During 2005/2006 I composed a series of eight etudes for solo snare drum, which were included in my book Rudimental Arithmetic (published in 2008 by Keyboard Percussion Publications). In 2019, at the request of Morris Palter for a solo drum set piece, I elaborated Etude #7 to include bass drum played with foot pedal, and hi-hat cymbals. The etude is set in septuple meter throughout, and the title Sevenly Reward is a reference to the 7/4 time signature.
The piece is comprised of five sections. The first introduces and develops an intricate motive in quadruple subdivision. The second part changes to a contrasting theme in triple subdivision followed by a further development of the initial motive. The fourth section presents the traditional “double-stroke roll” in diminishing note values but configured to remain in septuple meter. A short coda restating the motive from the first section concludes the piece.
-Bob Becker
