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Hey @Quinn St. Mark, For me there're many things you can do for a theme and variation. Simpler approach like the one in the Twinkle Twinkle little star Variation you can change the accompaniment and add some decorative notes in your melody. You can analyze the interesting motive, both melodic and rhythmic in your theme and use them in subsequent variations. You can analyze the harmonic progression of the theme and progress with complexity in subsequent vatiations. You can add counterpoint to the original theme. Changing keys can be effective as well, for example Beethoven's Variation in F major. Make sure to check out @PeterthePapercomPoser's variation pieces here as they are great. Henry

G'day fellas, Recently, I've been keen to have a crack at a "Theme & Variations", whether on an original or an existing theme. May I ask what advice has helped you in the process? Cheers! Quinn St. Mark

Here is my minuet and trio in C major. A bit more baroquesque than my usual offerings, except for the speed. When Mozart was 14, and in Italy I believe, he wrote about quick minuets which a bit more livelier than the stately dance he was used to.

Hello reader, This is my first real attempt at a large orchestral work. I took a long hiatus from composing as I stopped loving it for a while. However, I am back and continuously working on new pieces again. But let's talk about the piece. Firstly, this is not a full version. This is where I'm leaving it off until I have returned from my summer and back to uni. However, I am immensely proud of this work thus far and would like to share it with you. I am excited to hear any criticisms you might have. This piece is an attempt to tell a story about having happiness in your life but the uncertainty of being able to hold onto that happiness because it causes you to lose your happiness. To show this idea, I have two main ideas to explore. The first theme is the happiness theme, which first appears at m. 58. It is thoroughly disguised by the sections before and after making it seem less important, which is a weakness that I wasn't sure I wanted to solve. This theme reappears at measure 232 again for the loud arrival points. The second theme, which is much more obvious, is the theme at m.116. This is the desperation theme, the desire to receive happiness. This constantly reoccurs after its first arrival, notably in 214. and 298. Many more themes repeat and overlap, usually concluding at a major resolution. One thing as I work on this in the future is smoothing out some transitions, but my work is done on this for a while until I have the time.

Yup it's an unknown territory for me too! Thx so much Setthavat! Thx for your BIG compliment! Hopefully the 2nd movement will be even better! Henry

Thank you as always for the reply, Henry. Once again, summer school has impeded my attempt to produce a quick response. Muzak is a genre outside my comfort zone as well, but I am really hoping to expand my grasp on multimedia music(especially if I am to write for the screen). I am thinking about putting in different drumsets to get a more soothing sound. I love the suggestions on the instrumentation(though i think the vibraphone might be a tad dull). Commercial music is tricky business when you think about it; definitely not your typical "sit, down and listen" classical etiquette. Also, your sextet in G-flat is a very well-conceived work, congratulations on it and thank you for enriching the world with new cultural soundscapes.

There are some nice, effective moments here! I really like the section beginning at m. 92, for instance. I think that the sound font or VST you're using isn't doing you any favors, and there were some jarring moments as a result, like the forte at m. 20, which, alas, sounds rather artificial, like somebody just bumped the volume up suddenly. There are some moments that sounded a little harmonically awkward to me, but I wonder if real performers approaching the music with the stylistic sensitivity it deserves would make those sound better (for instance, voice leading in mm. 84-85, where we have an E-F# minor second following an F natural, which sounded weird to me). I'm also wondering about mm. 6-7 and mm. 12-13, where you write a harmonic but it sounds like the playback is just playing it as an ordinary double stop. Overall, though, I enjoyed the impressionistic atmosphere of the piece and the shifting between modes. Good job!

I love it! Its very expressive and romantic. It is truly a bouquet of flowers! The difference in dynamics between the loudest and the softest seemed quite extreme though. Not your score, the midi rendition, maybe its a problem at my end. I had to adjust the volume on my phone a couple of times. I'm not sure about the final few bars, the repeated high chord for 4 bars was a bit like a stuck record, maybe a descending octave in the left hand would give it more movement or give the left hand a two bar sequence that's repeated twice to make the 4 bars. Perhaps that was the point though, to keep the suspense hanging in the air! Either way it's great and it would be breath-taking played on a grand piano. I listened three times in a row, it's one of my favourite pieces I've heard on the forum. It's beautiful and expressive and my mind was filled with pictures of dance, lipstick and champagne. Darren

G'day @PeterthePapercomPoser, If I had to give you just one answer, Chopin's Scherzo Op. 20 No. 1 in B minor is one of my favourite pieces of music, period. I love the dark atmosphere that sets it apart from most other scherzos. Aside from that, I can never get enough of the coda! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOessAXp9bw&t=529s&ab_channel=gullivior Other honourable mentions include (no particular ranking here; just in alphabetical order based on the name of the composer): Alkan – Scherzo Focoso, Op. 34 Glazunov – Symphony Op. 5, No. 1 in E Major, II. (Allegro) Mendelssohn – Piano Trio Op. 66, No. 2 in C minor, III. (Molto allegro quasi presto) Moszkowski – Piano Concerto Op. 3, No. 1 in B minor, III. (Molto vivace) Raff – Piano Quartet Op. 202, No. 2 in C minor, II. (Allegro) Scharwenka – Piano Concerto Op. 32, No. 1 in B-flat minor, II. (Allegro assai) Tchaikovsky – Symphony Op. 74, No. 6 in B minor, III. (Allegro molto vivace) Tchaikovsky – Souvenir de Florence Op. 70, III. (Allegretto moderato)

Hey OliverComposer, its awesome.. love the vibe of the song...