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2-4-2

Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-4-2 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, four powered and coupled driving wheels on two axles and two trailing wheels on one axle. The type is sometimes named Columbia after a Baldwin 2-4-2 locomotive was showcased at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition held at Chicago, Illinois.

Overview
The wheel arrangement was widely used on passenger tank locomotives during the last three decades of the nineteenth and the first decade of the twentieth centuries. The vast majority of 2-4-2 locomotives were tank engines, designated 2-4-2T. The symmetrical wheel arrangement was well suited for a tank locomotive that is used to work in either direction.

When the leading and trailing wheels are in swivelling trucks, the equivalent UIC classification is 1'B1'.

While a number of 2-4-2 tender locomotives were built, larger tender locomotive types soon became dominant.

Cape of Good Hope
In 1899, the Walvis Bay Railway in the British territory of Walvis Bay, a Cape of Good Hope exclave in Deutsch-Südwest-Afrika (German South West Africa), placed a single tank locomotive in service. The engine, named Hope and built by Kerr, Stuart and Company, remained in service until 1904 when operations on the railway were suspended. The line was abandoned in 1905, partly as a result of being buried by a sandstorm.

Finland
A 2-4-2 tank locomotive, built by Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1899 and used on the private Raahe track in Finland, was later bought by the Finnish State Railways.

New Zealand
In 1877, when the New Zealand Railways needed new motive power, the road turned to the Rogers Locomotive Works who supplied eight 2-4-2 tender locomotives between 1877 and 1879 that were designated the "K" class. These were the first American-built locomotives in New Zealand and proved to be quite successful.

Three of these locomotives have been preserved. No. K88 Washington was used on the first through train between Christchurch and Dunedin in 1877. After fifty years of service, Washington was dumped in the Oreti River, Southland, as a flood protection measure. In 1974, the locomotive was exhumed from her watery grave and, over the next eight years, restored to full active service.

Sister locomotives numbers K92 and K94 have also been salvaged from the Oreti river. No. K92 has been restored to full active service and has re-established her position on the Kingston Flyer train, which was made famous by the K class at the end of the 19th century.

United Kingdom
The earliest British use of the 2-4-2 wheel arrangement appears to have been no. 21 White Raven, supplied to the St Helens Railway by James Cross of Sutton Works in 1863. It was soon rebuilt as a 2-4-0 tender locomotive and eventually passed into the stock of the London and North Western Railway (L&NWR).

In 1864, Robert Sinclair of the Great Eastern Railway designed the first of six 2-4-2 tank classes built by the railway, eventually totalling 262 locomotives by 1912.

Francis Webb of the London and North Western Railway also designed two 2-4-2 classes which eventually totaled 380 locomotives, built between 1879 and 1898.

Other railway companies that built large numbers of the type included the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) with 330 locomotives built between 1889 and 1911, the North Eastern Railway with 60 locomotives built between 1886 and 1892 and the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway with 49 locomotives built between 1889 and 1898. One of John Aspinall's Class 5 locomotives, built for the L&YR in 1889, is preserved at the National Railway Museum, York.

United States

The tank-type 2-4-2T was common in the U.S. around the dawn of the twentieth century in both suburban passenger service and on logging railroads. The Baldwin Locomotive Works built a demonstrator tender type engine which was displayed at the Columbian Exposition of 1893. This led to the type's name. This locomotive featured ambitious seven foot tall driving wheels, and was one of the first tender-equipped locomotives with a trailing truck. This freed the firebox from having to sit narrowly between, or above, the drive wheels, and was a very influential design.

This inspired three major U.S. railroads (Atlantic Coast Line, Burlington and Reading) to purchase a few of the type. But the two-wheeled lead truck was never well-suited to high speed service on far-flung North American rails. Some were converted to 4-4-2 Atlantic types and others were converted to 4-6-0 Ten Wheelers. The display locomotive was donated to Columbia University. In one respect, however, it was a success. A great many Atlantic types would follow, most based on the design.

In fiction
The character Sammy from Sammy the Shunter is based on the United Kingdom design of the 2-4-2 engine. Two engines named Pete, and Georgia in the 1991 film The Little Engine That Could have this type of wheel arrangement. Albert from The Railway Series has this wheel arrangement.

Model railroading
The Lionel Corporation used the 2-4-2 configuration in many of its O-27 locomotives. In the United States, this may be the most famous usage of a 2-4-2 configuration locomotive.

title: 2-4-2


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Kuznetsk Basin

The Kuznetsk Basin (Кузнецкий угольный бассейн, Кузбасс; often abbreviated as Kuzbass or Kuzbas) in southwestern Siberia, Russia, is one of the largest coal mining areas in Russia, covering an area of around 10000 sqmi. It lies in the Kuznetsk Depression between Tomsk and Novokuznetsk in the basin of the Tom River. From the south it borders the Abakan Range, from the west Salair Ridge, and Kuznetsk Alatau from the east.

It possesses some of the most extensive coal deposits anywhere in the world; coal-bearing seams extend over an area of 10309 sqmi and reach to a depth of 5905 ft. Overall coal deposits are estimated at 725 billion tonnes. The region's other industries, such as machine construction, chemicals and metallurgy, are based on coal mining.

History
Coal deposits in the area were first discovered in 1721.

During the Soviet era, the Kuznetsk Basin was second only to Ukraine's Donets Basin in terms of regional coal production. Iron smelting began there as early as 1697 and coal was discovered in 1721, although it was not systematically mined until 1851. The late 19th century industrialisation of Russia prompted a rapid growth in the area's industries, which was further boosted by the completion of the Trans-Siberian Railway. Under Joseph Stalin's first five-year plan, the Ural-Kuznetsk industrial combine was formed in the early 1930s. It became a centre for the production of iron and steel, zinc, aluminium, machinery and chemicals, with raw materials and finished products being shipped to and from sites in the Kuzbas and Urals.

A series of coal miners strikes in the late 1980s took place in the region, and gained the support from the sanctioned All-Union Central Council of Trade Unions. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the collapse of the planned economy, the region's industries faced a further crisis. Since then, however, its significance has grown. The Kuzbass now extracts ca. 60 percent of Russia's total coal production and is the main fuel and energy base for eastern Russia.

Administratively, the Kuznetsk Basin lies in Kemerovo Oblast with its capital in the city of Kemerovo. Other major cities in the area include Anzhero-Sudzhensk, Leninsk-Kuznetsky, Kiselyovsk, and Prokopyevsk.

