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Just yesterday I sat at the piano for hours trying to figure out a simple riff or a motive that feels unique/different. I finally decided on a basic G Major phrase that would repeat itself or "stand out" in my 15th Concerto classical composition. The finish is a little bit of a reach out however it seems to achieve solid closure and resolve the composition.

Good afternoon fellow composers! I am very excited to present my latest large scale work, the first movement of my Symphony No. 1. My plan for the symphony is for it to be a “complete concert experience” with two large scale movements surrounding two shorter and lighter movements. This first movement is thus quite long, clocking in at a little over 27 minutes. It is intended to be almost a “symphony within a symphony”, preparing tension to be resolved later in the work, while still functioning as a standalone piece in its own right. I had a few goals in mind as I composed this, feel free to evaluate how well I achieved them: Focus on simple, memorable themes and motives Write a large scale opening symphony movement that could also function as a standalone piece Build a large movement on the development of two simple motives, specifically Motive 1 - a sequential 5th motive, first in the bass clarinet and bassoon at the beginning Motive 2 - an alternating ascending, descending motive, first in the low winds/strings and English horn/saxophone in the B section Integrate euphonium and saxophone into the orchestra Make use of auxiliary brass The movement is structured as a Rondo (A-B-A-C-A-D-A-B-A-coda), albeit with several creative liberties taken. Since it is quite long I’ve broken it down into several smaller sections if you prefer to only listen to a small piece. The structure is detailed below: 00:00 - A section - the piece begins quietly with sustained notes in the basses, with the low winds introducing Motive 1. This is repeated and embellished by the oboe and others 1:38 - B section - the broad opening theme gives way to a heavy and ominous pulse in the low strings and woodwinds. Motive 2 is introduced here first in the English horn and saxophone, then expanded and embellished, and leads up to a climax 4:46 - the A section returns, this time building into a brassy fanfare, but left unresolved. This section ends with a lively cacophonous polyrhythmic buildup that develops Motive 1 and leads into the next section 6:56 - the C section opens with a contrapuntal section, which utilizes and expands Motive 2 within octatonic scales that plane between each other, then leads into an ominous ascending theme (an inversion of Motive 2) that climaxes with a fiery rhythmic dance in frequently changing time signatures, this is repeated, then interrupted by a quiet irregular heartbeat in the harp and celesta, that eventually erupts before returning to the opening contrapuntal figure, this time in the woodwinds 11:05 - the A section theme returns briefly, this time as stacked fifths in the brass, and stated explicitly by the muted horns 11:45 - the D section begins with a lyrical theme in the English horn (formed by combining and rearranging Motive 1 and Motive 2), which is passed back and forth between the saxophone and bassoon. The texture slowly winds down, allowing a woodwind choir to emerge. The mood is bleak, but the strings enter and the mood shifts suddenly to hopeful and optimistic, before an epiphany is reached. The key returns to C major for one more buildup to the climax, with the brass exclaiming Motive 1, this time in a major mode. 15:50 - formal return to the A section, with mostly the same structure but the instrumentation is varied 17:27 - formal return of B section, this time a quiet horn solo prepares a fast whirlwind of a climax, before coming to a halt and preparing for the return to… 21:37 - the A section fanfare returns, this time enhanced by auxiliary brass. The climax is more resolved, but still leaves something wanting before the cacophony from earlier in the movement leads into the coda 24:09 - Coda - the ominous ascending theme returns here and is used to build tension along with distortions of the fiery dance from the C section. The irregular heartbeat returns as well, and leads into a chaotic polyrhythmic volcano that over flows into the final statement of the two motives overlaid on top of each other, traded back and forth between the auxiliary brass and the orchestra As usual, I have several questions for feedback, feel free to answer as many or as few as you wish: What effect does the music have on you? Does in conjure up an image? Or an emotional feeling? Does it tell you a story? This can be the piece as a whole, or a specific part or parts. What was your favorite part? What was your least favorite part? Does this work well as the first movement of a symphony? How about as a standalone piece? How well do you think the motives are developed? Do you have any comments or critiques on technique, e.g. harmony, melody writing, counterpoint, orchestration, voice-leading, etc.? How do you feel about the overall form? Is it effective? How well do you think the euphonium and saxophone are integrated with the rest of the orchestra? Do you have any comments of the quality of the performance in the audio file? I really want this to be a decent representation of how the piece would sound if it were performed live, since it is unlikely it ever will be. Feel free to put your "conductor hat" on and critique the "orchestra". I have included a score and welcome any constructive feedback on its presentation. And if you're like me it's a lot more fun to follow along with the score. Are there any composers this reminds you of, that I might enjoy listening to? Sound libraries Spitfire Symphonic Orchestra and Spitfire Percussion VSL Synchron brass and woodwinds Thanks for listening, I hope you enjoy! If you liked something I did and want me to explain how I did it, feel free to ask. -gmm Score link here

