The Little Drummer Boy Ancient Traditional Christmas Carol written in 1958 by Katherine Davis, Henry Onorati and Harry Simeone Sequenced for Roland Sound Canvas by Mark Lutton, 1992. Come they told me parum pum pum pum, A new born King to see, parum pum pum pum, Our finest gifts we bring parum pum pum pum, To lay before the King parum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum, So to honor Him pa rum pum pum pum, When we come. Little Baby parum pum pum pum, I am a poor boy too, parum pum pum pum, I have no gift to bring parum pum pum pum, That's fit to give our King parum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum, Shall I play for you? parum pum pum pum, On my drum. Mary nodded parum pum pum pum, The Ox and Lamb kept time parum pum pum pum, I played my drum for him parum pum pum pum, I played my best for Him parum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum. [ Two bar drum solo ] Then He smiled at me parum pum pum pum, Me and my drum. ----------------------------------------- This beautiful traditional carol has always been a favorite with musicians. Based on a poignant old legend that dates back to the early Television Era, it relates the story of a very young percussionist so dedicated to his art that he practices his rudiments constantly, even while speaking. Visiting the newborn future King of Kings, the nameless drummer boy is embarassed that he has no material possession worthy of a royal gift. Instead he offers to display his musical skills. The Baby accepts, for to give of oneself is the best gift of all. A formidable musicological problem faces the arranger of this carol: What would the drummer boy's solo have sounded like? Indeed, what sort of drum would he have played? Possibly something like the modern tabla, dool or conga, although a conga is quite heavy for a little boy to carry especially on a last-minute impulsive trip. Perhaps a tambourine or sistrum. As for the music, ancient Middle East solo drum music was probably similar to the traditional music that survives in neighboring cultures today. Certainly fit for a King, but too sophisticated, complex and lengthy for Western pop-oriented ears. To update the story, I imagine the Drummer Boy as a gifted student who has mastered the rudiments, jazz, rock, and Latin percussion. Now he is learning classical music and his favorite piece is (what else?) Ravel's Bolero. During the break in measures 75 and 76, in typical 6-year-old enthusiasm, he demonstrates them all at once! You may want to mute one or more (or all) of tracks 11, 12, 13, and 14, but I like to keep them all and make a Joyful Noise Unto The Lord. --- Mark Lutton, 11/1/92 Notes on the patches: This is was arranged for the Roland Sound Canvas. No system-exclusive data was used. Drums are on Channel 10; all other instruments are on channels 1 to 8. There are a lot of notes and I'm sure I occasionally exceed the 24-voice limitation of the Sound Canvas (although I don't think I have more than 22 notes at once -- but some instruments need more than one voice). Track 1 is Snare Drum on channel 10 and the only note is D3 (38), Snare Drum. Track 2 is Flute on Channel 1. One note at a time. Track 3 is Acoustic Bass on Channel 2. One note at a time. Track 4 is Pizzicato Strings on Channel 3. This track has up to 5 or 6 notes at a time. Track 5 is Oboe on Channel 4. One note at a time. Track 6 is Clarinet on Channel 5. One note at a time. Track 7 is Strings on Channel 6. 3 or 4 notes at once. Track 8 is Glockenspiel, one note at a time, on Channel 7. Track 9 is Trumpet on Channel 8, two notes at once. Track 10 is Violin on channel 9, 3 or 4 notes at once. Track 15 is Church Organ on Channel 11, 5 or 6 notes at once. All the rest of the tracks are on Channel 10. Track 11 is Parade Drums (rudiments): Db4 (49), Crash Cymbal, E3 (40), Snare Drum 2; C3 (36), Kick Drum. (I would have used Concert Bass Drum but it's not available without selecting the non-default patch.) Track 12 is Rock & Roll Drums: Tom-Toms of various sizes at B3 (47), A3 (45), G3 (43), and F3 (41); Snare Drum at D3 (38) and Kick Drum at C3 (36). Track 13 is Congas at Eb5 (63) and E5 (64), and Bongos at C5 (60) and Db5 (61). Track 14 is Jazz Drums: Ride Cymbal at A3 (45), Snare Drum at D3 (38) and Kick Drum at C3 (36). Track 16 is Crash Cymbal at Db4 (49).