y a n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y concept.

That looks like I've done it for you, B a r r y . I could

have said more, I'm sure, and maybe some is l a c k i n g b e c a u s e
it's rather late--it's 11:20 at night. I've been doing this
for about an hour, and p e r h a p s I'm a little t i r e d . You can
hear my voice is gravelly, and perhaps my speech is a l i t t l e
slow. Maybe I should have done this in the m o r n i n g . Let m e
know how this is for you, and we'll go from t h e r e .

As I said in the letter that p r e c e d e s this tape, I

already forgot why you w a n t e d this. If I find your earlier
letter, I'll find out. O t h e r w i s e , tell me.

Thank you very much, Barry. Good-bye.

 APPENDIX C

CHRONOLOGICAL L I S T I N G OF WORKS BY W I L L I A M K R A F T

WHICH UTILIZE P E R C U S S I O N

77
 78

TITLE DATE MEDIUM PERC

T h e m e and V a r i a t i o n s for 1956 Chamber 4

Percussion Quartet

Suite for Weatherkings 1958 Perc E n s e m b l e 4

Nonet 1958 Chamber 4

T h r e e M i n i a t u r e s for P e r c u s s i o n 1958 Orchestra 4

and O r c h e s t r a

A Simple I n t r o d u c t i o n to the 1958 Orchestra 4

Orchestra

Teresa of Avila 1959 Perc E n s e m b l e 4

Concerto Grosso 1961 Orchestra 2

American Carnival O v e r t u r e 1962 Orchestra 2

French Suite 1962 Per c Solo 1

Suite for P e r c u s s i o n (Suite for 1963 Perc Ensemble 4

W e a t h e r k i n g s plus 2 a d d i t i o n a l
movements)

Morris Dance 1964 Perc Solo 1

Trio for Percussion 1964 Perc E n s e m b l e 3

Scherzo a Due 1964 Perc Ensemble 2

2-4-1 1964 Perc Solo 1

Concerto for Four P e r c u s s i o n 1964 Orchestra 4

S o l o i s t s and O r c h e s t r a

C o n f i g u r a t i o n s : Concerto for Four 1966 Jaz z Orch 4

Percussion Soloists

Double Trio 1966 Chamber 2

Encounters II 1966 Tuba Solo 0

Momentum 1966 Perc Ensemble 8

* E n c o u n t e r s II does not use p e r c u s s i o n , but is i n c l u d e d

in this list because of its relevance to the t o p i c .
 79

TITLE DATE MEDIUM PERC

Contextures: Riots-Decade "60 1967 Orchestra 3

Corrente II 1967 Perc Solo 1

Triangles: Concerto for 1968 Chamber 1

Percussion and 10 Instruments

1969 Wind Ensemble 4
Games: Collage I
1971 Chamber 1
Encounters III
1971 Perc Solo 1
Theme and Metric Variations
1972 Chamber 1
Encounters IV
1972 Any instr ?
Colorations
1973 Orchestra 2
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra
1973 Perc Solo 1
English Suite
1973 Perc Solo 1
Da-Dit (etude)
1973 Perc Solo 1
L'Arlesienne Sweet (etude)
1973 Perc Solo 1
Passacaglia for One Drum
1974 Orchestra 4
Tintinnabulations: Collage No. 3
1974 Chamber 6
Des Imagistes
1975 Chamber 1
Encounters V
1975 Perc Solo 1
Soliloquy: Encounters I
Two Drums in the Shape of an 1975 Perc Solo 1
Etude

Dream Tunnel 1976 Orchestra 2

Encounters VI 1976 Perc Ensemble 5

Encounters VII 1977 Perc Ensemble 2

Avalanche Suite 1978 Orchestra ?

Encounters VIII 1978 Perc Solo 1

Images 1978 Timpani Solo 1

 80

TITLE DATE MED IUM PERC

M's P (an encore piece) 1978 Timpani Solo 1

Concerto for Tuba with Three 1979 Orchestra 4

C h a m b e r Groups and O r c h e s t r a

The Sublime and the Beautiful 1979 Vocal 1

Dialogues and E n t e r t a i n m e n t s 1980 Wind E n s e m b l e 7

Variations for King George 1980 Timpani Solo 1

Settlers Suite 1981 Orchestra 2

Trifle for Timothy 1981 Perc Solo 1

D o u b l e Play for Violin, Piano and 1982 Orchestra 1

Chamber Orchestra

Fire and Ice Suite 1982 Orchestra 2

Encounters IX 1982 Chamber 1

Concerto for T i m p a n i and 1983 Orchestra 4

Orchestra

1
Gallery 83 1983 Chamber 1

Kandinsky Variations 1983 Any instr ?