I wrote this a while ago and listened to it again today and remembered how nice it was, its light music. The work has a fluid form, it's more like a stream or flow of conciousness on a few motivic ideas, so it's both changing and staying the same all the time. The harmonies are good old triads expanded via non-functional (mostly) non-clashing diatonic extensions. I remember I made up some rules for the counterpoint and that it was relatively straight-forward to compose but not much else. The "Bach alla Renaissance" is because it is polyphonic, rather traditionally, but the scales are (the modern) church modes. Modes of Accord.mp3

Hey guys, This is an upload of a short orchrestral interlude "The Dancer" using the latest Musescore 4 with Musesounds. Feedback is always welcome in regards to Orchrestration, Balance, and Thematic development. Hope you enjoy. Score Audio with Poem By Christy Ann Martine

Good evening everyone! I'm excited to present a new piece I have been working on for the last month or so: Scherzo for Orchestra. I deliberately wrote this fairly quickly, with the intent to write something fun, conventional, and maybe even a little whimsical. I'm interested in any and all constructive feedback. I had a few goals in mind as I composed this, feel free to critique my success or failure on these: Write something a little more informal and accessible, with catchy, memorable themes. Start with a very simple idea, and build the entire piece off of it. The four bar opening phrase in the 2nd violins popped into my head one day, so I tried to build the entire piece off of this motive and transformations of this motive. Practice having multiple contrapuntal lines. Some details on this are below. Write something that would work as a middle movement of a larger work, such as a symphony. Write something under 10 minutes, since I might decide to enter it into a competition and a lot of competitions have a 10 minute time limit. The piece is loosely structured in a three-part rondo form (ABACABA). (0:00 - 1:32) - A Theme - A very quick staccato theme in C# minor. I based this on the idea of a fugue, with each voice entering at different scale degrees, before they all come together to cadence. I'm sure I broke a few rules on the counterpoint, but it got the job done. The section ends on the V (G# minor) (1:32 - 2:21) - B Theme - A soaring theme in E major, then restated in Db major. Here I tried to have descending chromatic lines to complement the ascending melody. (2:21 - 3:04) - A Theme - Restatement of the second half of the A Theme, this time ending on I (C# minor) (3:04 - 6:31) - C Theme - A waltz in D major that begins very timid, gradually gains confidence, and goes out with a bang. (6:31 - 8:01) - A Theme - Restatement of the A Theme, this time in D minor, with the orchestration modified slightly. I threw in a couple unprepared modulations up a half step, to Eb minor and E minor. As a result I may have broken a "rule" here since I ended the section on B minor (which is not the V of D minor, the key I eventually return to). (8:01 - 8:49) - B Theme - Restatement of the B Theme, this time in Db major and Bb major. (8:49 - 9:37) - A Theme - The second half of the A Theme again, eventually returning to D minor to end the piece. As usual, I have an onslaught of questions I would like specific feedback on. Feel free to answer as many or as few as you wish: What effect does the music have on you? Does in conjure up an image? Or an emotional feeling? Does it tell you a story? This can be the piece as a whole, or a specific part or parts. What was your favorite part? What was your least favorite part? Do you have any comments or critiques on technique, e.g. harmony, melody writing, counterpoint, orchestration, voice-leading, etc.? How do you feel about the overall form? Is it effective? Do any of the parts seem impractical to you? It's a pretty fast piece with a lot of technique, so I'm curious if some of the parts are impractical. I don't mind them being difficult, I would only be concerned if they are borderline impossible. Do you have any comments of the quality of the performance in the audio file? I really want this to be a decent representation of how the piece would sound if it were performed live, since it is unlikely it ever will be. Feel free to put your "conductor hat" on and critique the "orchestra". I have included a score and welcome any constructive feedback on its presentation. And if you're like me it's a lot more fun to follow along with the score. Are there any composers this reminds you of, that I might enjoy listening to? Sound libraries: Spitfire Symphonic Orchestra and Spitfire Percussion VSL Trumpet (only for some of the lyrical trumpet melodies) VSL Violins (only to layer with the violins in Spitfire) Thanks for listening, I hope you enjoy! If you liked something I did and want me to explain how I did it, feel free to ask as well. -gmm

