How to Write for Percussion

While composers and percussionists are working more closely than ever with one another, there are few resources that address this collaborative relationship in depth. However, Samuel Z. Solomon, himself a percussionist and teacher, offers a comprehensive examination of the issues that
percussionists and composers encounter in How to Write for Percussion. The first edition, self-published in 2004, provided musicians and music programs the world over with practical and indispensible information about issues of notation, concert production, and much more. This new edition goes even
further as Solomon offers more insights derived from his personal experience as a percussionist and teacher and from his collaborations with other musicians.
The second edition of How to Write for Percussion expands the survey of behind-the-scenes processes-from instrument choice and notation to logistics, execution, and concert production-to uncover all the tools a composer needs to comfortably create innovative and skilled percussion composition.
Solomon also includes more excerpts and performances as well as interviews with famous percussionists and composers that capture the intricacies of percussion composition. Moreover, the second edition features an expanded text with more instruments and more analysis, plus an extensive Online Video
Companion containing over nine hours of videos with demonstrations, performances, interviews, and analysis to flesh out and clarify the material in the book. This updated edition of How to Write for Percussion will appeal to a wide swath of musicians including composers, arrangers, and
percussionists. Those who have already utilized the first edition will welcome the upgrade, and those who have yet to benefit from Solomon's perspective will likewise find his insights illuminating.


"This is simply the best book on composing for percussion music out there. Solomon anticipates every question that a composer might have concerning the practical, physical and expressive ramifications of making sound by hitting things. The previous version was a fixture on my desk and this new
edition with its media upgrades will be my manual for teaching."--Steven Mackey, Professor of Music, Princeton University, Grammy Award-winning composer

"Percussion isn't a particular thing; it is a lifetime of learning that can never be completely known. Mr. Solomon's deeply thoughtful work is essential to my work, an invaluable guide, an extraordinary accomplishment."--Matthew Duvall, multi-Grammy-winning percussionist with eighth blackbird

"Here is a volume which is truly practical, for Sam Solomon is a very fine performer and writes from a practitioner's point of view, giving advice which is invaluable to all of us...This is a "musician's book" and a true contribution to the literature of orchestration."--Samuel Adler, Professor
Emeritus, Eastman School of Music, Excerpt from the Foreword to How To Write For Percussion (First Edition)