Interplay 1984 Orchestra 4+6

Contextures II: The Final Beast 1984 Chamber 2

Weavings 1984 Chamber 1

Melange 1985 Chamber 1

Quintessence: Concerto for Five 1985 Wind E n s e m b l e 5+6

Percussion Soloists

Contextures II: The Final Beast 1986 Orchestra 1+7

Of C e r e m o n i e s , Pageants, and 1987 Orchestra 4+6

Celebrations

Quartet for Percussion 1988 Perc E n s e m b l e 4

A Kennedy Portrait 1988 Orchestra 4

 81

TITLE DATE MEDIUM PERC

Veils and Variations for Horn and 1988 Orchestra 4

Orchestra

Vintage Renaissance 1989 Orchestra 4

Fanfare Vintage 90-91 1990 Orchestra 4

Settings for Pierrot Lunaire 1990 Chamber 1

Encounters X 1992 Chamber 1

 APPENDIX D

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE ENCOUNTERS SERIES

82
 83

TITLE: Soliloquy: Encounters I

MEDIUM: Solo p e r c u s s i o n and e l e c t r o n i c tape
DATE: 19 7 5
PUBLISHED: New Music West - 1979
C O M M I S S I O N E D BY: Karen Ervin
D E D I C A T E D TO: Karen Ervin
PREMIERE: 1975 - P e r c u s s i v e Arts Society I n t e r n a t i o n a l
C o n v e n t i o n (Chicago) - Karen Ervin
RECORDING: Protone CSPR 163 (cassette)
DURATION: 13:23

TITLE: E n c o u n t e r s II
MEDIUM: Solo tuba
DATE: 19 6 6
PUBLISHED: E d i t i o n s BIM
PREMIERE: 1967 - P a s a d e n a concert series - Roger Bobo
RECORDING: Crystal S 12 5
DURATION: 6:00

TITLE: E n c o u n t e r s III: Duel for T r u m p e t and P e r c u s s i o n

MEDIUM: Duet for t r u m p e t and p e r c u s s i o n
DATE: 19 71
PUBLISHED: New Music West - 1973
C O M M I S S I O N E D BY: Thomas Stevens
D E D I C A T E D TO: Thomas Stevens and M i t c h e l l P e t e r s
PREMIERE: 1972 - M a l c o l m McNab (trumpet) and Karen E r v i n
(percussion)
RECORDING: Protone CSPR 163 (cassette)
DURATION: 15:40

TITLE: E n c o u n t e r s IV: Duel for T r o m b o n e and P e r c u s s i o n

MEDIUM: Duet for t r o m b o n e and p e r c u s s i o n
DATE: 1972
PUBLISHED: New Music West - 1975
C O M M I S S I O N E D BY: Karen Ervin and T h o m a s Ervin
PREMIERE: 197 3 - Tucson - Thomas Ervin (trombone) and Karen
Ervin (percussion)
RECORDING: Crystal S 64 1
DURATION: 15:00
 84

TITLE: E n c o u n t e r s V: In the M o r n i n g of the W i n t e r Sea

MEDIUM: Duet for cello and p e r c u s s i o n
DATE: 1975, r e v i s e d 1982
PUBLISHED: New Music West - 1982
C O M M I S S I O N E D BY: Ford F o u n d a t i o n
PREMIERE: 1976 - L i n c o l n Center (New York) - N a t h a n i e l
Rosen (cello) and W i l l i a m Kraft (percussion)
DURATION: 10:00

TITLE: E n c o u n t e r s VI: Concertino for Roto Toms a n d

P e r c u s s i o n Quartet
MEDIUM: Solo p e r c u s s i o n and p e r c u s s i o n quartet
DATE: 19 7 6
PUBLISHED: New Music West - 1977
COMMISSIONED: Remo D. B e l l i
D E D I C A T E D TO: Jennifer Kraft (daughter)
PREMIERE: 1976 - Music Educators N a t i o n a l C o n f e r e n c e
(Atlantic City) - Glenn Steele (conductor)
DURATION: 9:00

