Third Coast Percussion

Third Coast Percussion

Hailed by the Chicago Reader as “one of the finest new-music ensembles in the country,” Third Coast Percussion uses an impressive array of percussion instruments to create a performance experience like no other.  With exceptional talent and dedicated artistry, this “sonically spectacular” (Chicago Tribune) quartet combines the driving intensity of drums, the beautiful warmth of marimbas and vibraphones, and the surprisingly exotic sounds of everyday objects to make music that is playful, memorable and profound.  In performances around the country, the Chicago-based ensemble has swiftly gained national attention for effortlessly combining the energy of a rock concert with the precision and sophistication of classical chamber music.

Third Coast Percussion presents concerts for all audiences, from the percussion novice to the contemporary music aficionado. Third Coast has introduced percussion music to audiences across the country, including concerts at University of Notre Dame – DeBartolo Performing Arts Center, Music on the Edge (Pittsburgh), Museum of Contemporary Art (Chicago), Le Poisson Rouge (New York), Millennium Park – Pritzker Pavilion (Chicago), EMPAC (NY), Kennedy Center Millennium Stage (DC), and Taliesin – Frank Lloyd Wright (WI). TCP has also championed some of the most formidable repertoire for percussion including the music of Luciano Berio, Philippe Manoury, Wolfgang Rihm, Louis Andriessen, Martin Bresnick, George Crumb, Arvo Pärt, Steve Reich, Frederick Rzewski, Toru Takemitsu, Tan Dun, and Iannis Xenakis. The ensemble is constantly adding new works to this already expansive repertoire.

Third Coast is active in developing new works, with commissions and premieres by Augusta Read Thomas, David T. Little, Ted Hearne, Kirsten Broberg, and Matthew Barnson.

The members of Third Coast Percussion — Owen Clayton Condon, Robert Dillon, Peter Martin, and David Skidmore — hold degrees in music performance from Northwestern University, the Yale School of Music, the New England Conservatory, and Rutgers University. Third Coast Percussion performs exclusively with Pearl/Adams Musical Instruments, Zildjian Cymbals, and Vic Firth sticks and mallets.