Pollution
The large amount of coal mining in the region resulted in significant pollution. In a report done by the Central Intelligence Agency, the region was said to be home of "environmental problems" which were "causing increasing deaths and genetic defects among babies". A study by the British Geological Survey found that "Annual methane emissions into the atmosphere from Kuzbass coal mines amount to 1–2 billion cubic metres", with much of that coming from now abandoned mines.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Kuznetsk Basin


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Brian Sabean

Brian R. Sabean (born July 1, 1956), nicknamed "Sabes", is an American baseball executive for the New York Yankees. He serves as executive advisor to the general manager and senior vice president Brian Cashman. Before coming to the Yankees, he was the executive vice president of baseball operations of the San Francisco Giants. He served as the team's general manager for eighteen seasons, from 1997 to 2014. He succeeded general manager Bob Quinn. The Giants had a winning record in thirteen of the eighteen seasons in which Sabean served as general manager. Prior to his tenure, the team had suffered losing seasons in five out of six years. He is a native of Concord, New Hampshire.

Baseball career
Sabean was born in Concord, New Hampshire, and attended Concord High School and Eckerd College of St. Petersburg, Florida, playing with former major leaguer Joe Lefebvre at both schools. In 1978, Sabean was field manager of the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox, a collegiate summer baseball team in the prestigious Cape Cod Baseball League. He was an assistant baseball coach at Saint Leo University in 1979 and University of Tampa from 1980 to 1982. He was promoted to head coach in 1983 and led Tampa to its first-ever NCAA regional tournament appearance in 1984.

New York Yankees
Sabean began his involvement in Major League Baseball as a scout for the New York Yankees organization in 1985. Sabean was promoted to director of scouting in 1986 and vice president of player development/scouting in 1990. With the Yankees, he drafted or signed as amateurs the likes of Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, J. T. Snow, Jorge Posada and Andy Pettitte.

San Francisco Giants
Sabean joined the Giants in 1993, serving as assistant to the general manager and vice president of scouting/player personnel. Sabean served one year as senior vice president of player personnel in 1995 before his promotion to general manager in 1996.

The 1997 turnaround
When Sabean replaced Bob Quinn in 1996, the team was in disarray, finishing last in the National League West with 94 losses. Sabean is often credited for the team's turnaround, but his first major decision was very controversial at the time, trading fan favorite Matt Williams to the Cleveland Indians for José Vizcaíno, Joe Roa, Julián Tavárez and Jeff Kent. Sabean received so much criticism in San Francisco for the trade that he had to defend himself in the media, declaring, "I am not an idiot." The trade looked better in hindsight as Kent tallied over 100 RBIs in each of six seasons with the Giants and was named National League MVP in 2000, while Williams was traded again after one season with the Indians. Sabean also signed free-agent centerfielder Darryl Hamilton and traded for first baseman J. T. Snow, and bolstered the pitching staff with a midseason trade with the Chicago White Sox to acquire three pitchers. In 1997, the Giants won their first N.L. West title since 1989, finishing with a 90–72 record, the first of eight straight winning seasons.

Winning seasons: 1997–2004
This eight-year stretch was one of the more successful in Giants franchise history, with the Giants averaging 92 wins per season. During these years, Sabean's strategy was to trade away young prospects for veteran position players while developing the organization's pitching talent. Sabean traded away many prospects that never materialized into major leaguers in exchange for experienced major leaguers during late season pushes toward the playoffs. These trades have included All-Stars Jeff Kent, Jason Schmidt, Robb Nen, Kenny Lofton, Andrés Galarraga, Ellis Burks, Joe Carter, Roberto Hernández, Wilson Álvarez, and José Mesa.

After the Giants narrowly lost the 2002 World Series, Sabean was forced to dramatically retool. The Giants lost several key players, including Jeff Kent, Reggie Sanders, Jay Witasick, David Bell, and Aaron Fultz to free agency. Sabean signed veterans José Cruz Jr., Neifi Pérez, Edgardo Alfonzo, and Ray Durham to replace some of the free agents the Giants lost. He also traded away fan favorite Russ Ortiz (to the Braves for Damian Moss) and Liván Hernández, the losing pitcher of Game 7 of the 2002 World Series. Sabean hired Felipe Alou to replace fan favorite Dusty Baker who became the manager of the Chicago Cubs. Despite these major roster moves, the Giants won 100 games in 2003. Sabean was named Executive of the Year by the Sporting News in 2003, the first time a member of the Giants organization had received that award since Al Rosen in 1987.

The trade of Moss and Kurt Ainsworth for Sidney Ponson, which Sabean arranged late in the 2003 season, was criticized by some Giants fans and columnists. Ponson returned to the Orioles after only a few months on the Giants, during which he posted a 3–6 record and 3.71 ERA in the regular season, and one poor start in the postseason. In addition, as time went on, Sabean's trade of Francisco Liriano, Boof Bonser, and Joe Nathan for A. J. Pierzynski at the end of the 2003 season drew more criticism. He signed Michael Tucker to a free agent contract just before the deadline to declare arbitration making him an obvious inclusion for a team that would otherwise have passed in the Kansas City Royals, this cost the Giants a compensation draft pick that would not have been sacrificed had Sabean waited a few more hours to sign Tucker. Pierzynski remained on the Giants for one year, while Nathan developed into one of baseball's premier closers. Liriano became an All-Star in 2006, his rookie season, though he suffered injury later that year and would not be a productive starter until 2010.

After the Giants narrowly missed the playoffs in 2004, fans began to criticize Sabean for his player personnel moves. Sabean continued to build a team of veterans around Barry Bonds but some of them began to achieve below expectations. Edgardo Alfonzo did not put up the same offensive numbers as he did when he was with the New York Mets. Second baseman Ray Durham spent more time on the disabled list than he had previously in his career. In 2004, the Giants had not developed a homegrown position player since 2000. Sabean defended himself in a press conference, dismissing his critics as a "lunatic fringe". Some fans took up "lunatic fringe" as a rallying cry, printing up T-shirts with the phrase and wearing them to the ballpark.

Still, the 1997–2004 stretch was still a very successful time in Giants history with eight straight winning seasons. That time period overlapped with the Giants moving into Pacific Bell Park in downtown San Francisco. Because the ballpark was privately financed, the Giants were dependent on high attendance rates to pay their mortgage and remained in constant "win-now" mode.

Losing seasons: 2005–2008
Prior to the 2004 season, Sabean faced some criticism for his offseason moves, especially for not signing a closer to replace the injured Robb Nen and the departing Tim Worrell, and for not signing a power hitter to protect Barry Bonds in the lineup. The critics' concerns were borne out as Matt Herges struggled in the closer role, and without protection, Barry Bonds set single-season records with 232 walks and 120 intentional walks. Following the season, Sabean attempted to address both of these problems, signing Armando Benítez as the team's new closer and Moisés Alou to protect Bonds. However, both Benítez and Bonds spent significant time on the disabled list, and 2005 was the first losing season of Sabean's tenure. Sabean faced increasing criticism that the Giants' success was more related to Bonds than him, and that he was too enamored with older players.

