One of the greatest contributions of twentieth-century American composers is the (re)emphasis of percussion. Drawing upon three fairly distinct roots-Asian influence, jazz and related Afro-Latin forms, and the experimental music movement -American composers have rediscovered percussion’s importance in relation to other global musical trends. A virtual “percussion renaissance” has influenced much of the contemporary composition since the composers on this disc began their work.

The wide-ranging colors and textural possibilities of a percussion quartet are vividly displayed on this eclectic program of new and standard works for various combinations of mallet and percussion instruments.