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21st-Century Canadian Snare Drum in Anne Carlini

“Review”, Russell A Trunk, Anne Carlini, March 1, 2026
Friday, August 7, 2026 Press

For those unaware, this project centers on the snare drum — an instrument heard daily around the world and, for percussionists, a benchmark of technical precision.

Toronto-based percussionist Ryan Scott presents the premiere of fourteen new solo works by Canadian composers, each created specifically for this project through commissions supported by the Canada Council for the Arts.

The collection spans a wide range of approaches. All works emphasize traditional and extended snare drum techniques in acoustic practice, while some also incorporate electronics and alternative sound sources.

Together, these pieces add new solo works to the international percussion repertoire. For performers, they offer material reflecting the challenges and possibilities of contemporary practice.

For listeners, they reveal the snare drum as a solo instrument of depth and versatility, while providing a compelling portrait of Canadian composition today.

A genuine stalwart figure in the Toronto contemporary music community and who has performed in over 400 world premieres, we are first gifted the rhythmically articulate ANTIGRAVITYDRUM and the industrially cultivated Skinscape IV and then we get the more regimented hush, sonically astute only ghosts, the impassioned Sepals, before the shuntingly emotive Time and Effort and the captivating growth of Snap Noir are brought forth.

Along next is the aptly titled, spoken word-imbibed Infantry and the mechanized heirloom and they are in turn backed by the melodious of material signs and breaks, the ethereally absorbent equipo de sonido, before the set rounds out on the veritably crystalline, at first, fervent latterly FOMO, the disciplined pebbles, coming to the a close on the spatial awareness of The Far Night.fm.

Together, these pieces add new solo works to the international percussion repertoire. For performers, they offer material reflecting the challenges and possibilities of contemporary practice. For listeners, they reveal the snare drum as a solo instrument of depth and versatility, while providing a compelling portrait of Canadian composition today.