Six Impressions for solo snare drum by Thomas O’Hara

After receiving my BM in music education from Rutgers University in 2015, I strove to write snare drum solos that blend rudimental drumming with various other styles.

In the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University, I was lucky enough to have many great mentors, teachers, and colleagues such as: Joseph Tompkins, Javier Diaz, Michael Truesdell, Kyle Zerna, Christine Chen, and Carlos Vazquez. Each solo in this collection is a blend of distinct styles and sounds, and is directly influenced by one of these individuals.

I have included bass drum in most of the solos as a reference for the intricate rhythms. Bass is also used to either highlight accents in the snare drum part or add a new layer of texture to the solo. Buzz rolls are marked with a “z” and open rolls are notated with slashes. I have included improvised sections in solos IV and V. I believe that improvisation is an important part of music and can translate to the modern snare drum solo. Improvised sections are marked as open repeats, to be repeated as many times as the performer deems necessary.

I hope you enjoy playing and exploring these solos.