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Thanks to all 12 participants who submitted music to the competition - the recipients of the "Landscapes - Soundscapes - Participant" Award! Padovana et Gagliarda “Detta la Lombarda” by @L.S Barros Amidst the Clouds & Flowers by @InstrumentalistElle Sacrificed to the Wilderness by @Fruit hunter Morning On Whidbey Island by @BipolarComposer Spring Submission “Rainy Weather” by @therealAJGS Chinese Fugue by @TristanTheTristan Sunset Suite in C minor by @Musicman_3254 City Rail and Nightingale by @Wieland Handke Alishan (for Flute Quintet) by @HoYin Cheung "Warmth" by @UncleRed99 The Voyage of a Lone Ship by @ferrum.wav Lamentare Ciobanului - “The Shepherd’s Lament” by @ComposaBoi The members have voted! --==<< Decisive Fanfare! >>==-- And the winners are: For winning the "Rustic Mood" Award with 9 votes - Padovana et Gagliarda "Detta la Lombarda" by @L.S Barros will receive the following badge: For winning the "Nature's Garden" Award with 10 votes - Amidst the Clouds & Flowers by @InstrumentalistElle will receive the following badge: For winning the "Peace of Nature" Award with 6 votes - Morning On Whidbey Island by @BipolarComposer will receive the following badge: For winning the "Nature and Civilization" Award with 9 votes - City Rail and Nightingale by @Wieland Handke will receive the following badge: For winning the "Forest Echoes" Award with 5 votes - Alishan (for Flute Quintet) by @HoYin Cheung will receive the following badge: For winning the "Home and Hearth" Award with 9 votes - “Warmth” by @UncleRed99 will receive the following badge: For winning the "Pastorale" Award with 8 votes - Lamentare Ciobanului - “The Shepherd’s Lament” by @ComposaBoi will receive the following badge: For winning 3rd Place overall with 8 points - City Rail and Nightingale by @Wieland Handke will receive the following trophy: For winning 2nd Place overall with 9 points - we have a tie! Padovana et Gagliarda "Detta la Lombarda" by @L.S Barros and Amidst the Clouds & Flowers by @InstrumentalistElle will receive the following trophy: For winning 1st Place overall with 16 points - The Voyage of a Lone Ship by @ferrum.wav will receive the following trophy: Congratulations to all the winners! We will now move your pieces to the "Competition Hall of Fame" sub-forum! And thanks to all the following participants who also reviewed all the entries! The contest would not have been as much fun and as instructional as it was without you! The following members will receive the "Heavyweight Reviewer" badge for reviewing 100% of the entries (12) submitted to the competition! @Luis Hernández, @Kvothe, @Henry Ng Tsz Kiu, @chopin, @Wieland Handke, @ComposaBoi, @ferrum.wav, @PeterthePapercomPoser, and @Tónskáld And the following members will receive the "Welterweight Reviewer" badge for reviewing 66% of the entries (8) submitted to the competition! And the following members will receive the "Featherweight Reviewer" badge for reviewing 33% of the entries (4) submitted to the competition! @TristanTheTristan, @HoYin Cheung, @Fruit hunter, and @UncleRed99 Thank you to all 13 Ardent Reviewers who reviewed the contest entries! This is perhaps the first time that the number of reviewers exceeded the number of contestants! Great turnout people! And thanks for me @PeterthePapercomPoser for organizing and managing all the competition polls, announcements, submission thread, badges, results, satisfaction survey and advertising outreach! I will receive the "Community Organizer" badge! To take the Landscapes - Soundscapes Satisfaction Survey go here: To listen to all the entries go to the submission thread: To check out all the popular voting polls go here: And for the competition announcement go here:

Please fill out the survey to help us organize better competitions in the future! The survey is anonymous so we won't be able to see who voted for what. The poll closes on 6/16/2026. Thanks for voicing your opinion!