TITLE: E n c o u n t e r s VII: Blessed Are the P e a c e m a k e r s

MEDIUM: Duet for p e r c u s s i o n
DATE: 19 7 7
PUBLISHED: New Music West - 1977
C O M M I S S I O N E D BY: Steve Grimo and Pat H o l l e n b e c k
D E D I C A T E D TO: Liz, David, Marc, Pat, M a r s h a , Rick, Nancy,
Don, Sylvia, and especially C a r l - - t h e y know
PREMIERE: 197 8 - B o s t o n - Steve Grimo and Pat H o l l e n b e c k
DURATION: 12:00

TITLE: E n c o u n t e r s VIII: The Latimer E n c o u n t e r

MEDIUM: Solo p e r c u s s i o n
DATE: 1978
PUBLISHED: New Music West - 1978
C O M M I S S I O N E D BY: M e m b e r s and alumni of W i s c o n s i n Youth
Symphony
PREMIERE: Jim Latimer
DURATION: 10:00
 85

TITLE: E n c o u n t e r s IX
MEDIUM: Duet for alto saxophone and p e r c u s s i o n
DATE: 19 8 2
PUBLISHED: New Music West - 1982
C O M M I S S I O N E D BY: B a y l o r University
PREMIERE: 1982 - I n t e r n a t i o n a l S a x o p h o n e C o n g r e s s
(Nuremberg, G e r m a n y ) - David Hastings (saxophone) and
Larry V a n l a n d i n g h a m (percussion)
DURATION: 10:00

TITLE: E n c o u n t e r s X: D u o l o g u e for violin and m a r i m b a

MEDIUM: Duet for violin and p e r c u s s i o n
DATE: 19 92
PUBLISHED: New Music West - 1992
C O M M I S S I O N E D BY: Marimolin
PREMIERE: 1992 - P e r c u s s i v e Arts Society I n t e r n a t i o n a l
C o n v e n t i o n (New Orleans) - Sharan Leventhal (violin)
and Nancy Zeltsman (marimba)
 APPENDIX E

PERCUSSION EQUIPMENT USED IN ENCOUNTERS

 87

The numbers at the top of the columns refer to the different

Encounters compositions. "1" designates Encounters I: 3,
Encounters III: and so forth. There is no column for
Encounters II because it does not use percussion.

INSTRUMENT |
| 1 3 1 4 1 5 | 6 7 1 8 | 9 10
1— 1 1 — 1
1 1 1 1 1
KEYBOARD PERCUSSION I 1 1 1 1
I
1 |
1 1j |
1 1I
Vibraphone | 1 1 | 1 1 1 11 2 1 1 1 1
i
1 1
1 1
1 |
1 1I
Glockenspiel I 1 1 11 1
| 1 1|
1 |
1 I{ 1 1
1
Chimes I 1 1 1 2 1 1 1
i
1 |
1 11 1
1 I
1
Marimba I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
i
1 1
1 1
1 1
1 |
1
Deagan song bells | 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1
1 I
I |
1 |
1 11
1
1 1 1 1 1
OTHER PITCHED PERCUSSION| 1 1 1
| 1|
| | |
1 1 1 1 1
Crotales 1 8 110 I set |5 8 I set |
I
1 t
1 i
1 i
1 i
1
Tuned gongs | 3 1 9 i i i i
11 i
i i
i i
I (
1
Stainless steel bowls I 111 i i i i
i
1 i
1 i
1 i
1 i
1
Timpani | 1 4 i i 6 i i
i
1 i
1 i
i i
1 i
I
Roto-toms | i i 7 i i
1 i i i i
i
1 i i
i i 1 i
i i i i i
MEMBRANE PERCUSSION | i i i i
1
1 i
1 i
1 i
1 i
i
Bongos | 2 2 1 2 1 2 | 3 1 2 | 2
1
1 1
1 1
1 |
1 |
1
Snare drum | 1 1 I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2
|
1 I
1 |
1 |
1 1f
Field drum | 1 | 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1
1 |
1 1| 1 |
1 1
Tenor drum | 1 1 I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
i
1 I | I 1
1 1 1 1
Bass drum | 1 1 1 11 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1
 88

