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Hi https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ajinQMxk-QgKfzxODtrkC7839OCZmPYx/view?usp=sharing

A fascinating instrument. Tiorba is how I know it in my language. I don't know anything about how to write for this instrument. I thought, perhaps associated with the Baroque and its use as a continuo, that the lower open strings were for the bass. Although it seems that you use it differently.

A lovely theme and a quite pleasant orchestration. It reminds me of an Italian Movie score from the 60's ... 70's ... Nicely done. Mark

Hi to all! Have been trying to compose a piece for theorbo, and am finding it really hard! Mainly because of the 8 unfretted strings, that can't be tuned to accidentals. That seems to limit me to the 7 modes of C major; or something bitonal or atonal. Anyhow, I've posted two versions below. The first is what I wanted to write, and the second has been bent out of shape to eliminate accidentals on the lower strings. Am thinking I may have to throw the whole thing out, and start again!

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Hello @Alex Weidmann! A piece for theorbo – that is something for me! I really enjoy, that the theorbo is (at least here in Germany) increasingly being used in baroque orchestras alongside the harpsichord and a small organ as a Basso Continuo instrument. I think I first discovered it about five years ago and am always delighted when it is used, for example in Handel's Messiah. It lends such warmth or even a “Mediterranean feeling” to the accompaniment that it surpasses the somewhat “boring” harpsichord and organ, which are unable to play dynamics, while they are needed for rhythmic and percussive accents (the harpsichord) and harmonic filling and foundation (the organ). As I see, you have dealt extensively with the special features of the instrument, especially with regard to playability on the low, diatonically tuned strings. Even if I can’t read the tablature notation, I can imagine that trying to translate the notes into that notation helps to empathize with the player and to avoid playability issues. A two part invention with the voices distributed between the two registers might be challenging to play, but I like that counterpuntual style, together with the arpeggios and flageolet notes! As I used a theorbo too, in a piece I arranged for the 2025 Christmas event – not as a solo instrument but in a continuo, paired with a harpsichord and a small organ, I am no longer sure whether I have taken the ambitus of the theorbo and its special tuning features into account correctly. Therefore, I have linked this piece here, maybe you’ll find a lot of errors ... Greetings, Wieland

Hi https://drive.google.com/file/d/1priRSr7zZcLCeQ4INN-oQfIjUj7DOsqy/view?usp=sharing

A very thorough and beautiful piece of work. I find the music very visual, cinematic; you can almost see it in a film from the 50s or 60s. The level of detail in the writing is admirable. What's more, the sounds are fantastic. One thing I really liked is that you use a very “restrained” orchestra, with a romantic feel. In other words, nothing “hypertrophic.” But the amount of colors and sounds you introduce is spectacular.

Bravo. Great work. I really like it. The main theme is beautiful, and so is the development. I find the orchestration very balanced and brought to a climax very effectively. The sounds, which I don't know what they are, are not bad at all, except perhaps the strings, which tend to shorten the final part of their duration on long notes.

Great work. There are brilliant parts and some very original arrangements. However, I think that at times it is too literal with respect to the original song, which isn't bad, it's just a matter of taste. The introduction is very good, distributing the melody between the strings and the winds. I think the first verse forgets this dialogue a little and relies heavily on the strings, which then move to another level but continue to carry the melody. There are some tessituras that I think are unnecessarily out of place, if they are even possible to play effectively (double basses in 29 and 30). There are also several instances where the strings split into several notes and it is unclear whether they are double-triple stops or divisi. I also find it strange to see the piccolo and flute in unison, with the former in a very low register. In conclusion, I see a huge amount of work that sounds good. But orchestrating is not easy, and the orchestra you have chosen is quite large.

Thankyou for your review, im not very good at this AI stuff, your right it is limited, because of preset requests.

Thank you for the suggestion! The score is also on IMSLP and I think it is great to see the orchestration and musical devices they use. One day, I too plan to add my addition to the repertoire on steam engine : D To add, I've updated the score in my OG post as I have now changed a few parts.

Hello @Gwendolyn Przyjazna! I am always interested in pieces featuring „exotic scales“ and modes and so I was excited to find out how your „progressive rock instrumental“ would sound like. Since you didn’t provide a score I could concentrate on listening: My impression is, that the harmonies sound very smooth together – not as dissonantly as in some of @PeterthePapercomPoser’s Persichetti excercises, for example „Persichetti Exercise 2 - 56 for Clarinet Duo“. Thus, producing a dreamy, melancholic sound where especially the transition section from 01:52 to 02:26 reminded me indeed at Kate Bush! I must admit that I had to lookup what the Lydian Augmented and the Spanish Phrygian scales are all about. And so I found the reason why they are gentler or even more similar each other than I expected in the pair Lydian/Phrygian: The Lydian Augmented scale is more „darker“ than the traditional bright Lydian mode (which sounds paradoxical at first glance), while the Spanish Phrygian scale sounds much more „brighter“ than the original Phrygian one due to its major third. You added the tag „counterpoint“ to the piece so that I was curious how a counterpuntual rock instrumental would sound like. But to be honest, I get the impression that for most of the piece, you only had one voice with a melody, while the other instruments accompanied in chords or long notes, so I have to admit that I didn't really understand what you meant by “counterpoint”. Thank you for sharing, I very enjoyed it!

Hello @MK_Piano! Yes, that’s really a good swinging big band piece which immediately reminds at Glenn Miller’s „Chattanooga Choo Choo“. Good old steam trains seem to have inspired many composers and musicians because of their „sound“ which comprises „rhythmic“ elements (the start of the locomotive, increasing and decreasing speed, the rattling noise when driving over the track joints) and melodic elements (the puffing of steam, the whistling of the locomotive, or the squeaking of the wheels when braking) which animate to be imitated musically. Who would write a piece inspired by the noises a nowadays train produces? Another good example of a piece dedicated to a steam locomotive is Arthur Honnegger's “Pacific 231”, which is not a jazz piece, but rather a dramatic symphonic work. I liked it very much and I must say that the repetitive character mentioned by @PeterthePapercomPoser didn’t bother me, especially taken into account the purpose of the piece as soundtrack for a movie where it does not appear in its entirety but is cut into parts to underpin the individual scenes. Or whenever it would be played in a bar as the background music, the most visitors would not even notice it.

Cool bass beats along with a fun motif! Gets a little repetitive, but maybe this can be used for a boss fight. One thing you will notice with AI tunes is that the harmony can get quite stale. Even with the interval key change, this basically is the same harmony for the full 1:40.

You have no idea the wonderful suggestion you have bestowed upon me. I have been searching for various ways to capture a steam locomotive with the western orchestra. That piece is SO COOL!! It's luckily on IMSLP too, so now I have a score I can study. Thank you!! Yeah... The repetition was more for simplicity to be blunt. I felt I did good with the saxophone writing, however, I admit I am not too knowledgeable on ways to utilize the brass in the Big Band style. In the film, it is cut in half with the key change happening after the first shout/ chorus section. So in context, it only repeats the form twice. I copied the first section in this version as a means to extend the work. Thanks for the comments!