Here's my analysis of the three aspects you requested (harmony, orchestration, and interpretation). I've organized this post accordingly. Harmony Strengths: You use layered tones very well, especially in the strings, bassoon/contrabassoon, and brass. For example, the opening sul pont immediately creates a tense atmosphere that really suits your subject. Key Improvement Areas: There is too much harmonic stasis. We spend too much time hovering in dominant or tonic pedal harmonies without much meaningful movement beneath. Yes, these pedal harmonies go a long way to create atmosphere, but they also delay any sense of harmonic identity or direction. Even when the Allegro arrives, the harmonic palette doesn't change substantially, the texture just gets busier and louder. We are moved rhythmically but not harmonically. Suggestions: Consider using long pedal sections more strategically, with chromatic shifts in the held bass tones. These can create a lot of drama without adding rhythmic complexity. You might also consider employing modal harmonies, like Dorian or Phrygian, to evoke Central Asian/Siberian folk music traditions in a way your current diatonic approach cannot. Orchestration Strengths: Percussion! You use this section very creatively and imaginatively, and the intricate instructions and directions signal real knowledge of percussion techniques. The bowed vibraphone and screaming gong are great examples of thinking outside the box to achieve your desired effect. Key Improvement Areas: The greatest issue facing this piece is balance and crowding of registers. For example, in full orchestra passages, nearly every instrument is playing forte (or louder), and most are in similar registers simultaneously. In an actual performance, this will create a wall of undifferentiated sound rather than the textured climax you're looking for. Moreover, most of the instrument families tend to do the same thing together throughout the piece. The brass, for example, play similar rhythmic figures at the same time in your climactic sections. Same with the strings; there's a lot of doubling with the other string members. Suggestions: Stagger instruments' entries, especially with the brass, to improve timbral clarity. For the woodwinds, try not to write at the high end of their registers during climactic passages (except maybe the flute and piccolo - oboe and clarinet will become fatigued much more quickly), as they'll have to play extremely loudly to be heard. The violas are particularly underused in this piece, although all the strings sort of play the same thing most of the time. See what you can do to give each member its own line. Interpretation/Coherence Strengths: You employ strong structural ideas to frame this myth. Section I (Adagio minaccioso) is environmental and mythic. Section II (Allegro) is growling and rhythmic. Section III (Andante sonoro e vellutato) is the emotional heart of the piece. Sections IV-V (Moderato minaccioso) return us to a more aggressive character. Ending with an abrupt silence is good instinct! Key Improvement Areas: The Allegro goes on for too long, with the same rhythmic textures enduring for about 50 measures. On the other hand, the Andante should be longer. The lyrical woodwind-writing here is especially intimate, which suits the first-person encounter. If this is indeed the point of human contact, it deserves more development! Finally, the piece's emotional trajectory is loud --> quieter/lyrical --> loud again --> louder. This means the piece ends on its most intense moment... climactically dynamic, but it may obscure the mythological/encounter narrative you're going for. Suggestions: Consider giving the Allegro section an internal arc to give it more character (maybe the creature stops and listens, or there's an external threat that suddenly appears). Also, if the first-person encounter is meant to be the core of the story, consider whether that last section is a return to the environmental myth-telling perspective or if it's a different kind of confrontation. All in all, this is an ambitious work with a strong programmatic concept and some real moments of orchestral imagination (especially the percussion)! Thanks for sharing with us. Best, Jordan

Hi, Kyle. Please see my evaluation of your submission below. Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste Overall 9 7 9 7 8 9 9 9 8.4 Melodies/Themes/Motives: Your sense of melody and themes is exquisite! I found this to be simple and unobtrusive in all the best ways. I especially enjoyed how you used the mere addition of instruments to build on the sound, gradually and to great effect, as your themes wove around each other. Simply beautiful. Harmony/Chords/Textures: Similarly, the harmony was simple but effective. There was enough counterpoint and differing harmonic motion to keep it interesting - and to tell the "story" you were trying to convey. The single issue I took was at m. 57 when we enter what appeared to be an authentic cadence (an A) only to be jerked into a C major, which did not hit my ears the right way (no matter how many times I listened to it). Form/Development/Structure/Time: The piece had a wonderful flow to it, easily ebbing into sweeping thematic passages where the melody/theme was passed from instrument to instrument. The themes were repeated throughout, but with enough variation that it was (to me) the perfect blend of recognizable and unrecognizable. And the pacing... spot on! Originality/Creativity: This wasn't the most original thing I've ever heard, but it was adequately different that I could likely distinguish it from other ambient soundtracks. Score Presentation: The score was above average, I'd say. I think there was overuse of some articulations - particularly the marcato - when the instrument's natural sound would likely suffice. I also felt the score was too crowded in many places. Instrumentation/Orchestration/Playability: There were no issues with playability noted. The writing seemed mostly idiomatic, with some attention given to each instrument. Execution of Given Challenge: This was very programmatic music and the identified landscape was, to me, easily felt in the music. Taste: The music was well-constructed and flowed beautifully. It was, perhaps, too homophonic for my usual tastes, but it was good music, nonetheless. Very nice job! Thanks for submitting, and happy composing! Jordan

Cool piece! I love how your atonal technique makes these "glassy" sounding chords, thin and angular, and the juxtaposition with a more traditional tonal sound is neat. I really think you could absolutely take this idea farther. For example, you have the sections completely separated -- I wonder what would happen if the atonal sections had moments of consonance, and/or vice versa? This atonality is quite gentle and agreeable, and consequently, I think it would be relatively easy to mix the two. Thank you for sharing!

