Dark Skies and Distant Worlds with Heartland Marimba

by Heartland Marimba with 100 singers

assisted by the Met Chorale and Bel Canto Cedar Valley Chamber Choir

3 World Premieres by HM Artists: Jenni Brandon, Matthew Coley, & Marco Schirripa

Poetry by Brandon Krieg and videography by Dale Parson and Sandy Nordahl

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Heartland Marimba is joining forces with two other Cedar Valley ensembles—The Met Chorale and Bel Canto Chamber Choir—to present a captivating concert combining mallet percussion and choir. "Dark Skies and Distant Worlds" invites the audience on a sonic and visual voyage through some of the most stunning and mysterious locations across our solar system. Celebrating the magic of our natural world, the performance also aims to inspire environmental awareness. Six HM Artists will take the stage with an extraordinary collection of instruments, including several 9-foot marimbas, as well as glass, stone, and otherworldly metal percussion. With many performances across the country and around the globe, Heartland Marimba continues to showcase the unique artistry of its musicians and instruments for enthralled audiences.

Pre-concert talk (6:00 pm) will give insight to the new musical creations of Death Valley Symphony, Deep Red Regolith, and Ice Breaks with Jenni Brandon, composer/conductor; Brandon Krieg, poet; Marco Schirripa, composer/artist; and Matthew Coley, HM founder/composer/artist.

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Program: *world premieres

Solar Flurries by Matthew Coley [marimba quintet]

*Deep Red Regolith by Matthew Coley [mallet percussion quintet]
 

1. Oceanus Borealis
2. Valles Marineris
    

*Ice Breaks by Marco Schirripa [marimba quartet]

Death Valley Symphony by Jenni Brandon (composer and conductor)
 

     I. Badwater Basin [marimba quartet]

     II. Clay Pipes and Spiral Shells [two marimbas and narrator]

     *III. The Artist Palette [chamber choir and marimba quartet]

     IV. Dark Sky [SATB chamber choir, SATB choir, marimba quartet, percussion ensemble, piano]

Listen to Dark Sky with Dale Parson's video creation on YouTube.

Thank you to our Corporate Sponsors: Western Home, West Music,  and Montage.