The Laugh

Hello, everyone!

I've posted a short (about a minute or so) movement for strings. It's titled "The Laugh," as I think some of the runs sound like giggling, some like moderately animated laughing, and others like outright guffaws.

I just recently bought Notion, and it's absolutely enjoyable to work with (with the exception of the occasional lockup, but...)

Anyways - I've always loved pieces for strings, and I'd love to get any feedback I can. I've included an mp3 only. Anybody know of a convenient way to get NTN files rendered as PDF's...?

Thanks for your time.

MP3 = click here to play it

what strikes as peculiar to me is that how in the world can you ony write this piece only lasting 1 minute, this classical sounding piece has so much potential, and so many things going on, it feels as if it's taken from a part of a larger work, go home and make it longer, otherwise, it shows me a lack of skills on the composer's part.

4.5/10

I would have to dissagree.

I'm not into tonal music really. At least music that could've been writen 200 years ago...

But I did enjoy it. It is a nice rendering and a nice tonal composition.

As for the short part, I think that the composer simply said had he had to say. Why should he make it longer? Because you gave it a 4.5? :)

I'm totally new here, but I think that compositions could be as short or as large as the composer wants to. Especially since it is obvious that the composer in this case had control of what he wanted to do. It doesn't appear to be a lack of compositional skills but rather simple a matter of choice, which I personally have to respect. :)

CV2112: There are plenty of pdf drivers out there. Just google the bolded words and you will come across some. Dont' kjnwo what the NTN file stands for, but if you can see it in your monitor and print it in a piece of paper, you can make it into a pdf. Just install the driver and then instead of sending the file to the printer you use, send it to the pdf creator. And most of them are free, totally legal without any issues whatsoever. :)

Glad to get input of any kind.

As for the length of the piece, yes, it's quite short, and is not intended to present itself as anything more than a quick little snippet of a larger work - currently in progress, of course. Just wanted to get opinions from ears outside of my usual circle. I should like to post more of it for purposes of criticism, just as soon as I get some linear duration of (uninterrupted... yeah, right!) time to finesse its brethren into listenable shape.

Where the PDF output is concerned... doh! I should have thought of that; thanks for the suggestion. NTN files, by the way, are simply Notion's native format.

You can expect to hear more from me in the near future. Meanwhile, I truly appreciate anything that anyone has to say.

Another note - not an excuse, really, but a little explanation... I have a very bad habit of never finishing a piece. My general manner is to get so enthralled by and wrapped up in composing that I don't know when to stop. Then, at some point, I get bored and start a new piece. Very bad, and is the single biggest complaint I get from my regular circle of test subjects. My new goal is to actually provide some semblance of start-to-finish. On top of that, I've spent the last 20+ years at the piano not really being very good with reading or writing notation, and 14 of those years inside of various sequencers. I feel it's bloody well time to learn the science behind the whole thing - it's like I've been functionally illiterate all this time; thus the move to notation software. One thing I have discovered - it turns out I've got a fairly intuitive understanding of how things should be presented on the page, and it's very inspiring.

Glad to get input of any kind.

I have a very bad habit of never finishing a piece.

Sounds like you and Schubert have the same problem.

...I'm assuming that you're referring to the "Unfinished Symphony?"

...or are you threatening to poison me?

I would give a review, but everything that needs to be said has been said. I just want to back up these ideas and give some advice on how to finish that piece.

In my opinion, this piece could be a Sonata of sorts. That one minute at the beginning is a really nice statement... my advice is also to maybe put it in ternery form, which is an ABA composition.

You could provide a moderate episode that contrasts the main piece in either another key. But, in actuality that song is very nice on its own. Just throwing some suggestions out for you!!

BTW- that is not a good title in my opinion. It reminded me none of the leisures of laughing... sorry.

...well, I've never been much for naming things, either. Usually, a working title is all something gets.

There is a writer's block forum where you could post the piece and ask some people to give you suggestions for a name... you don't always have to go with their ideas, you could take an idea and fly with it. It is a really good piece... and if you advertise with a name like that, not many people are going to take you very seriously...

That's a very interesting bit of advice - something to which I've never given much thought - and I will certainly take it very seriously.

Haha! I love it! I heard the giggles in the strings!

I heart strings!

Very very nice I must say. But to me, it didn't sound like laughing at some parts. Sorta more like a grand opening I must say xD.

The general consensus seems to be that the name, in a word, sucks. That's valuable input, I believe.

Let me pose another question, then - any idea on how to best classify the sort of piece I've presented? I don't know that it's appropriate under "Chamber Music," but it's not exactly a full-blown orhcestration, either. Also, since many of our heroes' pieces either don't have proper titles or are, at least, better known simply as their numerical designations, is it acceptable today to simply name your work something like, "Symphony No. 13"?

Forgive me if I seem naive. I suppose that I am...

The piece almost reminds me of the course of a joke.

The begining is the buildup, hits the punch line, people laugh. And all different laughs too. The bass is the guffaw. The treble is the giggle/normal laugh. And the trill that leads into the violin sixteenth notes is someone who didnt get it right away.

The softer part is directly after another jike has been made. It just takes people a while to get it. Then it's back to business as usual. . . laughing. This is a very 18th century laugh.

Could not have said it better. I love this piece!

a ball saloon full of peopledancing and laughing and having fun in their 19th century fashioned clothes :) i love it

short and sweet :D

I truly appreciate the kind words. Now that the holiday (Thanksgiving) has settled down, I hope to have more music to post very soon.

what strikes as peculiar to me is that how in the world can you ony write this piece only lasting 1 minute, this classical sounding piece has so much potential, and so many things going on, it feels as if it's taken from a part of a larger work, go home and make it longer, otherwise, it shows me a lack of skills on the composer's part.

4.5/10

Eww. I write 1 minute long pieces all the time. I don't get how you can not understand it. He is allowed to keep it that length. And failing it because it's short is pretty unfair also. Think about how it SOUNDS, i honestly think your tendancy to rate things is irritating, but anyhow, think about how it sounds intsead of caring about the length.

And to me, it sounds like a pass. It sounds pretty nicely done, and it sounds very whole. It sounds usable as a concert opener. It puts me in a good mood.

Good job. You do not fail.