Russel Hartenberger - KINGFISHER

Russel Hartenberger - KINGFISHER
Katarzyna Myćka, Pablo Mor, Filip Mercep, Conrado Moya - marimbas
World premiere on July 15th 2023 in Gdańsk during International Katarzyna Myćka Marimba Academy

Kingfisher is the name of a small town on the Chisholm Trail in rural Oklahoma a few miles from my birthplace. The Chisholm Trail was established by Black Beaver, a Lenape guide, and Jesse Chisholm, a Cherokee merchant, and was used to drive Texas Longhorn cattle from Texas, through Oklahoma, to Kansas railheads. The town of Kingfisher was founded during the Oklahoma land run of 1889 and was named after an early resident, King Fisher. I chose Kingfisher as the title of this piece because of its connection to my early childhood, but more significantly, I use the syllables of the name King-fi-sher as a rhythmic motif in the piece. Musically, the rhythm of the name could be notated quarter-note, eighth-note, eighth-note, or long-short-short. The reverse of the name, Fisher King, would be notated eighth-note, eighth-note, quarter-note, or short-short-long.

The structure of Kingfisher is patterned after two dance/drum suites from the Dagomba culture of northern Ghana as taught to me by the great Ghanaian master drummer, Abraham Adzenyah. The Dagomba suites use the Kingfisher rhythmic motif and are characterized by shifts from one time feel to another, often abruptly. I also use variations of rhythms from the bell pattern timelines of drum ensemble music from the Akan and Ewe people of central and southeastern Ghana.

In addition to being a town in Oklahoma and a word with a musical rhythmic structure, Kingfisher is the name of a colorful and dynamic species of bird. The Belted Kingfisher is described by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as a bird with “energetic flight, a piercing rattle, and an air of self-importance.” It can be found throughout North America.

Kingfisher was commissioned by and is dedicated to Katarzyna Myćka.