In November 2004, The Hardball Times calculated average ages and win shares for all Major League Baseball teams and found that the Giants had the second-highest Win Share Age at 33.0, and consistently placed in the top five over the past several seasons. One Hardball Times writer predicted that the Giants' aging players would stop producing in the future. In addition to Barry Bonds, Sabean has contracted the services of aging veterans such as Reggie Sanders, Marquis Grissom, Michael Tucker, Omar Vizquel, Moisés Alou, Mike Matheny, Steve Finley (via trade), Randy Winn, J. T. Snow, Matt Morris, Armando Benítez, and Tim Worrell during his tenure. After his contract expired, Giants manager Felipe Alou criticized Sabean's strategy of signing older players, saying, "I don't believe one manager enjoys having players die in their hands," in reference to several older players whose careers ended with the Giants.

During this period, Sabean followed a strategy of avoiding high draft picks, telling the San Francisco Chronicle, "Quite frankly, we're very reluctant to overspend in the draft. We're cautious in that regard because it's so fallible. Our focus is spending as much as we can and being as wise as we can at the major-league level and using the minor leagues as a supplement and not necessarily leaning on it totally. Teams that are allowed to have a three-to- five-year plan and allowed to lose or explain to their fans they're in a rebuilding mode have a greater latitude than we do. We always have to be in a reloading mode". The Giants ranked 22nd in baseball on money spent in the draft and internationally between 2000 and 2004. On several occasions, Sabean's signing of veteran players before the arbitration deadline cost the team future draft picks. In 2004, Sabean forfeited the team's number one pick to sign Michael Tucker. In 2005, the Giants didn't pick until the fourth round after surrendering their first three selections to sign Benítez, Mike Matheny, and Omar Vizquel. The Giants did draft and sign first-round pitcher Tim Lincecum in the 2006 draft. Among early draft picks the Giants have used in Sabean's tenure, the majority were used on pitching talent (also see: Jesse Foppert, Kurt Ainsworth, Jerome Williams, Matt Cain, and Noah Lowry).

Following losing seasons in 2005 and 2006 and his signing of Barry Zito to a controversial record-setting contract, many fans and media commentators speculated that Sabean's job could be in jeopardy if the team did not improve in 2007. Team president Peter Magowan declared before the start of 2007 season that all Giants employees were on the "hot seat". However, the Giants rewarded Sabean with a two-year contract extension through the 2009 season following the All-Star break despite the Giants being in last place in the National League West. In previous years, Sabean had been under some pressure to put a team that could "win now" around Barry Bonds instead of rebuilding. Consequently, some critics have blamed Giants ownership and Peter Magowan for the Giants' losing seasons instead of Sabean. After the 2006 season, Magowan and Sabean acknowledged that the previous strategy was no longer working, with Sabean saying, "Older and experienced hasn't worked." Pursuing a rebuilding strategy, the Giants did not re-sign Bonds after the 2007 season and drafted Madison Bumgarner and Buster Posey in the first round of the 2007 and 2008 drafts, respectively.

2010, 2012, & 2014 World Series Championship seasons
In 2009, with a re-stocked farm system and a surprise 88-win season, the Giants extended Sabean's contract through the 2011 season. In 2010, several key trades and free agent signings by Sabean such as Aubrey Huff, as well as Sabean's trade of starting catcher Bengie Molina to the Texas Rangers in May to open up the catcher's spot for rookie Buster Posey, paid off as the Giants won the National League West for the first time since 2003 with a 92–70 record. Midseason acquisitions included Javier López, Pat Burrell, and Cody Ross. Despite being heavy underdogs in the NLCS and World Series, the Giants defeated the Atlanta Braves in four games in the National League Division Series, and the two time defending National League Champion Philadelphia Phillies in six games in the National League Championship Series. They then defeated the Texas Rangers in five games in the World Series for the team's first title in San Francisco, and the first title for the organization since 1954.

In 2012, Sabean traded for Melky Cabrera and Ángel Pagán in the offseason and acquired Marco Scutaro and Hunter Pence before the trading deadline. Buster Posey was named National League MVP, and Scutaro was named MVP of the 2012 NLCS as the Giants went on to win the World Series again in 2012, beating the Detroit Tigers in a four-game sweep. In 2014, the Giants won the World Series for the third time in five seasons, defeating the Kansas City Royals in seven games, with Madison Bumgarner earning both NLCS and World Series MVP honors and setting a record for most postseason innings pitched. In a contrast from Sabean's earlier years, the Giants' entire postseason infield was filled with home-grown talent: catcher Buster Posey, first baseman Brandon Belt, second baseman Joe Panik, shortstop Brandon Crawford, and third baseman Pablo Sandoval.

Non–GM seasons (2015–2022)
In April 2015, Sabean was promoted to executive vice president of baseball operations, ceding day-to-day operations to Bobby Evans while taking on a more active role in player evaluations. After the 2018 season he gave up his role overseeing baseball operations, though he was expected to remain with the Giants in another capacity. In 2019 Sabean was working for the Giants as a scout.

New York Yankees (second stint)
On January 3, 2023, Sabean was hired by the New York Yankees to serve as the executive advisor to the general manager, Brian Cashman.

Legacy
Sabean's 18 years as the Giants' general manager was the longest run by a general manager in the club's history, surpassing Spec Richardson (seven seasons, 1975–81), Al Rosen (seven seasons, 1986–92) and Tom Haller (five seasons, 1981–85). Sabean had the longest tenure with the same club among active general managers. During his tenure, the Giants won three World Series (2010, 2012, and 2014), four National League pennants (2002, 2010, 2012, and 2014), five National League West Division flags (1997, 2000, 2003, 2010, and 2012), two National League Wild Cards (2002, 2014), and forced a National League Wild Card tie-breaker game with Chicago in 1998. On two other occasions, the club was eliminated from post season contention on the last day of the season.

He guided the club to seven post season berths—the club's most since it made eight appearances in a 14-season span from 1911 to 1924. From 1997 to 2014, the Giants recorded the third-best winning percentage in the National League (.534, 1,556–1,358), behind only the Braves and Cardinals. His .534 career winning percentage ranks 10th all-time among all general managers since 1950 who served at least 10 years.

Mitchell Report
In late 2007 and early 2008, Sabean and Giants owner Peter Magowan drew some criticism in the Mitchell Report when it was revealed Giants trainer Stan Conte came to Sabean and told him he suspected Bonds trainer Greg Anderson was distributing steroids and Giants management didn't investigate or tell Major League Baseball. Conte had been approached by a player. In the January 2007 Congressional hearings on performance-enhancing drugs, Congressman Henry Waxman asked Commissioner Bud Selig to discipline Sabean and Magowan for their culpability. Some sports insiders argued that Magowan and Sabean actions on steroids was not any different from other clubs at the time.

