A band like the Navy Band is often led to form different chamber music groups for public performances. These presentations are the result of the Band's programming requirements, but they are also opportunities for these groups to perform a specific repertoire, thus exploring a greater technical and musical refinement that will later be reflected in the Band as a whole.
The main characteristics of the Navy Band's Percussion Ensemble are the interpretation of themes originally written for percussion, as well as the introduction to the public of the enormous variety of instruments that make up this family.
Percussion is one of the various instrument families that make up the Navy Band, and in recent years, it has undergone a significant transformation. Percussionists specialise in all the instruments of the family (which is why it is normal and usual for these musicians to play different instruments in concerts) and composers are increasingly looking for new sounds and exploring the various instruments from the technical point of view. Knowing the sound and characteristics of each instrument allows achieving absolutely unique sonorities.
This family is divided into two types of instruments, those with a definite pitch and those with an indefinite pitch:
Definite pitch
Idiophones: Marimba, Vibraphone, Xylophone, Glockenspiel Crotales.
Membranophones: Timpani.
Indefinite pitch
Idiophones: Slit Gong, Cymbals, Castanets, Triangle, etc.
Membranophones: Bass drum, Snare drum, Tambourine, Conga, Block, etc.
The creativity of the composers, combined with the imagination and professionalism of the musicians, means that this Ensemble has almost no limits in the way it performs, being able to create fantastic musical moments, from performing pieces only with body beats (clapping, fingers, legs and feet), to creating an interesting scenic part.
Attending a concert by the Navy Band's Percussion Ensemble is a way of discovering the instruments that are part of this large family and, at the same time, appreciating the precision and art of the Navy Band's musicians.