INSTRUMENT 1 I 3 10

AUXILIARY PERCUSSION

Tam-tam 1 4 4 1

Cymbals 5 4 4 3

Spring coil 1 1

Triangle 3 1

Temple blocks 5 3

Woodblocks 2

Cowbells

Tin trash can lid

Metal wind chimes

Brake drums

Japanese prayer bowls are listed as optional instruments in

 APPENDIX F

PERCUSSION SET-UPS USED IN E N C O U N T E R S

89
 90

Illustration 1. Suggested set-up for Encounters I

AUDIENCE

nnwmc

O
VIBRAPHONE

TRAP TABLE
TAM
TAM
 91

Illustration 2. Suggested set-up for Encounters III

Trumpet- I & I I Trumpet- I I I

3 Tri ang! es ^ g „
5 Temple Blocks ^ O n
•
°O ~
Q Q Q Q Q
5 Cow Bells
Tuned Gongs Crotales (all but C)

C Crotale

Tan Tan Bongos

^ : Music Stand

Illustration 3. Suggested set-up for Encounters V

Crotales

o
Q

ao
O o Io

oo
Sizzle
Cymbal

H
V ibraphone p

IOo
oj

LC
Stick
Spring/
oo 8
H
P
3
i

CO
Coil !
Table
 92

Illustration 4. Suggested set-up for Encounters IV

• ••
•

••0
ID* X
ID
• STAGE SET-UP
Trombone

Percussion
• •
Speaker
Audience

PERCUSSION SET-UP

Tam Tams Gongs I

Rack -

Trash Can Lid

0 0 0 ©

6 Mu^d s . S . Bowls Tenor Drum

\
^Timpani F.D. , S.D IP Stick table
•Bongos
Vibraphone
•Crotales
Stick
table

Tam Tams Gongs I Gongs II

D FS G Bb
 93

Illustration 5. Suggested set-up for Encounters VII

O
-IB

AUDIENCE.
 94

Illustration 6. Suggested set-up for E n c o u n t e r s VIII

*i
>
5

CfllYTAtlri

Illustration 7. Suggested set-up for E n c o u n t e r s IX

Tam-tam above Cymbals

Alto Saxophone B.D.

9 X)
S 0
c b ^ T . D .
A OO F.D.
A
Bongos
Graduated Drums

AUDIENCE
 APPENDIX G

SYMBOLS USED IN ENCOUNTERS

95
 96

INSTRUMENTS

Vibraphone

Glockenspiel

Marimba

Chimes

Crotales

Prayer Bowls

^7 Timpani

U1 Tarn Tam

_L Suspended Cymbal

o 1o Sizzle Cymbal

A Triangle

o Cow Bell

J~L Brake Drum

Spring Coil

Temple Blocks

Woodblock
 97

IMPLEMENTS

/ 1 mallet

X 2 mallets

IX 3 mallets

4 mallets. Sometimes i n d i v i d u a l
mallets are numbered to indicate
sticking.

letter refers to type of mallet

X (v=vibraphone, m=marimba), and number refers

to hardness (l = soft, 2=medium, 3=hard)

> /

X Snare Drum Sticks

Double-headed Sticks
x
Brushes

/ *
Triangle Beater
/ \

Knitting Needles

Bass Bow

s
x Cluster M a l l e t s (dowel head is either 9"

X or 16" long)

Chime Mallet
 98

TECHNIQUES

dead stroke

open

X dampen with fingers or head of other m a l l e t

X keep dampened (i.e. hold fingers or mallet

on b a r )

BTS Bunker trill with slow v i b r a t o

/d gliss downward 1/4 tone

^ harmonics

O bow vibraphone bar

bow crotale on timpani

q) circular gliss (i.e. slide around head)

q)N gliss with fingernails

@S gliss with skin of fingertips

e)M gliss with m a l l e t s

scraping glissando

N play with fingernails

S play with fingertips

 99

play with fingers

R.S. rim shot

+
fx bongo rim shot

ILOL. mallet at edge of c y m b a l (full sound)

shank of stick on dome of cymbal

/*•n — strike edge of cymbal with shank of stick

strike dome of cymbal

brush trill on cymbal

tremolo b e t w e e n temple b l o c k s (with ball of

mallet)

DIRECTIONS

i motor off (vibraphone)

t motor on (vibraphone)

pedal down throughout bracketed space

pedal on

pedal off

HO white cluster (naturals only)

