The Mirror in the Hall

Hello all,

First off, happy new year :) I wish the best

This is a new piece, my first time working with choral music, and it was fun. I was asked if I could write something for a friends dad, who is an avid Christian music person. So, this is what I came up with.

It was short notice, I only had a few days, and I do have a real life as well as a musical one, but I think it turned out well for just a fun project.

Just a few quick notes :

This was recorded by a computer microphone in my basement, I wrote it to be preformed, the recording was just for fun.

I was told this friend of my mom's was a soprano, and so I wrote some upper soprano range. However, I found out she was an alto. Oops :)

Enough words. Here's the music.

Mirror_in_the_Hall.mp3

themirrorinthehall.MUS

This is a beautiful piece. A few minor things, though: why didn't you put the piece in the key of Aflat? It would be much easier than having all those accidentals.

The lyrics in measures 56 and 57 don't really scan with the music. You have a stress on the second syllable of "broken" when the stress really should be on the first. If those notes moved back so the word "no" landed on the downbeat, then you could also get the extra length out of "pieces." Quarter note, dotted quarter note, eighth note. And it would scan better.

Also, I got the feeling from measure 69 that what would suit you better would be a measure in cut time. The first quarter note felt more like a pick-up to me (in the rest you have in the previous measure), then 2/4 for one measure and then back to a waltz. I'd also love to hear the oboe in harmony with the voice!

My final--and very nitpicky--detail is that you don't need to write out every sound of a word that stretches across multiple notes. Just tie the notes.

I really really liked it. It's a beautiful piece. I look forward to hearing where to goes.

Hi!

Im rolan, 28 from the Philippines. I am a composition major, quite a beginner. I wrote these two choral pieces for the use of our choir in our church liturgical celebration. Your comments will be greatly appreciated as they will really help me improve as a composer. Thanks and long live all the composers!!!

Benediction.pdf

Shine Your Light Upon Us.pdf

thanks Dr. Pangloss

I thought it turned out well for my first attempt at anything sung.

About the accidentals thing, I like to write my pieces without a key signature, so as I'm writing, I don't feel so restricted. It ended up being very tonal and mostly simple diatonic chords, with exceptions, but I hate to feel limited. Writing without a key signature works for me, so I can write whatever I feel like, and do whatever I feel at the time.

I think I understand about 56 and 57 and I may do just that.

Also, I think 69 isn't a very fitting measure, I will try your idea tonight.

Thank you.

Do you have any pieces I could listen to/review?

At the moment, some of my music can be heard at MySpace.com - David Rigano - NY, New York - Showtunes / Lyrical / Jazz - www.myspace.com/davidrigano. Also, I played around with those measures that I mentioned on yours (only the rhythm stuff, not the oboe harmonies, I would never touch someone else's composition like that) if you'd like to see it. I didn't really change anything, just put in those rhythmic alterations to hear how it would sound.