Leaderboard

Hi Alex I’m here after having listened to Part 3 first. Sorry, I missed it, but anyway, it was well worth coming to listen. Congratulations on this piece. It’s beautiful. The delicacy with which you’ve handled this is tremendous. The work with the woodwinds in general, and especially in the first movement, is spectacular. I find it all very well balanced. I love the detailed score as well. I’ll be keeping an eye out for the other parts of this work you’re working on. I also really enjoy exploring and discovering these somewhat forgotten composers. Best regards.

Thanks for the comments! Yes, it’s largely homophonic as I kept it simple for my workflow and to get it submitted for YCF. However, after being reached out to by a composer based in North Dakota, he wanted to work together on this piece of music. He’s a composer with over 30 years of experience and during our call, he gave me a lot of practical advice for this work and what would happen if it were played live. Thus, I’m currently undergoing revisions for this work to address the ensemble aspect and to remove the dependencies between the piano and strings.

Hi @GMoneywroteasong ! I think you should just keep the meter displayed as 13/8 but change how the 8th notes are beamed/grouped in your piece accordingly in each bar. I think this also allows you to have different instruments group the 8ths notes differently specific to what they are doing. I once wrote a piece that was in 5/4 but with many instruments playing in two groups of 5/8, each half of the bar being grouped again differently depending on the specific situation as 2+3/8 or as 3+2/8. The only problem I see is that of such a piece being conducted. In my case, the conductor would still conduct the piece in 5/4 as that was the displayed time signature. But the individual instruments would be encouraged to count the piece in 5/8 if their part was displayed that particular way. In your case you could display your rhythms like so: The notes are clearly grouped, and even if not using 8th notes can still be grouped according to the beat lengths you described, regardless of what kind of particular rhythm they might be playing. Hope this helps!

Hi Alex, First of all, I’d like to say that I wasn’t familiar with this piece. Nor, I must confess, with this composer, although his name rang a bell. So I went on YouTube to listen to it and look at the score, and I absolutely loved it. This third movement in particular is so delicate… And it’s one of the trickiest parts to orchestrate. I really liked your orchestral arrangement and, to be honest, I’m not going to comment on anything in particular as I’m not in a position to assess it in such depth. I like the way the woodwinds unfold in bars 24, 25… the oboe mingling with the flutes, and so on… I just have one thing I’d like to learn. When the vibraphone comes in – which is a lovely element – how does it produce such big chords? I imagine it’s two mallets per hand… Best regards.

Hello I wasn’t familiar with this aria, so I’m not sure. But it’s very pleasant, and the counterpoint and fugue sound brilliant. What’s more, it’s in a tempo that I really like. When very ornate counterpoint is played at a very fast tempo, my brain can’t quite process it – haha, that’s just me.

Hello It’s a piece packed with ideas, and the interweaving of the string parts is well crafted. I’m not sure what your level of experience is, although you mention that you want to improve your harmonic structure… I mention this because the piano part reveals a certain lack of experience in handling the instrument’s idiom. One point in particular: when you’re accompanying with block chords, it isn’t necessary to ‘fill’ the entire range. And especially in the lower register – the left hand from F on the fourth line downwards, more or less – avoid stacking thirds, as it all sounds very muddled. In the lower register, you need to open up the intervals, to at least a fifth. This is very evident from bar 23 onwards, with the ‘presto giocoso’. Writing for solo instruments in ensembles such as quartets, etc., is very difficult because, on the one hand, you have to maintain the independence of each instrument and keep the listener engaged with what it is doing, whilst, on the other hand, ensuring that the combination results in proper counterpoint and derived harmony. I believe that to begin developing a grasp of harmony (more or less exclusively), it is best to write for a polyphonic instrument (piano) or for piano and a solo instrument.

I recently showed a draft of a piece I was working on to one of my friends. With the piece being in 13/8, which has multiple ways of grouping, I decided to write the time signature out as (3+2+3+3+2)/8 instead of simply putting 13/8. My intention here was to make it easier to interpret and learn, but I was told my choice made it more confusing. Would it be better to notate it as an alternating pattern of 8/8 (or 4/4) and 5/8? Or simply 13/8? Or is there some other solution that I haven't considered?

I haven't even begun to think about conducting lol. I haven't written anything bigger than a quintet in a long time, so the need for a conductor just hasn't been there. In the case of the piece I'm working on, I think the best thing to do would be to conduct it as 5/4 with uneven note lengths, similar to how I've seen 7/8 conducted, although I'm sure that would be a pain for whoever actually has to do the job. That's certainly something for me to think about if I decide to expand this beyond what it is. I will be making the suggested edits later today. My main issue with it when I was sketching the idea in the first place was handling long tones (which, it starts out that way), but you addressed that. Thank you!

