Anthem: To Catch a Glimpse, for 5.0 marimba, is dedicated to the beautiful music and playing of Nancy Zeltsman, and influenced by the marimba music of Dan Levitan.

Watch Ayami Okamura perform Gordon Stout’s Anthem: To Catch a Glimpse

Dedicated to Nancy Zeltsman and influenced by the music of Dan Levitan, “Anthem” is another beautiful work by Gordon Stout. This is going to be one of those pieces where a young student listens to the YouTube recordings and decides to play it, not realizing the chops required. The piece has a great groove and is delicate throughout, but it demands excellent interval control of sixths in both hands. There’s quite a bit of elbow and arm work, as these intervals move all over the keyboard, but the resulting tonality leads to a beautiful melody.
The technique involved in this piece centers around the need for extreme accuracy. There are no rolls and no insane double lateral section, but it is through-composed, so there’s not a lot of repetition. A couple of themes and motives return to connect the work, but not a lot of big sections that “you won’t have to learn again.” It’s about five minutes long and would be great for a second keyboard piece on a recital or undergraduate jury. This one is definitely recommened for the four-mallet keyboard percussion library, but that, which of Stout’s pieces aren’t?
— Julia Gaines, Percussive Notes — July 2017