Percussion Ensemble
en·sem·ble (ŏn-sŏm'bəl)

n.

  • A unit or group of complementary parts that contribute to a single effect, especially a group of musicians, singers, dancers, or actors who perform together.
  • A work for two or more vocalists or instrumentalists.
  • The performance of such a work.
As seen in the above definitions, the word "ensemble" refers, in the musical sense, to a collection of performers playing simultaneously together. The percussion ensemble itself is the most expansive and widely varying of any of the major instrument types: the range and variety of percussion instruments being used in orchestras today nearly defies any attempt at categorization. New effects and instruments to produce them are constantly being created, with each new contribution expanding both the range and flexibility of the entire ensemble. Due to this constant metamorphosis, the present state of the percussion ensemble at any given time is quite an open-ended matter.
Even the physical size of an ensemble can range anywhere from a tightly-knit group of friends...
...to nearly an entire concert hall full of performers.