*•
black cluster (accidentals only)
 100

D white and black cluster

© center

(e) edge

J_ lip (of tam tam)

continue pattern

pulse accent

* hardest accent possible

accelerate

6 l 1 M |,I[ as fast as possible

^ stop sound

p| niente (no sound)

S.S. single stroke roll

reverse ends (turn stick over]

cues
 APPENDIX H

RECORDINGS OF W I L L I A M KRAFT'S COMPOSITIONS

101
 102

L a b e l and N u m b e r

Angel CDM 7637 642 Games: Collage I

Angel S36036 Games: Collage I

Avant AVI001 Fanfare 1969

Cambria CD1071 Contextures: R i o t s - D e c a d e '60

Concerto for Four P e r c u s s i o n
S o l o i s t s and O r c h e s t r a
Double Trio
Games: Collage No. 1

C o m p o s e r s Recording Des Imagistes

Inc. CRI SD547 Gallery 1 8 3

The Sublime and the Beautiful

Contemporary Record
S o c i e t y CRS 8739 Translucences

Crest D-81 (CBDNA-7) Dialogues and E n t e r t a i n m e n t s

Crystal C392 Encounters II

C r y s t a l CD667 Encounters III

Crystal CD740 Melange

Crystal S104 Momentum

Theme and V a r i a t i o n s for Percussion
Quartet
Triangles

Crystal S113 Encounters III

Crystal S125 Encounters II

Crystal S281 Nonet for Brass and Percussion

Crystal S375 Evening V o l u n t a r i e s

Crystal S641 Encounters IV

D e l o s DEL 25432SQ Des Imagistes

D e l o s DEL F25452 Avalanche (movie soundtrack)

Desto 7166 Cadenze

EMI CDM7 637 64 2 Games: Collage No. 1

 103

Golden Crest 4145 Momentum

G r e n a d i l l a GS 1040 Suite for Brass

London CS6613 Contextures: R i o t s - D e c a d e '60

Louisville S653 Concerto Grosso

New M u s i c West NMW9 669 Sky's the Limit

Nonesuch 79229 Contextures II: The Final Beast

(full orchestra v e r s i o n )
Interplay

NPR Cassettes Cascando (radio play)

Orion ORS76212 In M e m o r i a m Igor Stravinsky

Protone CSPR163 Double Trio

Soliloquy: E n c o u n t e r s I
E n c o u n t e r s III

Townhall S-24 Requiescat

Western International Morris D a n c e

Music WIM R-5

m progress Concerto for T i m p a n i and Orchestra

Concerto for Piano and O r c h e s t r a
Veils and V a r i a t i o n s
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

A r t i cles

"The Great Jazz D r u m m e r s : Part 1," M o d e r n D r u m m e r r IV/3

(June/July 1980), 1 6 - 2 0 , 56.

Kraft, William. "Music R e v i e w s : S t r a v i n s k y , H i s t o i r e du

S o l d a t , e d . C a r e w e and B l a d e s , " N o t e s X L V I / 1
(Sept. 1989), 2 1 2 - 2 1 6 .

P a p a s t e f a n , John J. "Publications and P r o d u c t s , "

P e r c u s s i v e N o t e s . XIV/1 (Fall 1975), 28.

"Percussive Arts Society National Conference 1975,"

P e r c u s s i v e N o t e s . XIV/2 (Winter 1976), 2 1 - 2 3 .

Reprint of historic c o l l e c t i o n of J. C. Deagan catalogues,

September 1986).

Rosen, Michael. "Terms Used in P e r c u s s i o n : W i l l i a m K r a f t

C o m m e n t s on M i l h a u d ' s P e r c u s s i o n C o n c e r t o , "
P e r c u s s i v e N o t e s , X X V I I / 2 (Winter 1 9 8 9 ) , 3 9 - 4 0 .

Wilson, Patrick. " K r a f t : The C o m p o s e r as O r c h e s t r a l

T i m p a n i s t , " P e r c u s s i v e N o t e s . X X V / 1 (Fall 1 9 8 6 ) ,
37-39 .

Book s

Abraham, Gerald. The Concise Oxford History of M n s i n .

O x f o r d : O x f o r d U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1 9 9 0 .

B a k e r ' s B i o g r a p h i c a l D i c t i o n a r y of M n a i n , 8th ed., r e v i s e d

by N i c h o l a s S l o n i m s k y . New York: M a c m i l l a n , 1992.

