Cyclone by Jim Casella

Cyclone is an ambitious piece by Jim Casella, was written to feature a quartet of marimba players who play on two marimbas that face each other. The parts are all playable with two mallets, and players are frequently called on to reach across to the marimba opposite them. Also, marimbists embark on a literal “cyclone” around the instruments, swapping physical positions with one another and running around the instruments towards the inevitable swirling climax.

Inspired by true accounts of a friend’s recent expedition of Mt. Everest, this quartet is accompanied by seven multipercussionists and piano. It depicts both determination and danger, with an implied circular motion by way of quick, repetitive, six-note figures. Complete with echo effects of grandeur and spaciousness, Cyclone is an energetic, cinematic work that becomes relentless and violent. The faint of heart need not apply!