Controversy
In June 2011, Sabean was the subject of controversy over comments he made regarding Scott Cousins after Cousins' collision with Giants catcher Buster Posey, which resulted in season-ending injuries for Posey.

title: Brian Sabean


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User:Malwright

Mal Wright Mal Wright was born in Perth, Western Australia and attended the Curtin University of Technology where he received a bachelor's degree in Science (Systems Programming and Communications). He is the Enterprise Directory Design Team Leader for ChevronTexaco, in San Ramon, California, USA.

Mal joined ChevronTexaco in May 1998 after working for WA Petroleum, and previously for Orbital Engine Company. He is married to Susanne Wright, who is also currently living in California.

'''Mal has authored several white papers in the area of information technology. These include:'''

''Proactive System and Performance Monitoring for Heterogeneous Envirnoments. Published by SANS (System Administration & Network Security), 1997. Mal also presented this whitepaper at the SANS conference in Baltimore in 1997.''

''Investigating an Internal Case of Internet Abuse. Published by SANS, Septmeber 2001.''

''Basic Massively Parallel Language Tools. Curtin University of Technology, 1995.''

title: User:Malwright


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Jill Brothers

Jillian Brothers (born May 20, 1983 as Jill Mouzar [pronounced "MOW-zer"]) is a Canadian curler. She currently plays third on Team Christina Black. Brothers was born in Liverpool, Nova Scotia and now resides in Bedford, Nova Scotia.

Career
Brothers started curling in Liverpool, Nova Scotia. Her first Nova Scotia junior championship was in 2001, along with Meaghan Smart, Meghan MacAdams, Carolyn Marshall, and coach Albert Smart. This team was the first Liverpool team to curl at the national level since 1970, representing Nova Scotia at the 2001 Canadian Junior Curling Championships.

In 2004, Brothers curled with Paige Mattie, Blisse Comstock, Chloe Comstock, and coach Donalda Mattie and went on to win the Canadian Junior Women's championship. That team won the silver medal at world junior championships in Trois-Rivières, Québec.

In 2005 Brothers' women's team finished fourth out of eight teams at Nova Scotia women's championships in her first year of eligibility.

Brothers won her first provincial women's championship in 2007 and represented Nova Scotia at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Lethbridge, Alberta with teammates Meredith Harrison, Teri Lake, and Hayley Clarke. They finished with a 3-8 record.

Brothers played lead for Nova Scotia (skipped by Mark Dacey) at the 2010 Canadian Mixed Curling Championship, an event which she won.

In 2010, Brothers moved to Ontario and begun playing for Kirsten Wall as the team's lead. In 2012, the team broke up, and Wall left the rink, and Brothers was promoted from lead to skip. Brothers qualified for her first Ontario provincial in 2013. Following the season, Brothers moved back to Nova Scotia to play third for Heather Smith, for whom she played two seasons. The team won the 2014 Nova Scotia Scotties Tournament of Hearts, and represented Nova Scotia at the 2014 Scotties Tournament of Hearts. There, Smith led the team to a 4-7 record. Smith left the team in 2015, and Brothers took over as skip. Brothers won the 2016 Nova Scotia Scotties Tournament of Hearts, and led Nova Scotia to a 6-5 record at the 2016 Scotties Tournament of Hearts. Brothers would not win another provincial until 2019. She led her Nova Scotia team on home ice at the 2019 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, but were eliminated after pool play, finishing with a 2-5 record.

The 2021 Nova Scotia Scotties was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Nova Scotia, so the Nova Scotia Curling Association appointed Brothers and her team to represent the province at the 2021 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, as the 2020 provincial champion Mary-Anne Arsenault moved to British Columbia. One member of the Brothers rink, Sarah Murphy opted to not attend the Scotties, with lead Jenn Brine moving up to second and alternate Emma Logan moving up to play lead. At the Tournament of Hearts, Brothers led team Nova Scotia to a 3–5 record, failing to make it to the championship round.

Personal life
Brothers is employed as technical director with the Nova Scotia Curling Association. She has two children and is married to broadcaster Paul Brothers.

title: Jill Brothers


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Shona music

Shona music is the music of the Shona people of Zimbabwe. There are several different types of traditional Shona music including mbira, singing, hosho and drumming. Very often, this music will be accompanied by dancing, and participation by the audience. In the Shona style of music, there is little distinction between the performer and the audience. Both are often actively involved in the music-making and both are important in the Shona religious ceremonies.

Mbira
The mbira is a traditional instrument of the Shona People often used in religious ceremonies. There are several different varieties of mbira including the mbira dzavadzimu and mbira nyunga nyunga.

Shona music is well known as representative of mbira ("thumb piano") music. The performer of the "kushaura" (lead mbira part) often acts also as the lead vocalist, selecting a known melody or mbira pattern to accompany selected lyrics, usually a phrase or a few lines of text which are then commented upon improvisationally. The performer of the "kutsinira" (second mbira part) plays a pattern which interlocks with the "kushaura" in a way that creates the repeated notes which identify mbira music. The "kutsinira" part is sometimes the same part as the "kushaura", but following the kushaura one pulse behind. The mbira players are accompanied by another less active singer who plays the hosho (a rattle) and responds to the improvised lyrics of the singer and, most importantly, embellishes and complements the lead vocal melody. (Garfias 1971)

Drumming
Drums are always associated with dance and can be used for various dances.

Mhande drums

 * 1) Shauro- used for the lead rhythm
 * 2) Tsinhiro- used for the response rhythm

4Dinhe drums

 * 1) Mhito – used for the lead rhythm
 * 2) Mitumba miviri- used for the response rhythm

Chokoto drums
(these are two headed)
 * 1) Chimudumbana – small, for lead rhythm
 * 2) Chigubha – big, for response rhythm

Hosho

Shona music is often accompanied by the hosho, a hollowed-out maranka gourd containing hota seeds or other objects that is shaken to generate a sound.

Ancient Shona music
Traditional ancient Shona musics consist of mbira dzavadzimu played by multiple players, hosho and ngoma drums. Ancient shona music is mainly played at spiritual ceremonies called bira.

Modern
Traditional Shona music has been adapted to modern instruments such as electric guitars and western drumsets, for example by musicians such as Thomas Mapfumo, Stella Chiweshe, and Oliver Mtukudzi. This music is also associated with the Chimurenga movement.

Shona music in the West
Shona music has become popular in the West and even in the East such as Japan. Shona mbira has been taught in British and American Universities in musicology classes. Transcriptions carried out as part of fieldwork. In the United States, Shona music has become popular in Colorado, California, the Pacific Northwest and in some places of Argentina, largely due to the seeding influence of musicians including Dumisani Maraire, Ephat Mujuru, Thomas Mapfumo and Erica Azim.

