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I finally present to you a movement from my big variations project that I've had brewing since early 2024! Emboldened by the success of my "Deck the Halls" Variations I sought out more popular themes that I could write variations on. Originally I only intended to write variations on the Returner's March, but it soon grew out of all proportion when I started noticing all the little motivic relations between different themes so I had to include more. This is meant as a hybrid variations fantasy, medley, and mash-up of the themes that you can listen to here: The original themes were written by the great Nobuo Uematsu so my variations retain a certain Japanese flavor. In fact the first half of this Scherzo is subtitled "Asiatic". The Scherzo proper doesn't start until 6:01. I welcome any of your suggestions, critiques, comments or just observations. Thanks for listening and I hope you enjoy! P.S.: I'd like to thank my friends @chopin, @Henry Ng Tsz Kiu, @Thatguy v2.0 and @gaspard for their time, advice, and support throughout the composition process!

The Schola Cantorum Discordiensis is a discord server focusing on early music! (More specifically in the server, from medieval times to the 19th century). We have a bunch of cool things, gaming, compositions, monthly challenges, competitions, memes... And many more! Currently the server is very small, about 150 members, my goal is to get to atleast 500. Join us!

So, I finally convinced AI to perform serial music. If you know, AI is very stubborn in creating everything tonal and consonant. It's good at that, but you can modify midi to be strict and work with AI to create an atonal sound. I like the idea of modern fugues to create a sound of undulating persistence. The sound is deliberate. Though, this fugue is more of a Passaglia, it's within reach. fractal-fugue (46).mid

I notice some interesting enharmonic spelling choices. E.g. Bar 32, you've got a Bb minor triad between the celli and violas, spelled with a C# instead of a Db. Then in some places you have lots of flats, and I think you're changing mode here, rather than moving to a different diatonic key? Wondered if it was difficult to choose which spelling to use? Sometimes when my music gets very chromatic, I find I need different spelling in the transposing instruments, which is an added complication! Seems to apply especially to Bb instruments, like clarinet and trumpet.

Hi Peter, I took it down because the piece had some direct quotation, and I was worried about copyright issues. I'm actually still working on it, to try and eliminate any recognisable quotation from the original work. Think I'm almost there. If I manage it, will repost. I've also made an orchestration of this work, that I can hopefully post with it.

Ok, so to preface, I am in a church choir for a TLM, (and I'm also in the Schola Cantorum so I'm trained to sing the Gregorian chants at Mass, just to brag a little 😏.) Anyway, I was anticipating more traditional style Latin motets, and I'ma be honest with you, the Novus Ordo style with the piano and such makes me really quite uncomfortable, but I said I'd give you some feedback, so I'll try my best. Just beware, I'll probably give very old-fashioned advice with a large bias for Latin Mass aesthetics, so just take what you think is applicable. The Assumption: The voice leading on the SATB part is fine, so no criticism there. I do find the bass part really high though (I am bass myself.) At moderate or louder dynamics like this, it will sound strained, even with higher bass singers. The piano part and flute part I think just add mud and uncomfortable dissonances. The piano part isn't even well written, just looking at it as a pianist myself. Especially since these are supposed to be motets, I'd nix the instrumental parts entirely, except maybe an optional organ reduction. Finally, the engraving is just really... unproffesional. First of all, the tenor should be in treble clef, unless it's a reduced score. I can't imagine trying to read all those ledger lines! The lyric syllables are divided incorrectly, which made it very awkward to read. Here's a guide: Syllable Rules: Divide Into Syllables, and here are all the syllables of this first motet divided properly: Ma-ry is as-sumed in-to heav-en, Moth-er from Earth, now Moth-er of all! Look at the an-gels gaz-ing up-on her, prais-ing our God for the wom-an He made! Al-le-lu-ia, Hail our Queen, Mar-y! Moth-er you passed through the gates, but you're nev-er too far a-way. Will you show us you're near? Hear our prayer! etc. Other engraving nitpicks, page should be portrait not landscape, the scaling should be larger, it's standard and preferable to include the voice range and instrument names, dynamics in vocal music fit better above the staff, and we need a square bracket! I could probably find even more nitpicky stuff if I looked, but this is a good start. Come Holy Spirit: The plain song bit makes this a little more tolerable, but a suspended cymbal in liturgical music?? 😭 I digress. The voice leading here is also fine.And I echo the criticisms of pateceramics, competent choirs will stagger long held notes, regardless of instruction in the score. And the part about the Gregorian chant being off meter. If you do this, please write it unmetered or with partial barlines like in actual chant notation on just that staff, and in each of the other voices just have one whole note under the entire chant solo. If that doesn't make sense, I can sketch up an example for you, but that should be clear. This is also an engraving problem btw, so as you improve your engraving skills, you'll learn how to engrave less commonplace moments like this. What I explained is just what I would do, but there are certainly other ways to handle it. Both these motets, but especially this one, have the issue of feeling stagnant to me. Like they sit in the same I-IV-V range of the tonic key and really don't move anywhere else. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it makes for music that can sound uninspired and unoriginal. Sorry if this all is too harsh, I promise it's in good faith and I hope you are able to take this criticism to heart and let it help you improve as a composer. God bless, my friend.

