I am playing Brian Blume's ";Strands of Time"; on my senior recital and it calls for a Remo TSS drum. I have looked everywhere on the internet for one of these and cannot find one at all for sale. Does anyone know why this drum is so elusive, or what may be a good alternative to use on that piece if TSS drums are not available for purchase?

If I am not mistaken, I believe that tss just stands for tunable sound shape and demo manufactures many types of tss percussion instruments...but, here is a link to what I think you are looking for. [url=http://www.lonestarpercussion.com/Categories/Specialty-Practice-Pads/Remo-14-Inch-Tunable-Sound-Shape-TS1014SN.html]http://www.lonestarpercussion.com/Categories/Specialty-Practice-Pads/Remo-14-Inch-Tunable-Sound-Shape-TS1014SN.html[/url]

I'm not really sure Remo makes them anymore since they never seemed to take off in popularity. If I recall, they had several different types with several different heads. That specific one linked has the Black Max which is probably what you are looking for although 14"; is a large one. I believe they had them in smaller 6";, 8"; or possibly 10"; sizes. Those are the ones Glassmen had mounted on their snares in 2005 while Brian was in the snare line there.

http://youtu.be/cXAfJ5sYaC0

Good news! A great substitute for the TSS (which is indeed discontinued by Remo....sorry!) has been brought to my attention. LP has a Micro Snare in 6"; and 8";. See the link below. You may want to work with it to get the snares a little more crisp. Maybe with some tape or foam, or even moon gel.

http://www.lpmusic.com/products/subpage?modelNo=LP846-SN

In any case, I recommend this as a substitute. Steve Weiss sells them for $99. I apologize for writing a piece requiring an instrument that's so hard to get your hands on now! Had I been able to see the future, I may have chosen another instrument. :-)  Thanks for your interest in the piece!

This is good info to know, Brian. Thanks for sharing!