Blades, James. P e r c u s s i o n I n s t r u m e n t s and T h e i r H i s t o r y f

revised edition. L o n d o n : Faber a n d Faber, 1 9 8 4 .

Brown, T h e o d o r e Dennis. A H i s t o r y and A n a l y s i s o f J a z z

D r u m m i n g to 1 9 4 2 , 2 vols. Ph.D. d i s s e r t a t i o n ,
U n i v e r s i t y of M i c h i g a n , 1976. University Microfilms,
77-7881.

104
 105

P e i n k o f e r , Karl and Fritz T a n n i g e l . H a n d b o o k of P e r c u s s i o n

T n st. rnmfints. t r a n s l a t e d by Kurt and Else Stone.
Mainz: Schott, 1976.

Vinton, John. D i c t i o n a r y of C o n t e m p o r a r y M u s i c . New

York: E. P. Dutton, 1974.

Recordings

Boulez, P i e r r e . "Le Marteau Sans M a l t r e , " in New

D i r e c t i o n s in Music One, conducted by R o b e r t Craft.
Columbia ML 52 75, side 1.

Kraft, W i l l i a m . E n c o u n t e r s IV. A Duel for T r o m b o n e and

P e r c u s s ion. p e r f o r m e d by Karen and Thomas E r v i n .
Crystal S641, side B.

E n c o u n t e r s V I I : B l e s s e d Are t h e P e a c e m a k e r s ,
performed by Steve Grimo and Pat H o l l e n b e c k .

P e r c u s s i o n by W i l l i a m K r a f t . Crystal S10 4.

CSPR-163.
William Kraft. Composers Recordings
Incorporated SD 547.

Stravinsky, Igor. "Histoire du Soldat (Suite)," in Igor

S t r a v i n s k y C o n d u c t s . 1961. C o l u m b i a MS 6272, side 2.

Scores

LJU Van Nuys: New Music West, 1990.

Van N u y s :
New M u s i c West, 198 8.

-— . ^ C o n f i g u r a t i o n s : A C o n c e r t o for F o u r P e r c u s s i o n

Contextures: Riots-Decade '60. Van Nuys: New

Music West, 1971.

Manuscript copy.

Van Nuys: New Music West, 1981.

 10 6

E n c o u n t e r s III: D u e l for T r u m p e t and

Van Nuys: New Music West, 1973.

• E n c o u n t e r s IV: Duel for T r o m b o n e and P e r c u s s i o n

and O p t i o n a l T a p e . Van Nuys: New M u s i c West, 197 5.

. E n c o u n t e r s V: In the M o r n i n g of the W i n t e r Sea.

Van Nuys: New M u s i c West, 1982.
E n c o u n t e r s VI: C o n c e r t i n o for Roto Toms and
Percussion Quartet. Hackensack, NJ: Joseph B o o n i n ,
1977 .

Encounters VIIj "Blessed Are the Peacemakers"

for Two P e r c u s s i o n i s t s . Van Nuys: New M u s i c West,
1977 .

Encounters VIII; The Latimer Encounter . Van

Nuys: New Music West, 1978.

E n c o u n t e r s IX: For Alto S a x o p h o n e and

Percussion. Van Nuys: New Music West, 1982.

E n c o u n t e r s X: Duologue for V i n l i p q n d Mqrifflfrffi

Van N u y s : New M u s i c West, 1992.

. English Suite. New York: Award Music, 1975.

F r e n c h Suite. W o l f - M i l l s Music, 1962.

Morris Dance. Los Angeles: Avant Music, 1964.

S o l i l o q u y for Solo Percussion ar)d T^pe Van

Nuys: New Music West, 1979.

S u i t e for Percussion. Van Nuys: New M u s i c

West, 199 0.

. T e r e s a of Avi.1 a . Manuscript copy.

Triangles J—A Concerto for Percussion apr]

Instruments. Van Nuys: New Music West, 1968.

S t r a v i n s k y , Igor. Percussion part to H i s t o i r e du So1dat f

edited by William K r a f t . Van Nuys: New Music West,
1985 .

Other

Grimo, Steve. Telephone interview. August 21, 1992

 107

Kraft, William. Letter to the author. July 5, 1991.

Letter to the author. February 24, 1992.

. Taped interview. July 5, 1991.

Telephone interview. January 5, 1 9 9 3 .

New M u s i c West. Biography of William K r a f t .

Catalogue of music by W i l l i a m Kraft.