Album Notes

EQUAL TEMPERAMENT PERCUSSION DUO
Stacey and Eric Jones are the stars of this husband/wife percussion duo, dedicated to the performance and generation of new works for percussion. The duo was founded in 1995 and has commissioned works by several composers including Erik Santos, Jeffrey Peyton, David Jarvis, and Thomas Brett.

Eric Jones, B.M., University of Oregon; MA, Indiana University of Pennsylvania; D.M.A. (in progress), Michigan State University and has served on the music faculty at Humboldt State University. Currently he is a faculty member at Albion College, and teaches Aural Skills, Percussion, and directs the Percussion Ensemble at Lansing Community College. He performs regularly with the Oregon Coast Music Festival Orchestra, and is a founding member of the Oregon Coast Music Festival Percussion Ensemble. Mr. Jones has also performed with orchestras, chamber ensembles, and as a jazz/rock drummer with various ensembles in Oregon, Pennsylvania, California, and Michigan.

Stacey Jones received her Bachelor of Music degree from Michigan State University. As a marimba soloist, she has performed as a featured artist and clinician in several states. In 1998, Stacey was the national winner of the Music Teachers National Association's (MTNA) solo percussion competition in Nashville, TN. She has performed with several symphony orchestras including the Oregon Coast Music Festival Orchestra, and is a founding member of the Oregon Coast Music Festival Percussion Ensemble. In addition to her diverse chamber, orchestral, and solo performance experience, she also serves on the faculty at the MSU Community Music School, and is a percussion instructor at several Mid-Michigan high schools.

REVIEWS
Percussive Arts Society - Percussive Notes
Parhelion: Equal Temperament Percussion Duo $17.95
Eroica Classical Recordings

For their new CD, the percussion duo Equal Temperament has selected a program that reflects a broad spectrum of musical parameters and sonic resources.

Jeffrey Peyton's "Rivermusic" and Thomas Brett's "Flyers Fall" are showcases for the mallet-keyboard percussion instruments and are both earmarked by a striking rhythmic vitality.

Rhythm also plays a significant role in David Jarvis's "Digga digga digga digga digga digga digga digga DEE-GOT!" (The title represents a "phonetic representation" of the theme executed by each percussionist utilizing a multi-percussion setup).

Erik Santos' "Zauberkraft" and "Sun Dogs" are both inspired by the mystical poetry of Ranier Maria Rilke and are original musical statements that push the executants to their technical limits.

Jeffrey Peyton's "The Final Precipice" is a dramatic, exhilarating piece for computer-generated tape and five timpani.

The fact that four of the six works on the CD were commissioned by Equal Temperament brings to mind the fact that a healthy symbiotic relationship between good composers and performers continues to be a major factor in the advancement of percussion music as a viable musical art form. - John R. Raush