Thanks for explaining. I suggest you keep it simple for the time being. Focus on smaller scale and short pieces with two part harmony only. Perhaps a waltz or minuet which provide a clear and simple structure to adhere to. Listen extensively to music you like to build up a creative vocabulary. Learn the art of voice leading: that is, rather than viewing harmony as static, consider the linear relationship between the notes that you write. Transitions should be smooth and each part independent where possible. Share those small pieces on this forum for targeted feedback. The added advantage of smaller scale works for intensive feedback is that the reviewer is not overwhelmed by the amount of material to analyze. I welcome you to tag me in such future posts and i will try to offer some in depth feedback.

This audio is from MuseScore. I have finalised this piano quartet. I want to convey the feeling of flying and dancing in the clouds. It is like the music you would hear while on a carousel. Now, as I am new to composing and still exploring, I find it difficult to develop my own style. I enjoy romantic pieces, but I can't figure out my own style. The second difficulty I have is having clear harmony- the right chords. Where should I start in music theory? I have the basics of theory, like intervals and keys. Thanks. Mouvement de l'air.mp3 Mouvement de l'air_Score.pdf

Just the cause you have “quite bad” skills in counterpoint does shouldn’t discourage you from sharing the score. We are all learning here, no matter where we are on our journey. Importantly, we learn from each other through the feedback and suggestions we offer and receive.

Apologies for being blunt, although the sound sets are not at all pleasant. You should try MuseScore, perhaps? It’s free, do you know? The music itself sounds quite erratic. I suggest that, in order to receive constructive feedback, explain: What you intended to convey in this quartet (stylistically & narratively) What are the current limitations you feel? Otherwise you leave it to the reviewer to work it all out, in addition to dissecting your approach to music composition.

If I had a nickel for every time I’ve been called Mark on YCF, I’d have two nickels, which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened more than once.

Thanks everybody for the reviews and comments! Yes, I played it by myself. It was the same day I finished composing it, so I didn’t have much time to practice! Thanks! While composing I didn’t actually think of the chord structures I was using, or any styles and influences. I basically just wrote what sounded right to me, polishing for coherence. I agree—I just felt I had to start with something small that I knew would be achievable. Also, I don’t think the piece has much potential for expansion unless it’s really restructured. Thanks for the compliment! It means a lot to me, because I always feel my technique is lacking. I think what I’m learning is that ideas seldom come perfectly polished—it’s the diligent work afterwards that matters. If you analyze what you’re doing too early, it blocks the creative flow.

I listened twice, and you managed to put a smile on my face. You evidently know your stuff for it is very well crafted. I have no constructive feedback with regards to your writing. Keep up the good work. Looking forward to the next upload. ;)

First time properly hearing your music, Mark! Have to say you captured my interest with this delightful work. I feel the structure falls into place very well. I did feel the ending could have been more interesting but overall it works. Importantly, it feels French! Looking at your writing in more detail, it seems to largely be homophonic, right? Is this unique to this work? Very well done, Mark.

As a pianist, those chords also impossible to play. Not even Rachmoninov would have wrote chords in that fashion! I think you need to carefully look at scores that use the harp, @Musicman_3254. Adler provided some scores to look at (and I included others) CPE Harp Sonata Caplet's Deux Divertissements Debussy's Sonata for harp, flute, and viola Belioz's "Rob Roy" The planets by Gustav Holst Pines of Rome by Ottorino Respighi

For my 15th casting Fred asked the Muzoracle "How will I revive my sports career?" (Muzoracle is a storytelling/fortune telling/divination tool similar to the Tarot card deck, but with cards with musical concepts and 12-sided Musician's dice and Solfege dice. Perhaps it may be thought of as a special musical Oracle card deck.) My interpretation of the cards and dice are displayed below. Since the black 12-sided musician's die landed on D, the piece was set in that key and pertains to the Sacral Chakra. All the cards drawn were in the suit of Percussion (besides the two elemental cards in the 1st Position - Melody and Tonality). So I chose Crotales, Vibraphone and Woodblocks as the instruments for this casting. If you'd like to find out more about Muzoracle and how castings are interpreted go here: https://muzoracle.net/ This short musical representation of Fred's 2nd Casting is about a minute long. I created the following melodic/harmonic underdrawing guided by the cards and dice. I started the melody in the Crotales and only once the melody hit C# (Ti) did I introduce the Vibraphone and Woodblock accompaniment, guided by the position of the Accompanist card. If you've gotten this far, thanks for reading! And I hope you enjoy listening to this short chamber work I wrote to represent Fred's 2nd Casting. Comments, critiques, observations and suggestions are of course always welcome. Thanks for listening! Fred's Casting No. 2.mp3 Fred's Casting No. 2.pdf

Becoz there ain't no fairy tales in modern world now lolol 😝 Also it reminds you drinking more milk lolol

A lovely pleasant piece of music. Remember woodwind players need to Breathe! Why the Oboe D'amore? Not many players own one. Why not substitute English Horn? I also think in this composition the tone would be more fitting. Mark