Shona music on marimba
Shona marimbas are diatonic and are made with F#s and without. They are different from other marimbas through their larger keys and resonators beneath the keys (to produce a buzzing sound). There are four kinds of marimba played in a band, namely bass, baritone, tenor and soprano. Bass has the largest keys and resonators and the shortest range, requiring large sticks to play. Baritone is the next in size, with one octave more than the bass. It also has large resonators and large sticks, although not as large as bass. Tenor and soprano use the same sticks. Tenor has two octaves, with the higher octave being the same as the lower octave of soprano. Soprano plays the lead part, with tenor providing rhythm. Bass and baritone play similar parts, forming the backbone of the song. Marimba is very popular in schools in Zimbabwe, with most schools having at least one band.

Musicians

 * Chartwell Dutiro
 * Chiwoniso Maraire
 * Chris Berry
 * Cosmas Magaya
 * Dumisani Maraire
 * Ephat Mujuru
 * Erica Azim
 * Forward Kwenda
 * Fabio Chivhanda
 * Herbert Schwamborn
 * James Chimombe
 * Oliver Mtukudzi
 * Stella Chiweshe
 * Tendayi Gahamadze
 * Hope Masike
 * Thomas Mapfumo
 * Jah Prayzah
 * Leonard Dembo

Recordings

 * Nonesuch Explorer Series 79703-2, Zimbabwe: The African Mbira: Music of the Shona People (2002). Liner notes by Robert Garfias (1971).
 * Nonesuch Explorer Series 79704 Zimbabwe: The Soul of Mbira: Traditions of the Shona People (1973). Produced by Paul Berliner
 * Musical instruments 2: (LP) Reeds (Mbira). (1972) The Music of Africa series. 1 LP disc. 33$1/3$ rpm. mono. 12 in. Recorded by Hugh Tracey. Kaleidophone, KMA 2.
 * Mbira Music of Rhodesia, Performed by Abram Dumisani Maraire. (1972). Seattle: University of Washington Press, Ethnic Music Series. Garfias, R. (Ed.). 1 LP disc. 33$1/3$ rpm. mono. 12 in. UWP-1001. This disc features Maraire exclusively on Nyunga Nyunga mbira. A 12-page booklet by Maraire is included, describing the background, composition, and performance of nyunga-nyunga mbira music.

title: Shona music


text:
User talk:Timvroom

Thanks for experimenting with Wikipedia. Your test worked, and has now been reverted or removed. Please use Sandbox for any other tests you want to do, since testing in articles will normally be reverted quickly. Please see the welcome page if you would like to learn more about contributing to our encyclopedia. Thanks.Geni 00:30, 6 Feb 2005 (UTC)

title: User talk:Timvroom


text: User talk:69.208.79.230

title: User talk:69.208.79.230


text:
Wikipedia:Goings-on/February 6, 2005

Welcome to Wikipedia's goings-on. This page is a central point for community members to collect current information about the community project and to report on recent goings-on. In a sense, it's an announcement page, but it is supposed to collect even those kinds of information that are normally not announced on pages like Announcements (e.g. arbitration progress, outspoken newcomers, amusing things, etc.). However, please notice that this page is explicitly not for discussion. When listing topics here that are being discussed or have been discussed, please link to the appropriate discussion page and discuss it there. For a project-wide update of events, see the Meta goings-on.

This page is archived in a weekly digest-like fashion, every Sunday at 0:00 UTC.

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Goings-on in the week starting Sunday February 6 2005

 * A survey on the use of "rel=nofollow" in external links opens for voting at Nofollow.
 * Raulbot, a unix upload script run by Raul654, begins work on commons uploading classical music. Track progress at Sound/list
 * A Wikiportal, India has been created on 11 February 2005.
 * The first Wikiportal, Biology, has been created. The idea was first introduced in the German Wikipedia, and later in the French, Polish, Dutch, Japanese and Hebrew ones. Portals for Art and Sport are also finished.
 * A press release is being worked on for the upcoming Wikimania 2005 conference.
 * Voting on a new Wikipedia portal continues.
 * Discussion continues on a revived proposal to enforce the no personal attacks policy by means of temporary blocks.
 * A new report has been compiled about repeated words. About 1100 entries are waiting to be corrected.
 * A run-off poll to choose the new logo of Wikinews is ongoing at Wikinews logo contest voting/Runoff.
 * A run-off poll to choose the new logo of Wikinews is ongoing at Wikinews logo contest voting/Runoff.

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Articles featured on the Main Page
 * Poetry of the United States (February 6)
 * Bodyline (February 7)
 * Battle of Inchon (February 8)
 * Jonathan Wild (February 9)
 * Coconut crab (February 10)
 * Economy of the Republic of Ireland (February 11)
 * Albert Einstein (February 12)

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Articles that gained "featured" status
 * John Day (printer) (February 6)
 * Death Valley National Park (February 6)
 * History of post-Soviet Russia (February 6)
 * Windows XP (February 9)
 * History of Russia (February 9)
 * Book of Kells (February 11)
 * Octopus card (February 11)
 * Lord's Resistance Army (February 11)
 * Get Back (February 11)
 * Anne Frank (February 11)
 * Test matches in the 19th century (to 1883) (February 11)

Pictures that gained "featured" status
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title: Wikipedia:Goings-on/February 6, 2005


text:
Meatballs (film)

Meatballs is a 1979 Canadian comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman. It is noted for Bill Murray's first film appearance in a starring role and for launching the directing career of Reitman, whose later comedies include Stripes (1981) and Ghostbusters (1984), both starring Murray.

The film was the highest-grossing Canadian film of all time in the United States and Canada, winning the Golden Reel Award. It is the first of six film collaborations between Murray and Harold Ramis and few sequels, of which only Meatballs III: Summer Job (1986) had any connection to the original.

Plot
Tripper Harrison leads a group of new counsellors-in-training (CITs) at Camp North Star, a cut-rate summer camp located in Ontario, and leads practical jokes on camp director Morty Melnick, mainly by taking Melnick from his cabin late at night so that he awakens in unusual places.

Rudy Gerner, a lonely boy whose mother died about a year earlier, is sent to summer camp by his workaholic father, but decides to run away. Noticing Rudy is lacking self-confidence, Tripper tracks him to a nearby bus station and takes him under his wing. They rapidly bond as friends after many morning jogs. Tripper helps Rudy gain confidence while starting a romance with Roxanne, the girls' head counsellor. Many of the CITs also find romance: Candace "kidnaps" Crockett in a speedboat and confesses her feelings for him, while Wheels, who had broken up with A.L. the year before, successfully rekindles their relationship during a dance, and the nerdy Spaz falls for the tomboy Jackie.

A subplot deals with North Star's rivalry with Camp Mohawk, a wealthy summer camp located across the lake. During a basketball game, North Star is being beaten by Mohawk when they attempt their own perverse form of victory. This sets the stage for the yearly Olympiad between the camps, which Mohawk has won 12 consecutive times.

