Good evening everyone,
I am excited to present a new piece I have been working on: "Sinfonietta No. 2 for Large Orchestra". I have been working on this piece since last December (with a few interruptions due to the pandemic and life in general) and just added the finishing touches this last week. I chose what you might call an "extended" sonata form, with a longer introduction, exposition of two themes, development, recapitulation, and resolution/coda. I am interested in any and all constructive feedback. Since I just completed this piece, I'm very interested and open to ideas on how it could be improved.
Like my last work, it is a little long clocking in around 20 minutes, so I broke it up into "chunks" if you want to listen a little bit at a time:
(0:00 - 4:12) Introduction
(0:00 - 1:33) A piercing opening that leads into a stormy "Infernal" theme
(1:33 - 3:48) An ominous theme that leads into a passionate proclamation
(3:48 - 4:12) - Brief return of the opening theme
(4:12 - 5:48) Exposition of Theme A, a thundering overflow of aggression
(5:48 - 6:32) Brief Transition from Theme A to Theme B
(6:32 - 8:19) Exposition of Theme B, a wandering chromatic theme underscored by a heavy ostinato
(8:19 - 14:03) Development, referencing and expanding the themes above, while deriving a few new ideas from the themes as well
(14:03 - 15:35) - Recap of Theme A, transposed
(15:35 - 16:00) - Brief Transition form Theme A to Theme B
(16:00 - 17:45) - Recap of Theme B, transposed
(17:45 - 20:18) - Resolution/Coda, a somewhat impatient, but ultimately triumphant finale
As you listen, there are a few things I would like to hear your opinions on:
What effect does the music have on you? Does in conjure up an image? Or an emotional feeling? Does it tell you a story? This can be the piece as a whole, or a specific part or parts.
What was your favorite part? What was your least favorite part?
Do you have any comments or critiques on technique, e.g. harmony, melody writing, counterpoint, orchestration, voice-leading, etc.?
How do you feel about the overall form? Is it effective?
Do any of the parts seem impractical to you? I tried to challenge myself with this piece and as a result I wonder if I pushed the expectations of some of the instruments too far. For example, I included "optional" Eb and D clarinet parts for some of the higher clarinet parts, but I'm not sure if it was necessary. I'm also not sure if some of the string technique in Theme A and the "Infernal" section is practical or not. Do any clarinet players or string players have any insight?
Do you have any comments of the quality of the performance in the audio file? I really want this to be a decent representation of how the piece would sound if it were performed live, since it is unlikely it ever will be. For example "I would have liked xxx instrument to be louder/softer here" or "The xxx instrument technique sounds sloppy here and could use some cleaning up" or "The balance in the xxx section was all out of proportion"
I have included a score and welcome any constructive feedback on its presentation. And if you're like me it's a lot more fun to follow along with the score.
Do you think "Sinfonietta" is a appropriate designation, or would you call it something else? If you could name this piece, what would you name it?
Thanks for listening and I hope you enjoy! As always, if you liked something I did and want me to explain how I did it I am happy to do so. Or if you just want to tell me it's awful that's fine too.
gmm