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Thanks for the suggestions! Love it. Mark

Thanks Peter, will try speeding it up. I couldn't find a metronome mark for this piece: so was trying to use my musical instincts! Think it probably should be a bit slower in the orchestral version, as it seems to work better that way; but I probably went too far. Actually haven't done Ravel before. So far I've orchestrated Debussy and Schumann.

Thank you very much for your comments! It's the first time I've really got any really good, substantial musical feedback on my music, and it means a lot to me. It is very motivating, so it really makes me want to make more! I often compose by improvising (I'm used to improvising in a jazz/fusion) parts/themes, either using a piano or flute sound, and then edit, change instruments, and adding harmony, voices. To get away from a certain predictability when I improvise, I recently sometimes experiment with pitch-class sets, or some of the messiaen-modes. Most of Eight Crows in a Tree was based on octatonic (diminished scale) melody and harmony, with some parts with polytonality, but not in a strict sense. I might use it as a starting point, and then edit it so it sound better for me. And yes, there might very well be parts that are un-playable, as I have never written for any real instruments. I'll have to be careful about that. And yes, I knew the glissandi wasn't sounding 100% natural, but I tried something else, but came back to this, as I thought maybe in a future version of noteperformer/dorico it will sound better. Also about the pitched percussion - I like to use the melodic percussion to emphasize rhythms, if I sometimes use 7/8 or similar. I can see that you, PeterthePapercomPoser, are interested in Japanese music, as you use some for your variations, they sound great by the way! I'm also very interested in Japanese music, the use of harmony can be interesting and complex, while keeping it very approachable at the same time.

Hi @Alex Weidmann! Ah, so you decided to try your hand at yet another Ravel piece to orchestrate! This time on a piece he wrote based on a transliteration of Haydn's name! I listened to the original by Ravel, and its duration is only about 2 minutes, while your orchestration is twice as long! And when listening to your orchestration, I definitely have the impression that it's being played too slow. I'm not saying up the tempo everywhere. Ravel's original was I think subject to some rubato tempo and rubato tempo is something that is possible for orchestra as well, not just in a solo piano piece. They way I would apply rubato is to literally put rit.'s and accel.'s where appropriate throughout the score. It could bring so much more life and vitality to the music if you did that. Thanks for sharing!

Hi @Samuel_vangogh! I think you definitely accomplished your goal of writing a piece like Joe Hisaishi. At first, I thought you intended to write a piece literally using the "Happy Birthday" melody. But now I understand it had nothing to do with that melody and you just meant to write a piece of music as a birthday gift. The music is very bittersweet and emotive. I wish you had written a final ending chord! It seems like that's all that's missing from this. Thanks for sharing!

Hello @stigbn25 and welcome to the forum! The Purple Fields - I like how sparsely orchestrated and motivically streamlined this piece is! And even all the different percussion instruments all have unique, exposed and important roles in the music. Some of the quick pizzicato figures are almost borderline unplayable at that speed, unless you instruct the string orchestra to play the instruments like a guitar (or on two alternating double stopped strings). The ending felt like a cliffhanger. Blue Jelly - I love the glissandi although they sound a bit artificial or like they're played by a synth. This one is a bit more unusual harmonically than Purple Fields. This is also rhythmically quite creative in how some of the grooves are constructed. Also sparsely orchestrated which makes for a more easy-listening experience dominated more by purely essential phrases. The ending in this one feels more conclusive although also avoids any kind of cliche. Eight Crows in a Tree - the mood of this one from the get go sounds much darker and menacing. Your focus on solo individual lines makes the moments where you orchestrate dyads/triads and more harmonically developed sections more meaningful. Some parts of this sound longing. Your characteristic use of pitched percussion makes a return here. Using all the strings doubled in octaves also makes for a particularly strong melodic effect. I love the ending chord! If I'm not mistaken it's just an E - G dyad with the G also in the bass. Very cool tone-painting there with that last chord. I think overall I can understand why you called these "Symphonic Fantasies". They're very free and through-composed formally speaking. This allows you to explore sounds in an unencumbered way. I actually have a project that I just finished that I also call a Symphonic Fantasy although it's a bit more of variations piece on pre-existing themes not composed by me. Thanks for sharing!