During the first day of competition, Mohawk dominates North Star, often winning by cheating. Crockett fails to clear the high jump bar, Hardware gets pummelled in boxing, and Jackie suffers a broken ankle in field hockey, thanks to the dirty work of two Mohawk girls. The score at the end of Day One is: Mohawk 170, North Star 63. That evening at the North Star Lodge, Tripper rouses the demoralized campers by explaining that victory or defeat is unimportant. In unison, Camp North Star begins to chant, "It just doesn't matter!" Day Two of the Olympiad belongs to newly inspired North Star as they win every event. Wheels outwrestles his opponent, Spaz defeats Rhino in a stacking contest with inspiration from Jackie and a thwarted Mohawk cheating attempt, and, after 12 years of North Star defeats, Fink finally beats "The Stomach" in the Hot Dog-eating contest. North Star now trails by only 10 points with one event left, a four-mile cross country run for 20 points. Tripper offers to select a surprised Rudy to compete against Horse, Mohawk's star runner. Rudy's many mornings spent jogging and training with Tripper pay off as he wins the race, giving North Star its first Olympiad victory by a score of 230–220.

Later that evening, Morty, Tripper, Roxanne and the CITs sing around a campfire and say their final goodbyes as the camp prepares to close at the end of summer. Rudy has already decided to return to camp next year and Roxanne agrees to live with Tripper. The two ride off on Tripper's motorcycle, leading the buses out of camp and leaving Morty behind, in bed, on a raft in the middle of the lake.

Cast

 * Bill Murray as "Tripper" Harrison
 * Harvey Atkin as Morty "Mickey" Melnick
 * Kate Lynch as Roxanne
 * Russ Banham as Bobby Crockett
 * Kristine DeBell as A.L.
 * Sarah Torgov as Candace
 * Jack Blum as "Spaz"
 * Keith Knight as Larry "Fink" Finkelstein
 * Cindy Girling as Wendy
 * Todd Hoffman as "Wheels"
 * Margot Pinvidic as Jackie
 * Matt Craven as "Hardware" Renzetti (billed as Matt Cravenn)
 * Norma Dell'Agnese as Brenda
 * Chris Makepeace as Rudy Gerner
 * Ruth Rennie as Jody
 * Hadley Kay as Bradley

Production
Harold Ramis said that Reitman did not know for certain whether Murray would be in the film until he showed up for the third day of filming. Eddie Deezen was approached to play Spaz but declined as he was already committed to 1941.

Filming took place at Camp White Pine, on Hurricane Lake, between Haliburton and West Guilford, Ontario, in August–September 1978.

Critical response
Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 73% based on 37 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads: "Meatballs is a summer camp comedy with few surprises, but Bill Murray's riffing adds a spark that sets it apart from numerous subpar entries in a frequently uninspired genre".

Vincent Canby of The New York Times wrote, "With far fewer high spirits than Animal House, and only two characters of any interest, Meatballs reveals itself to be a loud, off-key cry for conformism of a most disappointing sort. It's a sheep in wolf's clothing." Dale Pollock of Variety wrote: "Record of tv stars making the transition to feature films is spotty overall, but Bill Murray proves a welcome exception to the rule. The Saturday Night Live regular manages to sock over Meatballs with amazing vitality and elan."

Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune gave the film 2.5 stars out of four, and stated that it "is pleasant as can be, but there's hardly a belly laugh in it. Murray plays a nice guy counselor who befriends a lonely camper. It's all very sweet, but funny? Not particularly." Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times called the film "a fast, funny sendup of summer-camp life" that "is not as all-out raunchy as Animal House—but it's hilarious in a similar blissfully uncomplicated and nutty way." Gary Arnold of The Washington Post wrote: "Meatballs is as tartly, unpretentiously funny as its title ... As the senior boys' counselor, an easygoing role model and spontaneous comic genius, Bill Murray of Saturday Night Live makes a deceptively sensational debut as a film comedy star." Jack Kroll of Newsweek remarked that "this film has almost none of the scraggy, raunchy, irreverent anarchy that gave Animal House a kind of perverse anti-style. There's nothing at all perverse about Meatballs; in fact, it's so cutesy, squeaky-clean that it becomes Andy Hardy with a few extra belches."

In 2023, Barry Hertz of The Globe and Mail named the film as one of the 23 best Canadian comedy films ever made.

Box office
The film was a surprise hit. It opened in seven theatres in Toronto and grossed $105,635 in its first four days. A week later, it opened on 93 screens in New York, grossing $1.5 million for the week and placing fifth at the US box office. It grossed $17.9 million in its first 17 days of national release. The film was the first Canadian film to gross more than $2.5 million in Canada, surpassing 1970's Deux femmes en or, to become the highest-grossing film of all time, with a gross of $4.2 million, winning the Golden Reel Award for the year. It also became the highest-grossing Canadian film in the United States, with a combined gross of $43 million in the United States and Canada. It was also the highest-grossing film in the US without any US investment at the time until surpassed by Chariots of Fire in 1982. The film grossed $70 million worldwide.

Music
The film's score was written by Elmer Bernstein and several musicians also contributed to the soundtrack, including Mary MacGregor (performing "Good Friend"), David Naughton (performing "Makin' It", which served as the theme for his title sitcom, which was cancelled before the film's release), and Rick Dees and His Cast of Idiots (performing the title theme "Meatballs"). "Good Friend" and "Makin' It" made the Billboard and Cashbox pop charts (see below).

Singles

 * Makin' It (by David Naughton) (Billboard, number 5) / Still Makin' It (instrumental of A-side) -- RSO 916—1979
 * Good Friend (by Mary MacGregor) (Billboard number 39) / Rudy and Tripper (dialogue from film) -- RSO 938—1979

Album
Meatballs RSO 1-3056 (Billboard, number 170, August 1979)
 * Side one:
 * 1) "Are You Ready for the Summer" – North Star Camp Kids Chorus
 * 2) "Rudy and Tripper" (instrumental)
 * 3) "Makin' It" – David Naughton
 * 4) "Moondust" – Terry Black
 * 5) "C.I.T. Song" – Original Cast
 * Side two:
 * 1) "Good Friend" – Mary MacGregor
 * 2) "Olympiad" (instrumental)
 * 3) "Meatballs" – Rick Dees
 * 4) "Rudy Wins the Race" (instrumental)
 * 5) "Moondust (Reprise)" – Terry Black
 * 6) "Are You Ready for the Summer (Reprise)" – North Star Camp Kids Chorus

Home media
Meatballs was first released on DVD in 1999 by HBO (although Paramount Pictures was behind the original theatrical release and the first VHS and SelectaVision release in the 1980s, and also continues to hold international video rights.) Sony Pictures Entertainment issued a special-edition DVD (with an anamorphic transfer, a director's commentary, and a "Making of" featurette) on June 5, 2007. The sequels did not receive the same treatment of re-release. However, Lionsgate released the Blu-ray on June 12, 2012 and the DVD reissue on February 22, 2022, which retains the commentary from the Sony DVD but not the featurette.

