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Hey all Here's a simple thing I cooked up, not sure what to do with it. My first reaction is to have what I'm showing be the end little solo, and proceeding that I would have a more song oriented structure. I'm thinking like the studio version of Little Wing by Hendrix or like Freebird by Skynyrd. Both have a song format with a solo after. I'm shooting for under 4 minutes, any thoughts?

I like this idea of a more "absolute" music theme. Maybe restrict the overall form of the piece (sonata, rondo, etc.). Another idea is to have an orchestration challenge. Start with a piano reduction or something that's in only a few staves, and have the competition be to expand to a larger ensemble. The instrumentation could be either defined, or up to the contestants.

Thanks for your guy's help on this.

Hey everyone, this is a piece I composed a few years ago but thought I would post. I don't have much experience with writing for an orchestra/large ensemble and would appreciate some feedback/tips on it. Thanks!

I like the main lydian theme you have accompanied by the harp arpeggios - it's a great approach. I think sometimes your use of piano reminds me more of video-game music than anything. Not that that's a bad thing. I myself am quite influenced by VGM in many of my compositions. Usually in orchestral repertoire the string section is used more liberally - of course that doesn't mean that the way you wrote this piece is wrong - just different. You could have used various different instruments to give variation to your main theme and have the accompanying arpeggios be played by strings for example. Just an idea. Nice job though!

Hi, thanks for writing a very detailed critique! I'll bear in mind what you said and work on uploading a score as well

@Aled Edwards First of all- it would help us help you if you attached a music sheet as well. I see no need for the piano to double the strings, it feels rather empty especially due to the fact the piano's sound fades away with time. I like the part starting around two minutes in, but this motive seems to fade away real quickly. Yey! Dorian! Melody-wise, I just don't have any sense of continuity but that might be because I don't have the notes to look at. Also, I feel that you should have used more of the bass instruments (bsn, vlc, cbs...), because it feels as if "we don't have a floor" if you see what I mean. In general I liked some of the parts but because of the drastic changes in texture and instrumentation it feel more as if you have a few separate chunks on after the other, as if it was some sort of A B C B A etc etc, which is something I'm not sure you should have, depending on your intentions with the piece. For example, if it were to be a video game's (looping) soundtrack, although you could have smoothen some of the transitions, I'd get the need for a few different textures. But If it's a standalone piece, you might want to reduce the amount of ideas, maybe split it in a half then use the other half for a different piece. I had this problem at the beginning of my composition years- having my pieces built of connected bricks instead of having them being a wall, if you see what I mean. You don't have to, of course, but I thought you might want to have that in mind.

I would check out some of the info about John Williams, I remember he would talk about using a stopwatch as he watched the music-less scenes he was given to figure out tempo. Yeah you can promote your music, but also check with aspiring filmmakers, they need music for cheap!

Movie score, but I don't know how to do like scenes in a movie yet where the orchestra reacts to what's happening. I'm just hoping to be discovered by someone who can give me a chance at this. Maybe I should be more active in how I promote my music, send it to studios or something. Thank you my friend!

You have a lot of talent! Well done, I love the additions you've made, you employ lots of color with the orchestra. I'm curious what your goal is with this piece. Is it part of a suite or stand alone? Movie score scene? Even if it was to just experiment with your hand at an orchestral piece, I'm a fan of your music. Awesome!

Thanks! I try to keep things diverse, although repetition is seeming better and better to me the deeper I get into composing. I'm currently expanding the celesta section!

Now this sounds like you're really catching onto some solid film music technique! I like how you don't ever repeat a section of music exactly the same way. The recap you have at 2:27 sounds fresh but related enough to the original theme to hook the listener with some familiarity and also some novelty. Then you manage to throw in some really cool variations of the main theme at 3:03 and 3:34. The little celesta solo at the end sounds magical - almost like something straight out of Harry Potter! LoL Nice job!

holy $hit

@Left Unexplained Yes, many have told me that I have a good sense in rhythm. Thanks for that feedback. I will surely see what is a B-Section and how to incorporate that into my music. :) I am also very fond of Berklee school of music, I hope the books aren't really complex to read, but I will surely give it a try. Thanks

Thanks - I don't know if I can imagine one of these dances in a larger ensemble than this. Maybe only by adding period instruments like the harpsichord which I don't want to do LoL.

Very pleasant to listen to, the orchestration and phrasing are really good.

One of the themes could be to write something about an ancient culture such as the Aztecs, the Mayans, or the Egyptians (although I know that last one is done a lot).

Hi everyone This is an impressionist influenced piece I composed 3 years ago or so and I'd be interested to know what you think! Cheers