Johnny Allen, one of four members of Sandbox, said the group met in 2011.
“The program we went to really had a focus on percussion, chamber music. We got to play a ton of it, and we loved it so much that we thought, 'okay, you think we could keep doing this professionally?' " he said. “So we, you know, picked some music we really liked and started rehearsing it together and played one concert the first year, a couple more the next year, and now we get to call it our full-time job, which is — we feel very lucky.”
Like many other percussion-centered musical acts, Sandbox utilizes conventional instruments such as drums, cymbals and mallet instruments. But the group also incorporates found or handmade instruments.
“[Maybe] you've got a wine glass that sounds good or a mixing bowl," said Allen. “There's even kinds of instruments we'll make ourselves like getting plumbing from Home Depot and cutting it to specific lengths so that it kind of has a pitch to it," he added. “So it's really a lot of fun. I feel like we get to learn a new instrument every day.”
Sandbox plays a mix of concerts on their own as well as with symphonies backing them, such as their upcoming performance in Springfield.
They'll perform with SSO at 7:30 p.m. on November 8 at the Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts for their “Billy the Kid” program.
To purchase tickets for the concert, visit the symphony's website.
For more information on Sandbox Percussion, visit their website or check out their Instagram and Facebook profiles.