Sequels
Meatballs was followed by three sequels: Meatballs Part II (1984), Meatballs III: Summer Job (1986) and Meatballs 4 (1992), none of which involved either Reitman or Murray. Only Meatballs III had any relation to the story or characters of the original, featuring Patrick Dempsey as Rudy Gerner.

title: Meatballs (film)


text:
Hoyt Curtin

Hoyt Stoddard Curtin (September 9, 1922 – December 3, 2000) was an American composer and music producer, the primary musical director for the Hanna-Barbera animation studio from its beginnings with The Ruff & Reddy Show in 1957 until his retirement in 1989, except from 1965 to 1972, when the primary music director was Ted Nichols.

Biography
Curtin was a native of Downey, California, and had one son, Chris, with his wife Elizabeth.

In the 1950s Curtin was an in-demand composer for TV commercials. He first met William Hanna and Joseph Barbera when he worked on a Schlitz beer commercial they were producing for MGM in 1957.

 * "About two weeks later they called and had a lyric they read over the phone. Could I write a tune for it? I called back in 5 minutes and sang it to them ... silence ... uh oh, I bombed out ... the next thing I heard was a deal to record it! Ruff & Reddy. At that moment they had quit at MGM and started their own company. All of our first main titles were done in that fashion. Huckleberry Hound, Quick Draw McGraw, etc.".

He was the composer of many of the Hanna-Barbera cartoons' popular theme songs, including The Flintstones until 1981, Top Cat, The Jetsons, Jonny Quest, Super Friends, Josie and the Pussycats, The Smurfs, and The New Scooby-Doo Movies and all its spinoffs until 1989. Beginning in 1960, Curtin also composed many of the stock tunes used as incidental music in the various Hanna-Barbera series, along with the jingle heard underneath Hanna-Barbera's closing logo in 1979. He also composed two of the tunes heard in the background in 1959's Plan 9 from Outer Space, although he was embarrassed by the film's poor quality. The following year, Curtin was the composer for the animated series Q.T. Hush, one of the first cartoons to appear in color.

His other credits include the score for the science-fiction film Mesa of Lost Women (1953), Ed Wood's Jail Bait (1954, as Hoyt Kurtain), Timber Tramps (1975), C.H.O.M.P.S. (1979), and the music for the 1978 Sandy Frank cartoon Battle of the Planets for which a soundtrack was released in 2000. He also composed and conducted the music for Thrillerama Adventure, a two-projector attempt at replicating Cinerama, in 1955 with a 38-piece orchestra.

In a 1999 interview Curtin said, "My pianist, Jack Cookerly, invented the synthesizer as we know it for Jonny Quest. It was made of orange crates with a keyboard and thousands of vacuum tubes! A regular jazz band, (of) 4 trumpets, 6 [trom]bones, 5 woodwind doublers, 5-man rhythm section including percussion"; was used to record the music for the Jonny Quest cartoon. The Jonny Quest session was done "...at RCA in Hollywood. Alvin Stoller or Frankie Capp usually played drums. I always tried to get the same guys where possible. They were the ones who could swing and read like demons."

Death
Curtin died on December 3, 2000, in Thousand Oaks, California, at age 78. He was on the tennis court playing a match when he fell to the ground and was pronounced dead by the paramedics.

title: Hoyt Curtin


text:
User talk:Malwright

Hi, welcome to Wikipedia. I've moved your autobiography to your User page, at User:Malwright. We usually prefer that the person who is the subject of the article not write it themselves. RickK 00:33, Feb 6, 2005 (UTC)

title: User talk:Malwright


text:
Joan Fuster

Joan Fuster i Ortells (23 November 1922 – 21 June 1992) was an influential Spanish writer. He is considered a major writer in the Valencian language (a dialect of the Catalan language), and his work contributed to reinvigorate left-wing, pro-Catalan nationalism in Valencia during the Spanish transition to democracy. In his influential political essay Nosaltres, els valencians (1962) he coined the term Països Catalans (Catalan Countries) to refer to the Catalan-speaking territories.

Life and works
He was born in the village of Sueca near Valencia, Spain, in a relatively prosperous middle-class family. Both his parents were pious Roman Catholics and Carlists. His father was a renowned local sculptor of mostly religious sculptures. In 1941 he became a member of the fascist organization Falange; however, he later abjured this affiliation. In 1947 Fuster graduated with a degree in law and he received a doctoral degree in Catalan philology in 1985. From 1946 to 1956 he co-directed the magazine Verb with José Albi. Of his first books, all of which are poetry, Escrit per al silenci ("Written for the Silence") (1954) stands out. In 1952 he began his collaborations with the press of Valencia in Levante: this would be one of his more prominent facets. He would continue with it in Destino and in La Vanguardia.

With El descrèdit de la Realitat ("The Discredit of Reality") (1955) he started a notable career as an essayist of vast thematic breadth and whose incisive style was noted for its precise use of adjectives. Another aspect of his work was his erudition and concern with the craft of storytelling and he worked greatly to maintain a literary reviewal he pushed forward in anthologies. His dedication to Valencian themes culminated in 1962 with the publication of what remained as his most known work: Nosaltres els valencians ("We, the Valencians"). This book, together with Qüestió de Noms ("Matter of Names") and El País Valenciano ("The Valencian Country"), are basic books on the history, culture and national identity problem of the Valencian Community from a Catalanist point of view.

He went on with this subject matter with the release of Raimon (1964), Combustible per a falles ("Combustible for Falles") (1967) and Ara o Mai ("Now or Never") (1981), among others. These, parts of his numerous studies and erudite historical and biographical articles, have been collected in the I and III tomes of the Obres completes ("Complete Works"). The Diari ("Day-to-Day Works") (1952–1960) occupy the second volume.

Within the realm of essay writing, he published Figures del temps ("Figures of Times"), Yxart award (1957), Judicis Finals ("Final Judgments") (1960), Diccionari per a ociosos ("Dictionary for Idlers") (1964), Causar-se d'esperar ("Causing Oneself to Wait") (1965), L'home, mesura de totes les coses ("The Man, Measure of All Things") (1967), and others—always within the tradition moral root of classical humanism, close in spirit to the moralists and French reformers (from Montaigne to the encyclopedists), as a critic and skeptic noted for his acid humor. Within his works on history, criticism and literary production, he published La Poesia Catalana ("Catalan Poetry") (1956), Poetes, Moriscos i Capellans ("Poets, Moorish and Cures") (1962), Heretgies, Revoltes i Sermons ("Heresies, Revolts and Sermons") (1968) and Literatura Catalana Contemporània ("Contemporary Catalan Literature") (1972), in addition to three extensive prologues for the works of Joan Salvat-Papasseit (1962), Salvador Espriu (1963) and Josep Pla (1966), joined together in Contra el Noucentisme ("Against Noucentisme") (1978).

