TSB IV - Special Presentations
Breaking the Bass Barriers - Jim McCarthy
This session explores why marimba bass development stalled and how decades of acoustic research and design experimentation led to a new contrabass marimba extending a full octave below the modern instrument. Drawing on Jim McCarthy’s 30+ years of work, it examines the practical and acoustic challenges of extreme low-range design and their implications for composition, performance, and recording, inviting players to experience and help shape the marimba’s next evolution.
Finding HER Voice - Beverly Johnston
Beverley performs two works from her project Finding HER Voice and discusses techniques for integrating voice into percussion repertoire, with a focus on commissioned works inspired by historic female figures. She also reflects on collaborating with composers and candidly examines how aging has shaped her artistic choices, learning process, and performance approach, alongside performances of Rzewski’s To the Earth and Hatzis’s Eris.
Sixtrum Percussion Ensemble - Interaction Spaces #1
- ensō I-II (version 2025)* Pierre Michaud
- Là-bas, ici (2016), Ana Dall’Ara-Majek
- Transition 1 (2025)*, Gabrielle Caux
- Titling Points (2025)*, Örjan Sandred
- Transition 2 (2025)*, Gabrielle Caux
- Dissolution (2024-2025)*, Alexandre Amat & Simon Chioini
- Transition 2 (2025)*, Gabrielle Caux
- SextetEmulator (2025)*, Martin Daigle
*World premiere / Création
Sixtrum’s Espaces d’interaction series explores interaction, spatialization, and human–machine relationships through new percussion works created with Quebec and Canadian composers. The first instalment focuses on control and play, presenting game-like pieces where performers interact with each other and technology, from competitive machine-driven scenarios to guided improvisation and immersive electroacoustic sound worlds that flow seamlessly from one work to the next.