Concerto for Piano and String Orchestra

Hello everybody! This is my first topic in the forum - I've commented on a number of pieces but not yet shared anything of my own, so here we are. I wrote this concerto for piano and string orchestra last month - I don't play a string instrument, so I'd appreciate any feedback on the string writing!

The concerto is in five short movements; the first is in A minor, the second in A major, the third also in A major (and following straight on from the second), the fourth in D minor, and the last in A minor. I've reused a few motifs throughout the work to keep it feeling 'tight'; the opening theme of the concerto comes back in the final passage, creating a cyclical feel; and the final movement in general incorporates aspects of the other movements. I'd be hard placed to name any particular influence, other than a neoclassical feel to some passages. 

Overall, I'm fairly pleased with it, so I thought it could be my first posting 🙂 I hope you have fun with the work!

Not to discredit some really great music you've got here but it feels more like a cinematic piece for piano and orchestra rather than a piano concerto.  I do like the themes you present however.  The 1st movement's main theme is quite intriguing and I can totally see it as the main theme for some kind of mystery/spy thriller.  That sharpened 4th degree in a melodic minor context is great!  The 2nd movement is quite lyrical and I love the mood!  It's probably my favorite movement out of the bunch.  The sense of wonder that you create with the lydian mode is exquisite!  The 3rd movement is playful and groovy!  Also I am not saying that one needs to use classical forms such as sonata form in order to call something a concerto but the kind of writing you do especially in the 3rd movement with the kitschy pizzicato strings is much more pop oriented.  The 4th movement, although also quite affecting, is written as more of a song for piano and orchestra (not to discredit that either as one of Rachmaninoff's piano concerto melodies has been turned into an actual song as well).  It just lacks any of the kind of thematic development that would be expected in a piano concerto.  There's no fragmentation and manipulation of the thematic material to transform it into virtuosic piano figurations (which would be really cool).  The exception is of course the 5th movement where I think you do a great job of transforming the material from the 1st movement into quite a challenging piano line.  You use variation technique and change the rhythms of the original 1st movement theme so great job there!  I don't really hear any of the other movements material in the 5th movement however - I don't know if I missed something?  Overall a great work though!  About your string writing - I think it's great - I just have a minor notation comment about your divisi voicings - they should be notated as oppositely facing note heads rather than how you have them (which is more appropriate for double stopping).  Thanks for sharing this quite entertaining piece!

Thanks for the feedback, I'm glad you enjoyed it! I agree with your assessment that this isn't very concerto-like, but 'concerto' seemed like the best word to use... perhaps 'Suite', 'Popular Suite' or something might actually be more appropriate to reflect the compositional focus of the work (which isn't developmental per se)?

The 5th movement has cameos from the 2nd and 4th movements in the slow piano solo near the end, it's a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment really... the glissandi are taken from the 3rd movement. Also, you're right about the divisi notation! Best do that in future for the sake of the performers...

This is really cool! You use alot of unique modes that give your melodies a very exotic flavor, and I really like your harmonies as well - you use alot of chromatic mediants and shifting by tritone to keep things fresh.

I listened to the piece all the way through, but spent quite a bit of time on the first movement. A few comments below. These are all subjective of course, feel free to ignore if they are not to your liking.

• Throughout the first twenty bars or so you have the pizzicato low strings adding this cool "bouncy" vibe underneath the piano melody. However, this disappears when the celli and basses take over the melody at m. 21. I think it might sound kind of cool if the piano took up this role in the lower register? For example, maybe after the cello and bass play the melodic line in m. 21, have the piano play in m.22 an upbeat octave A1-A2 on beat 4 and downbeat ocatve D1-D2 on m.23 in the lower register to answer them? Then carry on this idea throughout this section? You might have to rework some of the technique you already have written for the piano in these bars to accommodate this, but I think it might sound cool.
• Is there any reason in m.21 you have the cello and bass slurring on the eight notes? (see below) Every where else throughout this section they are staccato, and the piano is staccato throughout the proceeding section. I think it would sound more consistent if the styles matched.
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• I noticed in m. 75 you have a minor 9th in the piano (well a minor 16th I guess...) which I think might clash a bit, I'm not sure is this was intentional? 
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• At m. 94 I think it might sound cool if the piano was staccato to match the strings. This would bring out the contrast with the proceeding legato section a bit more.
• I think there might be a typo at m.144, you have the cello on an F# but the bass an octave lower on an F natural?
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• Your string writing seems fine to me. I'm not a string player myself, but it all looks reasonable.

Like I said these are all just my opinion. I really enjoyed the piece, it is a fun listen. If I get a chance I'll try to dive a little deeper into some of the other movements. Thanks for sharing!

Great detailed post - I think a lot of the comments are spot on. Bar 75 was intentional though, yes. I'm happy you liked it!

This is lovely! The themes are quite beautiful, and the orchestration is very attractive and pleasant to listen to. I did notice in the first movement some of the chords look a little stretchy, I think they can be simplified a little bit. The fourth movement is my favorite, the melodies and harmonies are gorgeous, and nicely expressed with the long lines and countermelodies in the strings. What makes the whole piece so good is the fact that you don't overcomplicate anything, instead keeping the music straightforward and clear. I personally don't think a concerto needs to have thematic development to be considered "legitimate", but the title 'Popular Suite' works too. I hope it gets performed by a real orchestra, this piece has all the potential to become very popular.

I'm looking forward to hearing more of your music!

Thanks Theodore! Yes, a lot of music is IMO just too long, so I try and keep my pieces 'straightforward' as you say. The fourth movement was the first to be written, and yes it's probably my favourite too, though it's more a slow burn (lol) than the others...

Great piece.  I concur with all that has already been said!