Debussy orchestration (Footsteps in the Snow)

Hi to everyone.

This week I've been working on an exercise to orchestrate Debussy's Prelude No.6 from Book 1.

I came up with two versions, one with a very restricted instrumentation, and the other with a larger ensemble.

Interested to know which you think works best?

The final bass dyad was very problematic, due to its extreme low pitch. 
It sounded too intrusive and twangy in the harp, and seemed off-pitch in the double-bass, with a horrible grating timbre.
Eventually I decided to remove the lowest note altogether in the version with restricted instrumentation, and have the upper note pizz. instead of arco. 

Alex - overall both are very good orchestrations of the piano work.  After listening to the piano work, I found, I missed the resonance of the lower notes vibrating (pedal).

I'm not sure how to reproduce this quality in the lower winds and/or lower strings etc.

Mark

Thanks Mark.

I could perhaps use more contrabassoon for bass resonance.

Not sure double-bass would work. Its timbre is a bit too harsh, and doesn't really suit the material IMHO. 

I did have thoughts about adding some percussion. Perhaps a mark tree, sleigh bells or triangle to sprinkle some Christmassy magic?

Maybe that would sound too cheesy though?

21 hours ago, MJFOBOE said:

Alex - overall both are very good orchestrations of the piano work.  After listening to the piano work, I found, I missed the resonance of the lower notes vibrating (pedal).

I'm not sure how to reproduce this quality in the lower winds and/or lower strings etc.

58 minutes ago, Alex Weidmann said:

Thanks Mark.

I could perhaps use more contrabassoon for bass resonance.

Not sure double-bass would work. Its timbre is a bit too harsh, and doesn't really suit the material IMHO. 

I did have thoughts about adding some percussion. Perhaps a mark tree, sleigh bells or triangle to sprinkle some Christmassy magic?

Maybe that would sound too cheesy though?

Oh hey

I like the contrabassoon idea, it's so rich in the lower register. Perhaps the easiest and right solution.

Would it be so weird to have the piano with the orchestration? You mentioned harp, percussion, bells, etc., maybe the piano (or synth?) could be used as an accent/effect instrument in the ensemble. It could play the low notes of the final bass dyad in question, but just a random thought. 

Orchestration is really cool, and it helps I love Debussy haha. Nice work!

An Incredible orchestral landscape. I think you captured the loneliness of the piece quite well; the pedal effects are achieved naturally by the sustaining quality of the winds and strings. Just keep in mind, those triple and quadruple pianos may be hard to project, if you get a real ensemble to play your piece. It’s interesting to hear how differently you’ve approached this prelude as compared to another recent orchestration:

Of course, I also hear similarities but I do really prefer your choice of instruments. There seems to be more drama and depth of feeling.