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Well, I like this so far, halfway through. Starts impressionistic, then goes all poppy, like a well-composed film score. Only criticism I can think of right now is NEVER LET UP THE RHYTHM! Don't take that too literally...Mendelssohn was a great composer in his orchestral writing, but his piano music is lovely yet flawed: he tended to take one figuration and repeat it for the entire piece, and some of those figurations have been called "sugar icing" by the piano in his solo and chamber works, concertos...

OK, corrected the impossible chords; you think measure 107 is a jarring transition? You are correct! Bb major, F minor, Gb major, C major 7, and I wrenched it into dominant E major. Perhaps I was in a jarring mood that day! 🤪 Now I have to correct the darned manuscript. Yuck. I take pride in my manuscripts being neat with very few corrections, though I have been known to store them on the floor. Beethoven's apartment had manuscripts on the floor, copied out pages drying on furniture, and an unemptied chamber pot STORED UNDER THE PIANO! No wonder he was a better composer than me, or, well, most anybody.

haha yeah indeed they are.

Yes, ideas that I've brewed as well. I'm glad that the ideas are not lonely, here. lol I also just wanted to share this because c'mon... Why wouldn't I show these chords off for others to enjoy as well 😭 They're gorgeous, I think

Hey @Mooravioli! No doubt your piano prelude is good. And congrats on having your teacher playing it for you! It's a pleasure and honor for you! I had actually listened to this piece before your teacher played it haha. I remember I said that I wanted the trio section to be longer, and I think you do extend it in this version! I think the flow is better now! The harmony and texture is very interesting throughout, they certainly reflect a sense of escape from the time of anxiety now. I really like the b.37 section, even though it's light-hearted, it's easy to ignore the beautiful counterpoint there. I also like the reappearance of the first theme where you instead use the texture of from b.37 first, before recapitulating the lucid texture in b.108. Really enjoyable piece, thx for sharing!! Henry

Hey Kyle @UncleRed99! It clearly is captivating and promising "rough" draft! I like the majestic tone overall. I think after the climax in b.31, before going to a quieter section in b.34 you can have a transition instead of just a chord, but it's just a draft now so it's fine haha! I hope the contrasting section in b.34 longer and stay away from the F minor for a bit longer too. Also in the last adagio in b.51 I would add more movement and countermelodies to vary and contrast it with the Adagio beginning, like adding tremolos and some quaver movements between the chords like in b.53 and 58. Thx for sharing! Henry

Hi @UncleRed99! Clearly I forgot your original post so I will just treat this as a complete new one lol. I think so too, I enjoy this Japanese style music with a slight sadness but not too much. I feel like in b.51 the transition to a louder passage is a bit abrupt, maybe add a gradual transition with a volume crescendo before it? Because for me it's the only place I feel abrupt in the entire piece even though there are other spots with the tacit after a fermata. I feel like the trumpet melody in b.61-63 is too high in its register and will overpower the other instruments. Overpowering is ok but I think it doesn't fit your style here too much personally. And in b.53-57 there's an imitation between oboe and saxophone, but I think the oboe is overpowered by the saxophone so the imitation is not the most effective. And in b.94-95 I feel like the accompanying figure is given too much emphasis particularly with the 1st violin and trumpet. Maybe remove the trumpet? I sound nitpicky, but I do enjoy the piece! Thx for sharing. Henry

Thoughts on my current rough-drafted ideas / progress on a new symphony orchestral score I'm working on? This is a very rough draft. lol. The form isn't quite proper right this minute. Better transitions and more complex sections will be added in time. Thanks in advance 😉New(2).pdf New(2).mp3

Hi @Kvothe! If going for a stricter counterpoint, the clash of tritone in b.3 and 4 between B and F would not be permissible. The leap from C to A in the left hand in b.6-7 would not be permissible since it's a major 6th leap, rather than a minor 6th. And to smoothen the counterpoint, whenever after a leap use a step in the opposite direction, as the technique is used by Palestrina. Thx for sharing. Henry

Hello everyone, I’m working on a new piece that’s more harmonically adventurous than my usual style and would love your feedback. It was originally for flute and piano, but since I did not like the flute sound from Musescore, I used a soprano voice instead. That made me consider turning it into a Lied with syllables rather than lyrics (since I can’t write lyrics). The main theme began as a neotonal composition practice exercise based on a post in the Talkclassical forum: Step 1. Write a diatonic melody in a mode missing one note. Step 2. Use a different mode or scale for the harmony. My melody is in C Ionian without F, and the harmony is C ascending melodic minor (C major with Eb, though I ended up using E here and there too). I later added a B section with the melody focusing on the unused note F. The form is A[:BA:] (so ABABA) I’m unsure about a few things: Does the piece and structure work overall? Does the harmony work? (I am still considering piano voicings in section B, particularly in m.10, but A is finished). The theme A repeats three times, exactly in the same way. How could I add variety? Or maybe I should do a Rondo (ABACA) for adding variety? I always get stuck with same simple form and I also do not know how to reharmonize or avoid repetition on themes without making it lose the balance. Does it work better as a vocal piece or another instrument would be better (specially since there are no lyrics)? Is there a way to indicate that the melody can be played with any suitable instrument freely? Technically it is in C Minor (it starts and ends in it) but since it uses mostly natural A and natural B throughout, and natural E on the melody, I used the Cmaj key signature. Is that okay or I should change it to using three flats like in natural C minor? Thanks for listening and any feedback is welcome! PD: I found out that the first 4 notes and main motive of the piece (and the mood, because of the vocal singer) is similar to Jerry Goldsmith's theme to 'The Illustrated Man'. I never heard it before so it was a pure coincidence. I think the harmonization of those 4 notes is different, though.

MY_MUSIC_013_20240216_043213_AudioVerb_1_054908265.mp3

Good luck with it😂

Hi to all. Just wanted to share this recent performance by professional harpsichordist Katarzyna Kowalik, of my work "The Sun Dappled Forest". The work was inspired by J.S. Bach and William Byrd; but I guess it also sounds a bit Halloweeny: so topical! Apologies for the low record level. (Please note the applause at the beginning and end is very loud by comparison!) Hope you enjoy.

Oh no! I liked all the pieces very much. Your „Trio Variations” are neither „terrifying“ nor too „well-behaved”; I find them „good balanced.” That's why I placed them in the third category, right next to my own. (Hahaha, you voted for yourself ...)

MP3 Play / pause twinkle 0:00 0:00 volume > next menu twinkle > next PDF twinkle Rachmaninoff is crying...

Great! Try writing more complex pieces.

Nice piece! I see you used special rhythms too!

Kotzwara. You can check yourself.

Oh, just like me!