related works
Album (Volume 1) : for cello en piano
Genre:
Chamber music
Subgenre:
Cello and keyboard instrument
Scoring:
vc pf
Popcorn : for marimba or cimbalom solo / Chiel Meijering
Genre:
Chamber music
Subgenre:
Percussion
Scoring:
mar
Bomojanah : Ritornel for four percussionists / Jo Sporck
Genre:
Chamber music
Subgenre:
Percussion
Scoring:
4perc
Prelude : for six percussionists, 1974, (revision: 1980) / Theo Loevendie
Genre:
Chamber music
Subgenre:
Percussion
Scoring:
6conga
composition
Tōtoltepōhua : for percussion duo / Merijn Bisschops
Other authors:
Bisschops, Merijn
(Composer)
Description:
Tōtoltepōhua is the Nahuatl word for "to count eggs". Nahuatl is a polysynthetic language, spoken by original inhabitants of Mexico, in which complex words are formed by the combination of several simple words.
The composition Tōtoltepōhua starts with two sets of base pulses for each percussionist. By itself these simple rhythms are straightforward like metronome beats, but combined they reveal a more complex connection: incidentally they lead to moments that can be perceived as grooves. Most of these groovy moments flee instantly, only one standard Latin rhythm persists. Driven by sudden tempo shifts, the rhythmic feel of the music changes rapidly and sometimes stagnates in repeating patterns.
Merijn Bisschops