New Commission: Yannis Kyriakides Translates Tectonic Activity into Music for TROMP 2026 The TROMP International Percussion Competition 2026 has commissioned renowned composer Yannis Kyriakides to create a groundbreaking new work for solo percussion. The piece, titled Seismism, bridges the gap between science and art by transforming planetary data into a unique auditory experience. Kyriakides designed this piece as a 6-minute open score that visually translates daily seismic activity and earthquake data from the USGS database into musical notation. An Immersive Sound Installation During Round 3 of the competition, the 10 semi-finalists will transform the Paterskerk into an immersive sound installation. The audience can walk freely between the 10 percussionists, who all perform their own unique interpretation of the score at the same time. Seismism is an open score comprising 365 pages, with each page capturing a single day of global tectonic movement over a full year. This format gives the performers the freedom to choose any number of consecutive pages to play, making each simultaneous performance completely unique. Three Dynamic Sound Families The score does not dictate fixed rhythms or pitches, but rather relative textures and rhythmic relationships. To bring the movement of the Earth to life, the percussionist responds to the visual data using three specific sound categories. Low drums like the bass drum, timpani, or low toms evoke the resonant, subterranean presence of the ground. Small rattling objects such as shaken idiophones, branches, stones, or metals played on the drums simulate friction, scattering, and surface detail. Finally, instruments capable of high sustained tones, including bowed metals, whistles, or melodicas, create fragile, unstable sounds that mirror the unpredictable atmosphere surrounding seismic activity. Real-Time Live Interaction In addition to the written score, Seismism incorporates a live-generated electronic drone. This drone is fueled by actual, real-time seismic data during the performance, providing a dynamic, ever-changing backdrop for the percussionists to interact with as the audience moves through the space.