Brass Quartet no. 1, w/ Recording

Don't have much to add except great opening movement. Don't edit anything rather leave it alone for a few days (or a week or two) and see what there is that you'd like to explore further. You are at the stage where you have to approach it as if another composer wrote this to attain some objectivity and freshness.

One technique I find helpful is write something completely different - a vocal piece, piano or a solo work for an instrument from a different family (clarinet, flute, cello, etc .. ) and then return to it.

I liked this for the most part, very whitacre-esque. I felt it moving and pulling towards a faster divergent section but then it never seemed to come... all in all a very enjoyable piece, and the almost senseless requirement of C trumpets, i totally approve of, fyi.

I used C trumpets because the players asked me to :P.

I'm writing more movements for it now, so there will definitely be contrast to this...I think I'll end the piece in relation to this movement, though; I'll basically actually resolve the movement, because the ending wasn't really "satisfying" :hmmm:.

Glad you liked it, though :happy:!

This piece is not my style at all, but for some reason I could listen to it rather well. It seems to go somewhere, or at least to get our attention. As if something is about to happen. Some other times it just seems to drift, and still work!

No, I can't say I'd listen to this casually, as it is not my kind of music at all, but I like it when I feel some sort of cohesion, or at least just a feeling that it's held together by something.

Sorry about the vagueness. :P

The real recording helped a lot, of course. I'd KILL to get that kind of availability from people to play my stuff! Of course they might decapitate me for some things I write... :P

Fantastic dynamics and manipulation of the brass instruments at the beginning! Some of the harmonies made me feel uneasy, but I imagine they were meant to!

thanks a lot for the comments, Miguel and Wayne!

and yes, the harmonies are supposed to be a bit "uneasy", but hopefully not gratingly so :).