Square One

Item details

Description +
- Duration: 7 min.
  
  Square One is a challenging marimba solo that showcases a performer’s virtuosity and endurance. The piece is built upon a singular rhythmic pattern; this opens the piece and reoccurs throughout the duration of the work in various forms, as if the performer and the audience are constantly being knocked back to square one.
  
  The piece is based on the following words:
  
  Have I made any progress in my journey at all?
  If I look back, how far have I actually walked
  Or have I always been circling
  Tracing the edges and corners of square one
  
  Joey Eng
Instrumentation +
- Marimba (5.0)
Watch+
- Performance by Joey Eng
About the composer +
- Joey Eng (b. 2001) is a percussionist, composer and educator from Perth, Western Australia. He has performed and given masterclasses to audiences in Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, Spain, Portugal and the United Kingdom. Joey was the winner of the 2022 Warana Concerto Competition and a fi nalist in both the inaugural 2019 and the 2021 Marimbafest international solo marimba competition, in which he won 2nd prize and the audience choice award.
  
  A multi-skilled percussionist and collaborator, Joey has performed with many orchestras across Australia including the Western Australian Symphony Orchestra, Perth Symphony Orchestra, Australian Baroque, and the Australian Youth Orchestra. He was also a member and soloist with the World Percussion Group.
  
  As a composer, Joey’s solo percussion and chamber works are being performed regularly by thousands around the world and are on the repertoire lists for multiple notable competitions, including Marimbafest, the Australian Marimba Competition, and the East Switzerland Solo Competition. He has been commissioned by many ensembles/organizations, including the World Percussion Group, Edition Svitzer, Edith Cowan University, the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, and the Silver Sands Guitar Quartet. His compositions have been featured multiple times in the Percussive Notes magazine.
  
  Joey completed his Bachelor of Music from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, receiving the 2022 WAAPA Medal as the top graduate of the entire university. As an educator, he was a lecturer specialising in keyboard percussion studies at Edith Cowan University and has taught high school percussionists across schools in Perth, with his students winning a multitude of awards including the Premier of WA Award and the 2023 Marimbafest Open Class Ensemble 1st Prize.
  
  Joey is a Premier Artist for instrument manufacturer Marimba One (USA) and is endorsed by Salyers Percussion and Encore Mallets (USA). His compositions are published by Edition Svitzer (Denmark).
Reviews +
- Review (Percussive Notes, February 2025)
  
  This is a showstopper! In Square One, Joey Eng pens a programmatic showpiece that, in a very meta way, is written to depict the journey of a performer while also showcasing the musical and technical skills developed throughout their journey.
  
  Eng, a noted performer and composer of popular works such as Saudade and The Narrows, is no stranger to high-energy works for marimba. In Square One, Eng continuously brings the performer back to “square one,” where they are playing similar melodic material but in an evolving musical texture that continuously adds layers of complexity.
  
  This piece requires advanced four-mallet technique and a 5-octave marimba. There are several challenging elements throughout, including broad reaches, melodic material in octaves, quick lateral strokes, and rapid arpeggiations. Despite the sometimes-awkward key of B major, the piece feels manageable and lays comfortably on the instrument. Most notably, the chorale in measure 51 is quite beautiful and features some unexpected harmonic movement that stands out amidst the otherwise similar melodic material.
  
  Square One would be a strong choice for a recital or audition piece that can showcase virtuosity as well as nuance. The engraving is clear and easy to read, although a few passages are tricky to decipher due to the beaming and several sixteenth-note rests. However, it is easy enough to get used to Eng’s notational style, and the piece is well worth the time and attention this challenge brings.
  
  Kudos to Eng on this exciting piece.
  
  —Quintin Mallette
Credits +
- With support from Koda’s Cultural Funds
  Front Cover Graphics and Layout: Nicola Lee
  Photo: Joey Eng
  Printed in Copenhagen, Denmark
  Copyright © Edition SVITZER
  www.editionsvitzer.com

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