Sheet Music by Percussion Music Composer Todd Ukena

Jeda Suite $3.50

Jeda Suite for Snare Drum by Todd Ukena

This solo was originally an assignment in one of my music composition classes in college. The whole idea was to write a piece of music based on a little germ of rhythm. (My rhythmic motive was just two sixteenths notes, forming the rhythm of the word I made up, “Jeda”. It does show up a lot in this solo.) I only turned in the first movement for my assignment. My professor, Dr Eugene Ulrich, (at then-alive-Phillips University in Enid, Oklahoma,) liked it so much it, he told me to expand it into a suite demonstrating other styles. So I did!

1st movement
Use an extreme range for the dynamics! (Example: pp – 1” above drumhead, ff – 18” above drumhead.)
Play all rolls as buzz rolls even though there are two types of rolls notated.

The staccato buzz rolls at measure 21 are to be crushed into the drumhead.
(I call them burps!)

In measures 23 – 30, use a 16th note pulse and accent the appropriate count with a buzz accent.

2nd movement
Turn snares off for this movement. Be careful with tempo! It is easy to rush!

Again play all rolls as buzz rolls.

There is a typographical error in measure 109. It should be a five count buzz roll.

3rd movement
Keep snares off for a this movement also.

The last line of this movement is a visual as well as aural decrescendo. Do what it takes to sell it the audience.

4th movement
All rolls are double bounce rolls.

In measures 201 – 204, play x notes with right hand and plain notes with left hand.

In measures 205 – 216, use alternating sticking beginning with the right hand.