New symphonic piece

Hi all.

Just wanted to share a piece I've been working on for the last few days.

It was inspired by the main theme from Austin Wintory's "Traveler" album.

I'm very inexperienced as a composer, and some passages definitely need more work.

Feels like the piece naturally falls into two separate movements; though that wasn't my original intention.

Think I might add a first movement to establish some of the themes. Already have a few ideas about that.

The score is not annotated yet, and it's a bit of a mess: so I haven't included it. If it would be helpful, I'm happy to share it on request.

One of my main concerns as a composer, is that I might accidentally mimic someone else's work. So if any of the melodic lines sound familiar, please do let me know!

I left off at 1'50". It didn't seem to be getting anywhere. A little more variety is needed. I say this because you introduce it as a New Symphonic Piece and like it or not, the label comes with certain expectations (normally at least two contrasting themes or two themes derived from a 'seed' theme. It has a kind-of Far Eastern or even Amazonian feel to it and it might be a ceremonial piece to me. So think about what you hope it to be. Listen to a few symphonies, ancient and modern and decide if you're trying to extend the form. As a chamber piece it could be a (Chinese) chung and dizi (flute) or Japanese equivalent. 

It might also be an idea to put it in the Unfinished works section. And...if it follows conventional notation, a score of some kind would be nice. 

Doesn't matter how inexperienced you are, you're composing! And well done for that!

Bests.

Thanks so much for listening, and for your very helpful comments!

I guess the second theme comes in at 3'08", which is where I would place the transition to a new movement.

I described it as a symphony because I'm thinking of recasting it as three movements, and from 3'08" onwards it has a symphonic quality (for me at least).

The piece was improvised in sections, using my iPad's on screen keyboard, and produced entirely on the iPad. So I'm going to pull it into Reaper next, and see what I can do with it there.

Have attached the score, such as it is. The order of the tracks is unconventional; but I will adjust that at some point.

At the moment it simply reflects the order in which I added tracks to the composition. 

Most of the percussive instruments are incorrectly notated.

First off, please keep composing! It’s great that you’re trying to develop your own personal voice rather than just trying to imitate composers of the past. And you’ve given yourself some practice in two-voice texture in the process.

That said, I think that this piece would be best as an accompaniment to something else, like a dance piece or a film depicting a slow religious ritual. It’s very repetitive, and doesn’t develop its ideas enough to really stand on its own. (Disclosure: to no one’s surprise, I’m not a fan of minimalism.) If you want to give yourself a challenge, try expanding your main subject episodically: first one voice, then two, then three… how far can you go? You’ll take the listener on a journey — maybe not to a happy place, but a journey nonetheless.

And I’ll re-phrase a comment I made elsewhere in the forum not long ago: It’s great to have the goal of writing a symphony, but make sure you really understand what a symphony is before trying. Just putting together 4 (or 3, or 5) chunks of music doesn’t make the chunks movements, or make the whole bunch a symphony. Before you use that title “Symphony #1” (and you only get to use it once), study some initial symphonies of composers who went on to even better things (e.g., Nielsen, Shostakovich… Beethoven?) and make sure you’re attaching it to something that deserves it.

Many thanks for listening. Your comments are really helpful.

I've recently been studying sound design for theatre: so my aim is to write compositions that could be used as part of a theatrical production.

Seems like my piece has conjured up images of an Oriental ritual, and the Amazon: so maybe I've been at least vaguely successful in what I was trying to achieve.

When I was improvising the opening passages, I turned off the metronome, and tried to use a rubato tempo to add expressiveness. Would be interested to know if you think that technique worked, and whether the improvised melodies were actually any good?

The piccolo was supposed to sound beguiling, and the violin solo was intended to be melancholy and poignant.

I'm not going to call this piece a symphony, and might actually split it into two pieces.

Will certainly try to add more thematic development. Were there any passages that were more successful than others?

It would also be interesting to know what you thought of my orchestration, especially the chord progression from 4'28" to 4'55". It was all based on instinct. I have no experience with orchestration at all really.

This is an interesting work ... I enjoyed the experimentation ... To me - it would be a wonderful accompaniment for a story - maybe a puppet theater.  You need to reduce the score and view this piece as a chamber work.

Thanks so much for listening!

I absolutely agree it needs to be trimmed down.

Maybe even split into two separate short pieces, with new thematic material added.

Would love to see some of my compositions used in a theatre production of some kind.

That's my main ambition in life right now!