In 1987 he collected his poetry into Set llibres de versos ("Seven Books of Verses"). The studies joined together in Llibres i problemes del Renaixentisme ("Books and problems of the Renaissance") (1989) are the fruit of the research carried out in his last few years. In 1994 the works Fuster Inèdit ("Unpublished Fuster") and Fuster Sabàtic ("Sabbatical Fuster") were edited.

He was homosexual.

Importance
Despite having written also a number of fiction pieces, he is best known for his essays, especially the political ones. His most influential work by far was the book Nosaltres els valencians ("We, the Valencians") (1962), whereas other titles such as Qüestió de Noms ("Matter of Names") and Diccionari per a Ociosos ("Dictionary for Idlers") (1963) are well known in the Catalan nationalism. He became the intellectual leader of Valencian nationalism by the end of the 20th century, and was central in proposing the Països Catalans concept, which advocated for unity within Catalan culture as proposed by Catalan nationalists, and assumed vaguely by Valencian nationalists. In these books Fuster asserted that it was necessary to strengthen Valencia's relationships with the other Catalan speaking territories for there to be any chance of defending the autonomous culture of Valencia. In this way he sought to bring a Catalan-based cultural community into existence.

In this sense, Fuster is, for some, the most remarkable political essayist in Catalan of the generations that appeared after the Spanish Civil War.

Acknowledgement
He received the Premi d'Honor de les Lletres Catalanes ("Catalan Letters Award") (1975) and also, in the year 1983, the Medalla d’Or de la Generalitat de Catalunya ("Gold Medal of Catalonia's Generality"). In 1984 he was named doctor honoris causa by the University of Barcelona and by the Autonomous University of Barcelona. In 1986 he was appointed as professor of literature in the University of Valencia.

Murder attempt
On 11 September 1981, two bombs exploded in his house, damaging heavily his library and archive. Nobody was prosecuted, but it is widely believed that it was the anti-Catalan far right's response to Fuster's political and cultural position.

Digital editions of Joan Fuster's books

 * Nosaltres els valencians
 * Qüestió de noms

title: Joan Fuster


title: File:AnEveningofYesMusicPlus1993.jpg


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Percussion ensemble

A percussion ensemble is a musical ensemble consisting of only percussion instruments. Although the term can be used to describe any such group, it commonly refers to groups of classically trained percussionists performing primarily classical music. In America, percussion ensembles are most commonly found at conservatories, though some professional groups, such as Nexus and So Percussion exist. Drumlines and groups who regularly meet for drum circles are two other forms of the percussion ensemble.

Early literature
George Antheil's Ballet Mécanique (1923) is one of the earliest examples of composition for percussion, written originally as a film score and exemplifying the ideals of the Italian futurist movement. Antheil originally called for sixteen synchronized player pianos, as well as airplane engines, alongside more traditional percussion instruments. Another early example, Cuban composer Amadeo Roldán's Rítmicas nos. 5 and 6 of 1930, made use of Cuban percussion instruments and rhythms. But it was Edgard Varèse's Ionisation that "opened the floodgates" and truly brought the percussion ensemble into the fold of contemporary composition. Premiered in 1933 under the baton of Nicholas Slonimsky, Ionisation is thematically structured and makes use of 13 performers playing over 30 different instruments, including Latin percussion instruments, drums, cymbals, sirens, a piano, chimes and glockenspiel.

Other noteworthy pieces were composed during the 1930s and 1940s, particularly on the West Coast of America by composers Henry Cowell, John Cage, Lou Harrison, and Johanna Beyer. The year 1939 saw the composition of Cage's First Construction (in Metal) and Harrison's Canticle no. 1. Béla Bartók's Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion, written in 1937, was also an important piece for the development of percussion composition. The early 1940s resulted in Cage's second (1940) and third (1941) Constructions, Harrison's Fugue for Percussion (1941), as well as Cage and Harrison's collaboration Double Music (1941). Carlos Chávez's Toccata (1942) has also remained a standard work.

After the Second World War
In the post-war period, many new works were composed for percussion ensemble. In 1960, Alberto Ginastera composed the Cantata para América Mágica, for soprano and large percussion ensemble. Carlos Chávez wrote his second such piece, Tambuco, in 1964. Iannis Xenakis composed two percussion sextets for Les Percussions de Strasbourg, Persephassa (1969), and Pléïades (1979), and in 1996 wrote Zythos, for trombone and six percussionists, for Christian Lindberg and the Kroumata Ensemble. Karlheinz Stockhausen composed a children's theatre piece for percussion sextet titled Musik im Bauch (Music in the Belly) in 1975, also for Les Percussions de Strasbourg, and in 2004 wrote a percussion trio titled Mittwoch Formel. The British composer and percussionist James Wood has contributed several works to the repertoire, including Stoicheia (1987–88), requiring over 600 instruments played by 16 percussionists, as well as electronics, Village Burial with Fire for percussion quartet (1989), and Spirit Festival with Lamentations, for quarter-tone marimba and four percussionists (1992).

Accreditation
The existence of percussion ensembles in music schools across the United States and beyond is due largely to Paul Price, who taught at the University of Illinois from 1949 to 1956 and established the first accredited percussion ensemble during his time there. His students at that time included Michael Colgrass, who, unsatisfied with the available percussion ensemble literature, composed for the ensemble and went on to become a Pulitzer-winning composer with Déjà Vu (1978), written for a percussion quartet with orchestra. Since the 1950s, the percussion ensemble has become a permanent part of the academic music world, and professional percussion ensembles such as Nexus have furthered the art form through commissions and worldwide performance. The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music holds the Paul Price Percussion Music and Papers, 1961–1982, which consists of percussion sheet music, sound recordings, and correspondence documenting Price's career as a percussion musician, and conductor of the Manhattan Percussion Ensemble.

Other significant composers
In addition to Beyer, Cage, Cowell, and Harrison, American composers who have made significant contributions to percussion ensemble literature include: Steve Reich, Howard J. Buss, Christopher Rouse, William Russell, William Kraft, and Eric Ewazen.

List of notable percussion ensembles

 * Amadinda Percussion Group
 * Blue Man Group
 * Kroumata
 * Nexus
 * The Percussion Clique, Michael Aldan Bayard
 * Percussions Claviers de Lyon
 * Les Percussions de Strasbourg
 * Scrap Arts Music
 * Singapore Wind Symphony's Percussion Ensemble
 * So Percussion
 * Stomp
 * Tambuco
 * Third Coast Percussion

title: Percussion ensemble