Chamber Music

Chamber Music

Drastic Measures– saxophone quartet 9′ 45″
Voice of the Wood– concerto for cello quartet and orchestra, or arrangement for cello quartet and piano 21′
The Upward Stream– concerto for tenor saxophone, or solo saxophone with piano arrangement. 20′
Lift-Off!- for percussion trio (or multiples of three) 7′ 30″
The Glory and the Grandeur– concerto for percussion trio 12′
Harmonic Rhythm– concerto for timpani and orchestra, or solo timpani with piano arrangement 22′
Don’t
Tread on Me or My String Quartet– for string quartet (shares themes with Playing With Style) 3′ 30″
Five-Ring Circus– for woodwind quintet 2′ 15″
A Minor Monster-Piece– for brass quintet (shares themes with Playing With Style) 2’15”
Big-Shot Brass– for brass quintet (shares themes with The Thrill of the Orchestra) 1′ 10″
In the Garden– for organ and optional drum set 5″
The Cat’s Meow– for duo pianists or one with four paws

Sales of Sheet Music available through
Eble/ Groth Music Co. (800) 969-4772 www.grothmusic.com
Some pieces also available through
Steve Weiss Music (215) 659-0100
or email with inquiry: peckmusic@russellpeck.com






in Brass Quintet / Cello Quartet / Chamber Music / Chamber Music / Organ / Percussion / Piano / Saxophone Quartet / Timpani / Uncategorized / Woodwind Quintet

Lift-Off!

Lift-Off! for percussion trio (or multiples of three)

Lift-Off! was written in 1968, and like the music itself, has gained momentum ever since!  It carries the listener on a cathartic, pulsing journey of percussion brilliance.

7′ 30″

“the hit of the evening … smashingly propulsive”
New York Times

To purchase this contact:
Steve Weiss Music (215) 659-0100
Eble Music Co. (319) 338-0313 www.eble.com

Percussive Arts Society review

in Chamber Music / Compositions / Percussion

Drastic Measures

Saxophone Quartet

Written in 1976, Drastic Measures endures as a classic in the genre.  Deeply bluesy and rich with soul, this work has enjoyed continued performances.

Russell Peck’s Composition Notes:

“During my brief university teaching career I came into contact with excellent saxophonists at Northern Illinois University who had a quartet and wanted a piece from me. That’s how I came to write Drastic Measures in 1976. A year later I went to the School of the Arts in North Carolina where James Houlik had a great saxophone studio and a wonderful student quartet that became the New Century Saxophone Quartet. I touched up the piece for them and that became its final form.”

“The first movement is slow, lyrical and polyphonic, highlighting the serious capabilities of the ensemble. The virtuosic second movement is more blues, jazz, and rock-oriented, and highly energized, even including slap-tongue accents. It’s also rhythmically complex. What maintains the classical integrity of the piece despite the popular flavor in the second movement is its tight formal coherence. A three note motive heard as an accompaniment figure at the very opening of the first movement becomes the basis for the whole piece, reaching several climactic expressions in the second movement.”

9′ 45″

To purchase this contact:
Eble Music Co. (319) 338-0313 www.eble.com
Dorn Publications (508) 359-1015

Recordings

“playful … fresh”
Wall Street Journal

in Chamber Music / Compositions / Saxophone Quartet