My new Classical Piano Concerto (first movement)

[Dan Titchener]

Hi all

Thanks for the lovely welcome. I think I was a member here before - I don't remember leaving, but in any case, it's nice to be back!
I present to you my latest piece which I've just finished and I'd love to hear your thoughts and critiques.

Score: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1l1UNeXavfLzMlEWkZmwFx8-n4jvmnO5X/view?usp=share_link 

Kind regards,
Dan

 

 

[David]

well, well. There might be an argument that as Mozart already wrote 27 piano concertos, we don't really need another one but I'm not sure if I buy that. If nothing else, I greatly enjoyed improvising along on the piano while listening to this, trying to decide what I'd have written in this sort of situation. And the fact I get driven to that strongly suggests the piece is great fun to begin with.

I'll leave any formal criticism to others -- I'm not one for score-gazing unless specifically asked.

[Rowy]

Joyful and creative, indeed, a fine achievement. However, I do feel that the last few bars could be enhanced; the ending seems a bit weak.

[David]

I also noticed the ending is quite abrupt but I assume that's the intention and the cheekiness is not ineffective. Still, I'm sure Mozart would have banged in a couple of chords at the end at least.

[Dan Titchener]

Thanks both for lovely feedback. I did consider a longer ending but nothing really worked as well as the shorter end, perhaps because of the lengthy section immediately before the final V-I-V-I shakes. If either of you have ideas I'd love to see them 😁

[Rowy]

Repeat the last bar, but not literally. David's suggestion would work well. I am confident that you will come up with your own idea if you take a break from the score and revisit it in a week or so.

[David Lilly]

I think this is a very well-written and orchestrated piece, despite the very obvious pastiche in the Mozartian style. The question for me would be whether you are comfortable staying in this genre, as you obviously do it very well, or if you have future plans to use mastering this style as a launching pad to create works that reflect more originality and personal flavor. I don't think it is wrong to go in either direction, but the latter could produce some fantastic results, as you clearly have an understanding of the theory and everything involved in the inner workings of what makes music from this time period effective. That is one aspect of producing pastiche music that I find practical, as it allows composers to study and practice different styles and techniques from the past. All said and done, I find this delightful and skillful, and while to me, it may be just as enjoyable as a Mozart concerto (if performed and recorded by live players), others might prefer music that is more original and innovative, and that is the challenge in producing music like this. Either way the wind blows, it is solid work and an achievement. Looking forward to hearing the rest.

[Raymond Jacob]

I agree with comments that this is well written. I think that the ending is fine in the context that two or more movements are to follow, theoretically, and that something bigger and more dramatic can be presented in the finale movement to end the work. I enjoyed listening to it, but I wanted a more robust cadenza. Thank you for sharing this. -Ray

[HS Teoh]

How much effort did you put into syncing the real orchestra video clips to the music? It looked pretty convincing at first glance, until I realized that the players were playing something else. :-D

As far as the music is concerned, it was pleasant to listen to, but to my jaded ears it sounded "just like another generic Mozart" -- it was nice music but nothing in particular stood out to me. I confess my musical tastes are more inclined to Beethovenian drama, so Mozart-style music doesn't engage me as much. Nevertheless, good job writing in a specific idiom and specific form -- it looks easy but in practice isn't as easy as it looks if you want the result to be sincere and convincing. So congrats on that!

[Dan Titchener]

It look a bit of learning in my video editor, quite pleased with how it looks, but I admit it's a gimmick 🤣. Thanks for the feedback