Yeah honestly your analysis is gonna be so much better than mine cus I'm not really familiar with the themes (even though I did try to check out the mock-up beforehand), and there are so many of 'em I kept hearing and seeing the similarities but ended up overwhelming myself. That's why I put "Random things I've noticed" since it's really not a full in-depth analysis, more like "oooooohh this section is from that section but some things are different" You've read me. It sounds weird but like it's much more easier for me when it comes to working with pre-existing themes. I did start another piece in the middle of working on my variations. It's a fully original solo piano suite to contrast the tons of orchestration that I have to do, and it's for me to actually compose my own themes. But yeah, you're welcome!

Thanks @ferrum.wav and @Alex Weidmann for your reviews! I really admire your attention to detail and delving into the score in reviewing the piece ferrum! But, there is actually another way to analyze the thematic associations in the piece, by realizing their relation to the original themes from the game! This section uses a pairing of two similar themes: The top voice is from the Fight Theme; while the bottom is from Terra's Theme. The themes are so similar to each other when lined up metrically to start at the same time they have almost the same contour. This section is built up from canonic imitation layering of Terra's Theme over itself in four voices. The horn part: is a melody that is also from the latter half of Terra's Theme. This section is a 6/8 variation of the fanfare from the Returner's Theme: This section is also a 6/8 variation of the quartal accompaniment in the Fight Theme: This melody is from the latter half of the Mt. Kolts Theme: Thanks a lot for your detailed review and I am really glad that you're inspired to continue your variations through listening to this! I think you and I have a certain affinity in our compositional styles through our desire to write new music on pre-existing themes and vary them. Thanks again! Thanks! Yes, it was. The only way I managed it is to keep everything mostly in the same key that way the different variations were modularly compatible with each other and I could try to fit them together like puzzle pieces. But that does come with disadvantages, I think. I remember listening to that work! I don't remember if I reviewed it or not. But, it wasn't from FF VI but from another installment in the series, right? I think I was almost too greedy in my ambition with this project. Having included 8 different themes in a variations piece, I almost bit off too much than I could chew so to speak. The project really seemed at many times to be too big for my ability to manage all the different themes and variations. And it's not done yet! Thanks again for your review!

Man the woodwinds writing on this is insane, heck I think the woodwinds are the spotlight of this movement (and the horns too). You've managed to really use all of the family's characteristics to their fullest. Love the canon woodwinds-only section on b.42 for contrast, followed immediately by another color contrast on b.58 by the string quartet and the horn for pedal tones. It's really dense with the variety of themes playing counter-points with each other. The harmonies are so colorful, also really like the transitions between the variations. Random things I've noticed: brass fanfare interruptions on b.228 are from the beginning (b.17), the upward fourths figure from the cellos on b.72 gets a lot of variations after this as foreground (starting b.89), middleground (tremolo strings from b.101), background (b.97), and cadence (b.86 violins, b.126-127 clarinets and oboes, b.135 strings, b.142-145 strings), figure from b.81 by string and oboes gets variated on b.166 (love this section) and b.258, the arpeggiated power chord figure on the harp gets used a lot until the end. Overall, I really like it. Thanks for recommending me your piece! This really motivates and inspires me to continue my own symphonic variation.

Hello @A Ko. Welcome to the forum! This is of course an excellent first completed compostition, congrats for that! For orchestration I can't give you any tips because I'm a novice in orchestral writing myself. The beginning sounds very much like the Urlicht movement, I like it. I love that Eb major climax in b.22 very much, but in terms of the structure of the whole work I will place in much later in the piece, given how grand it is! For this intensity I think it should be put at least in the middle of the piece, or even before the ending! Love the woodwind passage in b.30. That strings chromatic figure and muted horns in f sounds VERY Mahlerian. The climax in b.43 sounds very great, but I think the time between two grand climaxes in b.30-42 as the bridge is a bit too short. I would probably extend that quiter passage with more developments on the themes before going into another climax. I love the quieter passages after the climax. I love the E major climax too! Though beware of the accidentals in b.97, those Ab should be G#. In b.144 it sounds like a Mahlerian Landler, but for me I would either develop to a longer passage or just discard it, since it sounds a bit out of place for me before the great climactic ending. I love your buildup to the ending, but I think the ending ends too quickly. Probably I would have the very nice climax stays longer, and also extend the gradual decrescendo longer for a more satisfying end. Your orchestration is really nice and probably I should learn something from it. Thx for joining and sharing your very first piece to us! Henry

Hello @A Ko and welcome to the forum! It's so fun that you snuck in some themes from other composers' works! At around 4:10 it sounds like you're quoting Mahler - Symphony 4 or 5 perhaps? It's amazing that your first finished composition is this long and for orchestra - congrats! Incorporating other composers' melodies in your own works smoothly and seamlessly is quite a difficult endeavor and it gives the listeners a fun little Easter egg hunt to go on - very clever idea to involve the listener in the listening process in yet another additional way! Thanks for sharing!