In Venus - Marimba Solo by Davis Carr

Buy the sheet music at daviscarrpercussion.com

Performed and Written by Davis Carr, 2022-2023

"In Venus" is my first solo composition for marimba. The title, “In Venus”, is a play on a non-existent word that I thought I heard in the lyrics of a song. “Enviness” is, in fact, not a word, but Venus in mythology is a Roman goddess of love, desire, prosperity, and victory. I thought this was a fantastic coincidence.
When I finally realized this piece had to be about envy, I created a sort of framework for a story in my head. I pictured a person having a fake argument with themself in a mirror, angry about what someone else possesses or has achieved. The piece begins with a fit of rage that branches off, is quieted down, and then comes back even stronger, only to vanish at its most intense, energetic point. Out of the silence, a sorrowful version of envy emerges: a person longing for love, affection, and warmth. I pictured the person, now in a miserable state, on a park bench soaking in their depression. Suddenly, they see a couple at the park and their happiness. They see the couple’s emotions of love, joy, and content as they embrace one another. While the person walks home, they feel an upbeat, warped version of the couple’s happiness that eventually brings them back to seething in their mirror. The piece ends with expanded themes from the original fit of rage, a person thinking the most envious, hateful thoughts, only for them to never resolve. The main theme of the piece is portraying how the emotion of envy causes angry thoughts in the moment, but these thoughts are inevitably bottled up and never spoken aloud.
Having no formal experience composing, my main fuel for writing this piece was the anger and frustration of imposter syndrome.

Recorded with:
2 iPhones
Behringer C-2 Matched Pair

Mallets:
2 Malletech MB8 v2
2 Malletech MB13 v2

In Venus was written for 4.5 octaves.