Dinosaurs Daniel Bukvich

Dinosaurs was written specifically for educational purposes in a realistic setting. It was commissioned by the Moscow Junior High band in Moscow, Idaho. The conductor, Dale Kleinert, requested a piece with rhythmical intensity, using some minimalism, singing, accessory instruments with the same kind of integrity and respect as traditional instruments, and challenging percussion parts. Bukvich went a step further, visiting the school and taking special note of some of the dilapidated percussion instruments. He utilized the unique timbre produced by the school's broken drums and featured it in the piece. While it is not a requirement for ensembles to break their drums in order to perform this work, a similar effect could be generated by purposely distorting the tuning of the heads and loosening tension rods around the drum.