Playing the Marimba Eroica

Harry Patch left behind legacy of exotic instrument designs, along with his unique compositions. But where can one find a teacher for "cloud chamber bowls," Kithara II," or "44-string harmonic canon"? In New Jersey.

The Garden State's Montclair State University is the only institution in the world with a "Partch Instrumentarium" and a formal program for educating young musicians on the art of playing Partch's inventions. According to the University's web site, another unique feature of MSU's music department is the "Harry Partch Ensemble, in which students perform on the famous collection of microtonal instruments invented by the late composer. Students perform the works of Harry Partch and other composers who have written for the Harry Partch Instrumentarium including works by student composers."
	The Partch ensemble is directed by composer Dean Drummond, who worked with Partch during the 60's and 70's. A recent article in the Chronicle of Higher Education (Oct. 17, 2003) highlighted Drummond's unique program. The marimba eroica is described as "four slabs of wood, each the size of a coffin lid, cushioned atop a wooden resonance chamber as large as a piano cabinet." When Drummond strikes the instrument, the only known example, with his percussion mallets, the room "jolts so violently that it threatens to burst at the joints."
When Partch died in 1974, his instrument collection was scattered and largely ignored. Drummond became the caretaker of the collection in 1990. Montclair houses them in five different rooms spread across three buildings – but that will change in May, when they will move to a specially-designed room in a $20 million new theater on campus.

According to Drummond, "students profit from struggling to discover the logic of Partch's music... They're not just getting involved in a wacky piece by Partch. They're being challenged to master rhythm and pitch... I've watched a lot of young musicians mature enormously."

One graduate student, longtime Partch fan Jonathan Klizas, said, "Once I heard [the instruments] were here, I enrolled... When I first walked into this room, I almost cried."

Browse the Instrumentarium, read Dean Drummond's faculty page or personal page

Learn more about Partch himself at Corporeal Meadows or the Harry Partch Information Center

Visit the Chronicle of Higher Education [fee required for archives]

Explore Montclair State University