Good evening everyone! I'm ready to present a new piece I have been working on for the last couple of months or so: Adagio for Orchestra. It’s a relatively short piece, not as large in scope as some of my other works I have posted here. Admittedly I’ve had a little bit of writer’s block recently, so I toned things back quite a bit and instead focused on simple themes and experimenting with an expanded orchestra, including Euphonium and Saxophone with the usual instruments. I'm interested in any and all constructive feedback. I had a few goals in mind as I composed this, feel free to chime in on how well I accomplished them: Focus on simple, memorable themes. Experiment with orchestration, using auxiliary instruments to create some unique textures. Integrate Euphonium and Saxophone with the rest of the orchestra. Write something that would work as a middle movement of a larger work, such as a symphony. The piece is loosely structured in a binary form with repeat (ABAB). (0:00 - 1:09) – Introduction. Euphonium solo that is passed between and elaborated by other members of the winds, punctuated by sweeping string lines. Most of the thematic material from the piece is extracted from this opening solo. (1:09 – 2:41) – A Theme. A melancholy dirge carried by a bell-like ostinato played by harp, celesta, and piano, with rustling tremolo in the strings and an eerie chant in the winds. (2:41 – 5:00) – B Theme. A floating theme first presented by the oboe then embellished by the strings to the first big outburst of the piece. Material from the A Theme is elaborated here, then the strings carry the oboe theme to a new momentary high, before settling back into the recap. (5:00 – 7:11) – A Theme recap. The dirge returns, this time building to a euphoric climax, then drifting away into the upper register of the woodwinds and strings. (7:11 – 8:13) – B Theme recap. This time the clarinet sings the theme. I experimented with some polytonality/polymodality/whatever-you-want-to-call-it with the chords in the horns, trumpets, flutes, keyboards, and harp. I’m curious how well I pulled this off. (8:13 – 8:38) – Coda. Return of the Euphonium solo, this time drifting off into silence to end the piece. As usual, I have few specific questions I would like specific feedback on. Feel free to answer as many or as few as you wish: What effect does the music have on you? Does in conjure up an image? Or an emotional feeling? Does it tell you a story? This can be the piece as a whole, or a specific part or parts. What was your favorite part? What was your least favorite part? Do you have any comments or critiques on technique, e.g. harmony, melody writing, counterpoint, orchestration, voice-leading, etc.? How do you feel about the overall form? Is it effective? How well do you think the euphonium and saxophone are integrated with the rest of the orchestra? How do you feel about the harmony in the B theme recap (the nondiatonic chords against the melody in the clarinet)? Is it effective? Do you have any comments of the quality of the performance in the audio file? I really want this to be a decent representation of how the piece would sound if it were performed live, since it is unlikely it ever will be. Feel free to put your "conductor hat" on and critique the "orchestra". I have included a score and welcome any constructive feedback on its presentation. And if you're like me it's a lot more fun to follow along with the score. Are there any composers this reminds you of, that I might enjoy listening to? Sound libraries: Spitfire Symphonic Orchestra and Spitfire Percussion VSL – Eb clarinet, Bass clarinet (in the intro only), Alto sax, Bassoon (for the solo only), Bb Trumpet (for the solos only, and some reinforcement in louder sections), Euphonium, Piano Thanks for listening, I hope you enjoy! If you liked something I did and want me to explain how I did it, feel free to ask as well. -gmm

Hello everyone, This is my new recent/short composition for the orchrestra. I posted this on the reddit page and received amazing feedback. I would like to have some more general opinions in case I could further synthesize and finalize my score. Score Video Score (Pages 14 and 20 do cut out at the bottom) Here are some general concerns: Is the Orchrestration good and balanced? Are the Harmonies functional/pleasant?(received some advice on this one) Is the Melody Strong and Memorable?(Quite a few mixed opinions) Thank you again and happy new year to all.

I'm excited to finally have completed this! EXCEPT for the TIMPANI part!!!! After weeks and weeks of intensive orchestration study and several attempts at an orchestral work. I think this is my first serious orchestral work. The material is straightforward. The work is a combination of through composed and ABA' form. The material develops throughout. The ending finishes with the same material as the first -but with a more clear direction to the finality of the material. I may tweak the ending a bit to make it fit my vision of the section. I'm happy with the material itself -I'd love to have orchestration tips and tidbits. I'll be tweaking the score up to better the work. Overall, I'm happy with it!

This was my entry for the National Young Composers Challenge. I did not end up winning, but the judges enjoyed it, particularly the introduction. I will definitely be participating again for next year. This was also my first test of the new MuseSounds, and I am very excited about it. I was quite impressed with the realism of it, though I don't really like the trumpet all that much, as the dynamics are inconsistent. Feedback is definitely appreciated, especially since I am planning on expanding the material into a full symphony.

