I think I've written here that I've been "porting" all of my scores over to Dorico from Sibelius as I intend to cancel my Sibelius Ultimate subscription next year when it comes up for renewal in February. I also purchased a copy of the Vienna Symphonic Library's Studio Solo Strings sample library and recently posted my 1st (and so far only complete) String Quartet here on this forum, rendered using VSL. Since then I've also "ported" an incomplete work for string quartet from 2020: a theme that incorporates one of Gerd Prengel's Beethoven finds, an 8-bar sketch from 1825, plus a single variation, both in a style that attempts to capture at least the spirit of late Beethoven. It was originally going to be a series of variations, but I've since lost all interest in finishing it. The rendering was made with the Vienna Ensemble Service running under Dorico 6.
Beethoven theme and variation (Audio file - 3:54)
Beethoven theme and variation (score)
I also wanted to share what I'm pretty certain is the final version of my Sinfonia Solenne, posted umpteen times here before in various states of completion, and with at least three different endings. The ending presented here has endured for over 6 months and is, I think, not going to change. After orchestrating what was originally a piece for string orchestra alone, I realised that the mood and colouring were too dark for the original doggedly triumphant ending to work, in addition to the fact that it sounded more bombastic to my ears than triumphant or even defiant. So instead of shaking a defiant fist at the state of today's world, the orchestral Sinfonia achieves a kind of resigned wisdom, tinged with a sense of tragedy. Since I last posted the work here, I added: a pair of snarling muted trumpets to make the point of the Coda's climax less ambiguous; and some 8th note (quaver) activity to the counterpoint in the contemplative middle section of Fuga III (3rd flow), that includes a piquant cross relation between the voices that I quite like. Other than that, there is nothing new here and I'm just including it for closure. The score is likely to contain collisions and other errors, and also shows ALL instruments regardless of whether they are active on a particular page, because like Sibelius, Dorico also has bugs in its "Hide empty staves" routine that, in this score, cause it to become unreadable in places.
The work is really in one movement, but I've split it into three "flows" (using Dorico's terminology) to make listening to it less daunting, as the work lasts nearly 30 minutes in all. The renderings were made with various versions of NotePerformer running under Dorico 5 and 6.
Sinfonia Solenne in C Minor (Flow 1 - 6:32)
Sinfonia Solenne in C Minor (Flow 2 - 7:05)
Sinfonia Solenne in C Minor (Flow 3 - 14:22)
Sinfonia Solenne in C Minor (score)
Neither of these works is in anything like a contemporary idiom. Both were written early in the pandemic, when I was alarmed by the pervasive dissolution of confidence in science and formerly trusted information sources, to the point where millions of people rejected reality and started to rely on fringe sources spreading lies and misinformation. These works were a conscious effort to write music that would have been mainstream during the "Age of Reason" - though the Sinfonia has some dissonances that obviously come from more modern influences. I hope there is something here that will speak to at least some folks on this forum.
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