Short Waltz Theme in Gmin

Hello everyone!

I composed today a really short waltz theme. I am practicing the "Merry-Go-Round" waltz from Joe Hisaishi at the piano and decided to use the initial harmony and melodic voice leading for composing a theme as an exercise (I used it only as an harmonic template and did not try to imitate the "Ghibli" sound).
The first 7 measures use the exact same accompaniment and melodic voice leading. I tried experimenting a little bit with harmony, particularly in m.12~14 and m.28~30.
I think the motive in m.2 might need to be notated with a trill (since I think it needs to sound more rubato and less rhythmic , but the trill in MuseScore sounds too bad so I notated like this).

Hope you like it and any feedback is welcome! Thank you!

Edited yesterday at 03:24 PM1 day by JorgeDavid

Hisaishi is a name that will come up in online circles every now and again and it is one to talk about! When it comes to studying his music and replicating it for ourselves, the first thing I would point out is the form. Even though Hisaishi's works can vary in form or length of form, the first time he presents a theme, he likes to use AABA form.

I notice that in your version, you repeat the phrase twice, using a deceptive cadence to minor iv. If you were to continue it, then a modulation or tonicization of the dominant or relative major would be expected to the B-section. As you mentioned briefly, including variation is also warranted as a pure repeat can be a weaker approach. If not the melody, change the accompaniment pattern slightly or add an extra voice/ harmony in the right hand.

So much to say in efforts to evolve this simple theme. Check out Alex Hepplemann on YouTube as he has a great series on Hisaishi and explaining how to write in that style. Also check out MomentsMusicaux on YouTube to see some excerpts of Hisaishi and their analysis.

Thanks for the feedback, @MK_Piano ! As you commented, the exact repetition was too much so I added some variations and also moved the repeated melody an octave higher (with some instances of octave playing) for contrast. I also added more internal notes, improved the melody a little, and exchanged a couple measures for improving the flow of the theme.

On 9/6/2026 at 8:45 AM, MK_Piano said:

So much to say in efforts to evolve this simple theme. Check out Alex Hepplemann on YouTube as he has a great series on Hisaishi and explaining how to write in that style. Also check out MomentsMusicaux on YouTube to see some excerpts of Hisaishi and their analysis.

Thank you so much for these links! Specially, I was browsing through both of them yesterday and found them really insightful! As I commented, I did not try to imitate Ghibli sound in this theme (probably I used to many notes for that, since Hisaishi in Ghibli's films tend to stick to whole, quartet, and some eight notes) but I want to do it some day and that is why I am trying to learn his pieces in piano first. I will make sure to review the channels to understand the style better.

Thank you!

Edited 15 hours ago15 hr by JorgeDavid