It took me a few months, but I finally completed my most recent work for orchestra. This piece is nominally in scherzo-trio form, with some slight modifications. Each scherzo is itself also binary in the manner of a sonata form exposition and recapitulation. The trio is actually a waltz, slowly built up from nothing via the gradual introduction of cliches. Though it seems to be unrelated to the scherzo at first, I bridge the gap with the transition back into the scherzo. The strict metric modulation to precisely half-tempo for the trio is critical. In the concluding fugato, both themes from the scherzo are combined simultaneously. Score video:

This pirate themed track "Ghosts of the Ocean" is a release back from July. I was curious to hear other composer's opinions and thoughts on the composition. I create all of my music using virtual instrument libraries (namely from Spitfire Audio) and was also curious if anyone had any suggestions on certain libraries that would enhance a score like this. Thank you for listening! Spotify Link YouTube Link (edited)

A concert overture I just recently finished about Snowdonia National Park, Wales (Eryri in Welsh), which I recently visited. Let me know what you think!

Do let me know what you think of it. Constructive criticism is welcome 🙂

In the last months I worked hard at my first small symphony. Spending some forgotten hours late at night to write notes in that marvellous app StaffPad. Slowly the story came to life. With this composition “The Boy Who Wanted To Fly” as an end result! I really challenged myself this time. I wanted to compose a classical story. A symphonic story. One that takes you by the hand and feeds your imagination. You have to know, I'm still a beginner. This is the second composition I wrote by hand. So any feedback, advise is much appreciated! About the process, I wrote it by hand in StaffPad. Exported the STEMS and mixed and mastered in my beloved DAW Logic Pro. The music is available on Youtube with the short story in the video and on every major streaming platform. So when you enjoy listening to it, you could add it to one of your favourite playlists. Link to the score: Score - The Boy Who Wanted To Fly

This is my entry into the music composing competition in Sacile, Italy, that needs to be submitted by the end of this month, April. I would be very grateful for any comments regarding technical issues that would annoy conductors, confuse judges or distress players. The orchestra is made of very competent amateurs who have come together for a weekend conference, so the judges have asked composers not to unnecessarily stretch players. Any comments and criticisms gratefully received. Morgan.

This is the last work I finished before my computer sadly crashed (though hopefully I will have it back up an running soon). It is a simple melancholic waltz which uncharacteristic of me, I wrote very quickly (less than a week) and much of it away from the computer. I'm fan of the Eastern European Romantic composers and Dvorak in particular and this was in part influenced by his Slavonic Dances. I hope to add at least two other waltzes to compete a set of at least three.

Passacaglia #2. New Version, Musiversal 1.3.22.mp3 Passacaglia #2. New Version, Musiversal 1.3.22.mp3 file:///C:/Users/Allans/Videos/Movie Maker/2022-02-27/5th attempt_0.mp4

Hello! I was commissioned to write an orchestra piece, and I have just finished my first draft of the piece. I would like to hear your comments/criticism. Keep in mind, I have a 3.5 minute max time (with a 10-15 minute rehearsal time, as it is for a summer concert), and I wanted to fit in as many textures and ideas as I could with easy to rehearse parts. A big part of my style is to create "samplers" of the many ideas I have and focus less on making it a completely cohesive "piece." I use a few melodies/bits that stay present throughout and build upon those. Thank you, and if you take the time to reply to my piece I am more than happy to take the time to comment on one of yours 🙂 Enjoy!

RECUERDO.pdfRECUERDO.mp3

Hey all, This is a piece I wrote in the Spring of '21 for my composition lessons. Programmatically, the is based on the following quote: "All truth passes through three stages: First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as self-evident." - Arthur Schopenhauer This was my first time writing for an orchestra this large and also my first time combining orchestration with a more modern compositional style.

This one is different, combining some eastern Japanese/Chinese elements with western stuff.. Could've been some sort of Japanese film/serious soundtrack maybe some anime stuff 😄 There is a good drive on this one, leaded by the Hang Drum.. Have fun 🙂

A piece for encouraging myself to be brave and strong

This last Sunday, my new piece, "Tastes of the Orchestra," was premiered at the Dubuque Symphony's Summer Melodies concert. I would love to hear your thoughts, comments. Thank you for listening! Score video:

There is one of my work, a special combination of classic and more elements in one song

Hi everyone! I've been thinking about writing some stuff for fantasy inspired settings (like WoW, Skyrim etc.). I've come up with these ideas and there were quite a few of them, and thus I decided to put them all together in one suite. Any feedback is appreciated!