Icarus

"Icarus" is an 8-minute composition for two percussionists--Percussionist ONE: 2 bongos, 4 tom-toms, bass drum, tam-tam, hand clapping. Percussionist TWO: glockenspiel, marimba, vibraphone, tam-tam. It is a sound painting of the ancient Greek myth of Icarus' fatal flight too near to the Sun. The drums are often intended to suggest the motion of Icarus' wings throughout this piece and the pitched percussion incorporates a tune based on an ancient Greek Delphic hymn at several points as the musical sonic painting of the myth unfolds. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica's article of the myth, Daedalus was "a brilliant architect, sculptor, and inventor. He was credited with building for King Minos of Crete the Labyrinth in which the Minotaur was kept. When the king turned against Daedalus and imprisoned him, Daedalus secretly made wings for himself and his son Icarus, intending to escape to Sicily. Despite his father's warnings, Icarus flew too close to the sun; the wax holding the feathers to his wings melted, and he fell into the sea and drowned." The myth's moral is a warning against unbridled ambition. However, despite it's fatal ending to make its moral point, this music is intended to be a fun and entertaining piece to perform and to hear.