I thought I'd just draw attention to my latest symphony as it's generally been well received to date in case there's anyone still here who reads this. No. 18 is among my longest but on the other hand is rather a departure from the somewhat post-romantic idiom of most of the more recent ones. Here my starting point was Bruckner's 6th symphony which is one of my absolute favourites and I wanted to try and capture something of the tunefulness but also slightly quirky and anarchic nature of what used to be the least performed of Bruckner's mature symphonies, though it seems to have had a revival of late. Indeed I pretty well quote him directly in the finale.
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I've listened to this work several times now and think it is one of David's most immediately attractive and appealing works, and well worth the investment in time. There are big Romantic gestures and tunes in every one of the four movements, but it is by no means a throwback to a 19th century style, and has many modern elements, including polyrhythms and harmonic progressions and transitions that are pretty far from Bruckner and are perhaps more reminiscent of Havergal Brian. Also quasi-Brianic are the frequent changes of texture and instrumentation, where the composer juxtaposes very dissimilar musical contexts against each other without any kind of bridge passage - although Bruckner also does this, including in his 6th, for dramatic effect. The scoring shows a lot of skill as well for its transparency. An excellent work, imho.
many thanks for your kind words Liz, which are especially meaningful as you have a strong knowledge of the relevant repertoire and it makes me think I must give Harvegal Brian another go as I didn't make so much headway the first time round (a good friend at university was President of the Harvegal Brian society which tried to promote some of the lesser known British tonal composers). The juxtaposition of dissimilar music elements against each other is indeed probably most influenced by Bruckner, though for the harmonic progressions, I am entirely to blame.
A thoroughly expressive, well-crafted contemporary work.
mvmt 1) Skillful application of rapidly changing moods without ever breaking the narrative thread. Optimum use of different timbres available which I enjoyed. Nothing was left out. Infinitely colourful with the sheer number of different styles present. Less the taste journey of a fine wine, more Willy Wonka's entire 5-course meal in a single piece of chewing gum. I heard influences of too many composers to name from cheeky and graceful motifs which could have come from the mid-classical era, to unapologetic mid-20th century harshnesses. The playful energy of Mozart, the despairing depth of Wagner, Stravinskian neoclassicism and everything in between. Despite this, the one piece I couldn't get out of my head in drawing parallels is Beethoven's Grosse Fuge in the mastery you display of tying relentless energy with a consistent and cohesive arc.
mvmt 2) In contrast to the vivid fireworks display of the first movement, this plays on the listener's sensitivities, and takes us into a much more 'human' space without ever falling into cliches, which is impressive. The tonality is appropriate and actually very unique. Reminiscent of an Aria or Romance, the different moods present feel more deliberate and almost literal in their emotional illustrations here. In contrast to the first movement, I can say "this section sounds yearning", or "defensive" or "optimistic". This was personally my favourite movement
The final two movements unite these two aspects of your style, but in this balance, manage to incorporate more drama and you go bolder with the 'peaks'. The chromaticism of the ending had me on the edge of my seat until the unexpected final cadence which had me sitting in silence for a few moments to digest what had just happened.
Unfortunately, I have no criticisms of this work. I feel there was a lot of deliberate intention throughout, and it certainly made a statement as an entire body of work.
good to hear from you again on the forum, Ollie and I'm very grateful for your kind and detailed analysis -- particularly the Willy Wonka comparison which was rather amusing. I suspect I would replace the despairing depth of Wagner with Bruckner -- I'm not in general a Wagner fan and Bruckner was of course especially in his earlier works quite influenced by him. And I'm afraid I couldn't get anywhere near the technical level of the Grosse Fugue though perhaps I see what you're getting at.
I'm quite sure I could find things to criticise in my own work -- having said that, I think this was designed to be a relatively traditional symphony where I did try to get everything to fit together in a largely classic/romantic spirit. In other symphonies I have tried to be a bit more "modern" and have perhaps overreached myself at times.
Anyway, looking forward to hearing what you come up with next. Perhaps another symphony?
Being a Brucknerian, I enjoyed listening to that. It's very good, and has some very Bruckner-sounding sections. Overall, the first movement sounds as a whole ... oddly ... Mahlerian. It is probably the way you put it together. I think I noticed some Bruckner quotes embellished in the accompaniment. I was able to listen to it completely twice, but I kept getting interrupted, and I wasn't following a score. I think the first movement was the strongest. It is still a pretty romantic idiom. There were a couple of things that stuck out to me, namely the endings of the movements which seemed a little abrupt ... all of them ... some to the point that they felt like they ended on the wrong chord. I kept being suprised that the music stopped. A live performance might iron that out. It could also be that I'm trying to work while I'm listening. I have a big job on. (Parts for a Proms commission - yes, it seems late, doesn't it!)
thanks for listening, Stephen. It's interesting that you find the endings abrupt as this was exactly Liz's initial reaction as well. And indeed I slightly changed one or two of them but now I'm happy enough -- they're meant to leave things a bit in the air and of course ending on the "wrong" chord is deliberate as are any number of things which might surprise if you're looking for 19th century harmonies. I agree that the first movement is the best which is unusual for me as my first movements are often the weakest -- that probably my main achievement in this work in fact.