Hurry Up And Wait

It's kind of a funny, ironic concept, but one that has been around for a long time – hurry up... and wait. What does that mean exactly? It's probably something that students will relate to very well. "Isn't it 3 o'clock yet?" We thought it would be a fun idea for a song, and why not throw in some Boomwhackers®? It certainly seems to fit the notion as each student holds her/his Boomwhacker® just waiting for the right moment to play. By the way, this nifty song will work just as well without the Boomwhackers®, too.

The accompaniment is laid back and cool, featuring a rhythm section and strings. Of particular notice is the smooth jazz electric guitar masterfully played by Sandy Williams. The song begins with eight cymbal taps and a ticking clock (the song also fades out this way). These taps set the tempo which will be important for the Boomwhacker® players since they are in on beat two of the first measure. Notice that the song ends on the second inversion of the tonic chord. That, along with the fading cymbal taps and ticking, adds to the feeling that, sometimes, the wait never seems to end.

This would be great to use in your classroom to work on counting and Boomwhacker® playing. You could use any kind of pitched percussion instruments, or even hand drums, triangles, tambourines, and the like. And in a performance setting, your singers could act out "waiting" in the first four measures of the song (and in the same spot on the D.C.) – looking at a watch or clock, appearing bored/tired, pacing, toe-tapping, etc. When they are singing, let them move around to the beat. It's hard to stand still during this one, as our studio singers can attest.