Yeah, this is my own original material, just inspired by Medtner (as I've put it in my catalogue) Really appreciate the feedback, thanks for commenting!

Hey @ferrum.wav! I don't remember if I reviewed this piece anytime throughout its development. I definitely feel like I am really well familiarized with the music by now however, having heard it multiple times before. I think the piece has a great melodic, harmonic and rhythmic identity! And you sustain this melodic adventure for upwards of 7 minutes which is a feat! I went back to the original post to maybe read up on whether this is a piece based on themes from somewhere - but I couldn't find anything, so I assume that this is all your own original material? Great job and thanks for sharing!

I'm nervous because this is my first ever musical comission. This waltz is intended as a birthday present for a friend, she likes a lot studio ghibli and Tim burton's so I decided to write a waltz trying to imit these styles Since my friend is not a classical listener I used simpler harmonies, but my perfectionist self wanted more so I decided to orchestrate the waltz and, duuuude, it's the best desition i could have ever made I hope you like it!!!

Hi to all. Here's my latest attempt at orchestration practice. This one's from a piano miniature by Ravel. Haven't put all the slurs and fermatas in yet; but it's otherwise more or less complete.

Thanks, I might give that a go! I'm actually doing Ravel's "Menuet sur le nom d'Haydn" next. (In fact it's almost finished.)

ah, I see your point now, brotha. Since I've tried to emulate a more "jazzy" style, there is probably a lot of improvised-sounding sections. At that time, I wasn't sure how to develop the theme since it doesn't really lend itself to motivic transformation, at least in the classical sense. I just had to, most of the time, repeat it with slight variations and different key schemes throughout the piece. You're actually right about the ostinato being the center of attention from bars 1 - 20; it makes its full appearance at b.21. Now that you've mentioned it, I can't stop unhearing the piano ostinato in the B section, perhaps there are balance issues there too. Thanks for clarifying your thoughts, peter. I am glad you found good things about my piece.

Danke, Henry!

I still think it's the best piano piece I ever wrote, in 38 years. I am 56. When are they going to kick me off this site for not being a "Young Composer?" Young at heart, I guess.

Hi all! As the Halloween season creeps closer, I decided to produce a small, ultra-short film rooted in my love of the holiday. A couple years ago I produced a similar short featuring some of these same characters, which I did also share on here. This is a pseudo-sequel to that video as well. I would love to hear your thoughts, feedback, and such! I did submit this to a local film festival and will hear back soon on if my submission was accepted. It was fun trying to play with some different things sonically, especially with the introduction of the theremin into the mix. While trying to go from an almost cartoony sound and look at the beginning, to a more sinister one at the end. Hope you enjoy the watch/listen!

Henry, you may play this piece with the repeats or not, but I do think it is more temporarily balanced WITH the repeats.

Let it come naturally. "When the gentlemen can think of nothing else to say, and can go no further, they swiftly call in a diminished seventh chord, and their troubles are soon ended." Beethoven.

...or a better singer!

Orchestrate this:

Schumann orchestration? Contrary to legend, Schumann was not a bad orchestrator. Workaday, like Brahms. Not a colorist like Mahler, Ravel, let's see...Rimsky -Korsakov? Just keep working, but only when you feel like it. That would be my advice, and it is what I do. Great exercise to orchestrate a Schumann piano piece, and piano music in general is hard to orchestrate.

Thanks! there are like two mistakes before the bass comes in but it's kinda lowkey.. Yeah maybe it could benefit from a change of rhythm in the bass. I kinda like that it sounds simple in the piano version but surely as an orchestral piece it would be more serious and complex.

This is so unique in such a familiar format. I see see this representing a chaotic character for sure! And I don't think you're using microtones here but for some reason it sounds like you are lol. Very fun to listen to, and great job at keeping it interesting throughout.

Hi, I don't know about Jewish influences, maybe the phrasing suggests that. This could be related to Finnish 20th century romanticism (such as Oskar Merikanto) or finnish folk songs (unless I'm mistaken).