Sigma Alpha Iota

S i g m a A l p h a I o t a A n n u a l F r at e r n i t y Awa r d s FALL 2022 50 FALL 2022 50 S i g m a A l p h a I o t a Annual Philanthropies Awards TRI EN N I A L AWA RDS G R A D UATE P ERFO R M A N C E AWA RDS M A RY A N N STA R R I N G M E M O R I A L AWA R D FO R P I A N O & P E RC USS I O N EMILY DUROCHER L e x i n g t o n A l u m n a e , S i g m a D , R e g i o n V I I E mily Durocher, an active performer and educator, is a percussionist originally from Houston, TX. She is an active alumnae member of Sigma Alpha Iota and a member of the PAS Diversity Alliance. She has performed with the award winning UK Percussion Ensemble at the 2014 PAS International Convention and as a member of the Crossmen Front Ensemble from 2013-2015. Her compositions for snare drum can be found in e Blue Book Vol. 2 and 3, published by Tapspace Publications. Emily has performed in several states including Massachusetts, New York, and most recently North Carolina, as a solo artist. Emily maintains an active teaching career in the Marching Arts across the states of Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, North Carolina, and Texas. She recently held the position as one of the Drumline Instructors for the Wildcat Marching Band at the University of Kentucky. Emily is currently living in Austin, TX where she is the Front Ensemble Coordinator for Rouse High School, Masterclass Instructor, and serves as a private lesson instructor for Leander ISD. She is also teaching as a beginner percussion instructor for Kealing Middle School. Emily has received degrees from e University of Kentucky (B.M.), Boston Conservatory (M.M.) and is currently working to finish her Doctorate degree in the Musical Arts at the University of Kentucky, where she served as a Teaching Assistant for UK Bands and the Percussion Studio. Emily performed a thrilling program at the 50th National Convention that included three pieces, one of which was her personal composition. "Boomslang (2007) for solo marimba by Roshanne Etezady (1973) is the type of new marimba work that continues to define what can be played on these instruments," said Emily. "Between the complexity of the rhythms, the harmonic progress through the entire solo, and the driving force in combining these two elements, this solo creates a different musical experience for solo marimba that both the performer and audience do not expect to experience. Growing up around a plethora of musical genres that pull from 80's pop to the European classical realm, Roshanne's musical style is just as vast...As percussionist Doug Perkins said to me, 'Roshanne is a mysterious person but, also a fun and energetic person and so is her music, and this piece is no exception.' From the beginning the piece starts with a simple outline of the rhythmic and harmonic structures that will be expanded upon throughout the piece. While this theme shis in time, contraction and expansion, it always remains of the same quality in its core structure. Moving into the piece, the listeners can clearly hear the distinctions of 'mysterious' and 'fun.' While these sections have their own distinct sounds, they also contain qualities, either harmonically or rhythmically, that connect each section throughout. Even from the title, Boomslang will leave the listener wanting to know more and to listen more, and it has earned itself a valuable place within modern solo marimba literature." e second piece on the program was M.C. (2016), written by Emily. "M.C. is a quick work for solo snare drum that explores two of my favorite styles of snare drumming - the traditional slow groove of rudimental drumming and the light and quick playing of the French style of playing snare drum. With the influence from my time in drum corps and having studied many works within the French literature, this is my contribution to combining the two contrasting styles into something that compliments each one." e final work, Hustle and Bustle (2022) by Luciano Medina (1999), "…came from the idea of being able to perform works for percussion within a smaller set-up. By utilizing pitched pipes, tamborim, clay pot, and woodblock, this combination of sounds is not only easy to transport, but creates a mixture of textures that can be accompanied by a simple three note melody," said Dorocher. "With the combination of mixed meters and metric modulations, along with the 'toy like' sounds, the idea of hustle and bustle can be heard in the ever evolving musical structure of the work." is unique piece was specifically written for Emily Durocher to perform at the 2022 National Convention.

• Cover