Recently composed, I've truncated to just on 6 minutes.
It's an impressionist piece (fairly tonal but modern). The story is about a male and female out in a desert region late in the afternoon, gradually admitting a fondness for each other.
The harmony is bleak at the outset but grows warmer if apprehensive until the characters leave the scene and the sun sets.
It's for strings, cor anglais two horns and a solo 'cello. Apologies being at 128kb as anything higher exceeds the limit.
Any comments would be gratefully received particularly about the evolving harmony.
Thank you if you can give it a play.
Ivor
Replies
The piece is quite evocative and atmospheric; however, I feel like I'm missing the part you describe about gradually admitting a fondness for each other. Maybe my classically biased ears are just daft, but I'm having a hard time hearing it in the music.
The rest, however, seems quite well written, as always from you, no complaints there.
Many thanks for your comment and listening to it, HS Teoh. I'm please it made some sort of sense though even if not built along classical lines. I can't understand the mechanics of it myself too well but the gradual filling out of a "thirdless" harmony at the outset and the appearance of the soloists is about the dialogue. Eventualy it reverts to that fifths style bleakness of the opening.
Again, thank you.
it's certainly the most tender thing I've heard from you and I think my favourite work to date. Although you never make the fondness too overt by a clear change into the major (except perhaps from 5'11" which is perhaps the most beautiful moment in the piece), nevertheless there is a subtle change in the mood as it goes on before the more apprehensive mood you describe seems to return just before the close.
Harmonically it seems most complex in the middle section with a greater simplicity early and late on but I'm probably missing something here -- at any rate it's very effective in evoking the desired atmosphere.
David, sincere thanks for listening and the kindness of your comments.
I've tried several times to explain myself here only to delete and start again. Basically I'm okay with diatonic harmony but chromaticise it. I think these no better release of tension than landing on a concord. I suppose it's the impressionist way that drives one to look into the atmosphere and adjust it to bring out the transience, colours or mood. depending what one's trying to express. In this piece I deliberately added minor seconds, sometimes building up to brief clusters (I believe the academics call them) before a new episode (as with the intro to the cello solo).
I'm most encouraged by your remarks and thank you again.
Ivor