Sonata opus 35 (for clarinet and piano)

Originally Posted by Qccowboy

so, taste. personal. nothing more. unless one can actually find "errors" in a score that can justify a more objective criticism.

Exactly that! And taste is completely personal! sure at some points it is SO obvious that is lacking myriads of stuff and ideas (Saul and Paul for example, who denied pretty much the existance of 200 years of advancement in music), but sure taste is personal, even in those extgreme cases! Anyone can like and dislike.

Another thing that has been brought to my mind is exactly the term "reviews" here.

It is not reviews that should be taken hugely into account... Of course I, personally, have a bad habbit of taking everything into account, and holding it, 'till I rot inside in a specific work, and usually I do change some stuff (except on things already performed, or in works that I've been through that process already).

but it is getting off topic, no? Michel, you are a mod, you can move posts around. If you feel this is completely off topic, go ahead. no problem here

I enjoyed it...Thanks for sharing it!

I put this on my ipod a couple days ago and listened to it in the car. I know you'll probably give some reason for this, or maybe it's because I wasn't listening hard, but I couldn't find much to hold onto (I only listened to the first and last movements). The first movement seemed very rapid and everything was kinda flying by.

I did find the beginning of the last movement very soothing and very nice.

Thanks for sharing your work.

Rafn, I guess it depends to what music you normally listen to.

My music is obviously not aimed at people who only listen to baroque music, or only Celine Dion songs, and likewise it's not aimed at an audience that require the most avant-garde techniques and gestures availbale to a musician.

Whether you "grasp" the material depends on your own musical experience. I have no illusions that my music will please everyone. I know it's "not modern enough" for the new music crowd. And I also know it's a bit more difficult to understand for anyone with no experience in 20th century music.

As for listening to only the 1st and last parts... well, you're missing 1/3 of the piece. It's MEANT to be listened to as a whole, not as separate movements. Each movement needs the subsequant movements for its completion. The work is designed that way.

How did I know that I'd get slaughtered for not listening to the whole thing? lol

But yeah, the majority of my music library is Shostakovich/Bartok/Stravinsky/Prokofiev. Not saying that that means anything in particular, but I don't listen to Baroque/Celine Dion.

And I know that we could bicker back and forth, and you already addressed the issue of subjectivity, so I'll just let it drop. You already know my opinion.

Well after listening to all three parts/movements, I have to say: this is one very well composed piece. Fine work Qccowboy.

From my experience as a clarinetist, there are few comments I'd like to share, all in my humble opinion:

-First off, this is a very enjoyable artistic piece. I could easily see this as a nice portion of a program.

-You also made good use of the all the registers of the clarinet, from the bright altissimo to the mellow chalemeau. I love the ethereal feeling that you are able to evoke in the first part by using the different registers.

-All the trills and runs I felt were fitting/appropriate (I'll have to see the score to assess just how many fingers could be broken from them, though).

I can't really comment much about the theory behind the piece, so all I can do is give you praise

Can't wait to see a score.

I also (and it might just be me) picked up a bit of a French influence. Maybe a bit of Poulenc/Bozza...?

thank-you. I'm glad a clarinetist enjoyed it. it bodes well for when I present it to the performer for next fall's concert.

at this time I'm afraid we won't be putting money into making a CD of clarinet music. but I will do my darnedest to have a recording done of my performers. I suspect who the pianist will be, but have no idea yet who the lucky clarinetist will be.

Well done. It's a really solid composition. I wish you the best of luck with your future endeavors.

Listening to something like this makes me want to play clarinet

I love how the chords are resolved at the end!