I'm just a random passerby, but I just wanted to say I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this! It's refreshing to hear a work that looks so complicated on paper, sound so simple and easily understood. And to be clear, that's a sign of masterful compositional skills. Honestly, inspiring, and this gives me a lot to think about. Thank you for sharing!

its kinda rare for me to wake up and immediately try to respond to a comment first thing in the morning, but here we are i disagree. i'd argue the empty spaces are there to let the music breathe, and i have considered of keeping the "movement" going in one way or the other, either by the piano playing scales, rapid lines, the syncopated triplets, arpeggiando on the strings, timpani rhythms, etc. also, i dont think every empty space has to be filled with motivic movement. does every piece has to have a melody "naked"? and i pretty sure have varied the harmony and texture. the first introduction to the full theme its literally just pizz. string and high register piano playing 6th broken up (which adds movement, by the way), the repeat of which (b.194) just removes the piano entirely, the first entrance of the second theme is played by cello only, with piano and pizz violin to accentuate the syncopated rhythm, the measures before that is another thinning of textures after a loud section, etc etc. i mean, i like it, so...oh well lol yeah, the themes are long and therefore had to be repeated. however, if i cut those repetitions the themes wouldnt be prominent. hell i did in fact cut the first theme in the repetition. most of the systems include 2-4 bars, with the exception of a few bars where there are few notes to play. i do not think crowding is an issue here. response: added references: and probably more. i couldnt find anything outside facebook discussions to be honest. HOWEVER, most of the chamber pieces including a piano that i've score read have the non-piano instruments be in smaller staves. response: also note, i'd rather have a seemingly impossible part and have to revise them after some feedbacks than not using the instruments to its fullest potential. part of why i fell in love with classical music is that you can get SO MUCH out of one singular instrument. the fact that composers have exploited many ways out of an instrument to serve their vision is so fascinating to me. maybe its innocent for me to think that way. of course, you have to consider the performer and the rehearsal, but, im gonna be real, i dont think this piece is ever gonna be performed. AND, if it was, or if i were to compose a piece that WILL be performed, then yes, i'll absolutely not go overboard and stuff, strip down the techniques, and be more lenient with them. this DOES NOT mean i do not think of idiomatic writing (refer to the my quoted response). also 6 bars of left hand open strings pizzicato played near the edge of the fingerboard is impossible? but, as all art are, it comes down to taste. so, fair enough thanks for the comments!!!

Hi, Jonathon. Please see my evaluation of your submission below. Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste Overall 7 6 7 7 7 8 9 7 7.3 Melodies/Themes/Motives: I noted a couple of melodies/themes in this piece that recurred in varying voices and keys - and you even altered the note lengths to improve the variability. I can tell you've improved a lot in this area since a few years ago (when I was last active on the site)! There were some issues with voice leading, though, where the melody became overshadowed by supporting voices. Harmony/Chords/Textures: You had some good ideas here and I could tell what you were trying to do, but I think that, unfortunately, it fell flat in some places. I liked that the piece didn't stay in one key but instead wandered around into others. I especially loved the polychords (for example, in m. 67) that resolved to the tonic. However, the harmonic motion otherwise felt a bit stale, with too much parallel movement, and many of the tonal centers shifted without effective cadences. Form/Development/Structure/Time: The piece was well-structured and had good development. The emergence of the various themes was handled well, I thought, and they changed voices and timbres throughout. I did feel that the piece suffered a little from poor pacing, where the repeated themes left me wishing for something different. Originality/Creativity: I felt this was sufficiently original, though musically it was relatively tame. Score Presentation: The score was adequate. I felt like it needed a little more spacing in places, but the articulations and directions were nice and succinct. Instrumentation/Orchestration/Playability: This piece is very playable. I do question the choice of English horn (other than for its pastoral vibe, I suppose), since you wrote in the range of the oboe, but, aside from that, everything seems to be written idiomatically. Execution of Given Challenge: The piece did an excellent job capturing the quotidian joys (and worries) of being a Carpathian shepherd. Great work! Taste: Sure, the piece wasn't the best it could have been, but I nevertheless found it quite enjoyable. I'm impressed at how much you've matured as a composer in the past couple of years! Thanks for submitting, and happy composing! Jordan

Hi, HoYin. Please see my evaluation of your submission below. Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste Overall 5 6 6 7 9 6 5 5 6.2 Melodies/Themes/Motives: While there were themes and motives present throughout, the melodic writing was unconvincing and never supported by harmonic structure beneath. This made the piece seem to lack musical direction, instead sounding like a mixture of competing and unrelated themes. Harmony/Chords/Textures: There was no effective use of cadential structure that I could find, causing the piece to swing randomly from one key to the next. Harmonic motion was varied and there was counterpoint throughout, which helped give the piece some substance. The textures, I felt, were too random, with the strings and flute dropping and changing registers frequently and with abandon. Form/Development/Structure/Time: Aside from verbatim repeated themes, sometimes in different keys, the piece didn't really have any development. It seemed to be in a hurry to get somewhere from start to finish, but nothing seemed to serve a purpose. There was nothing predictable or patterned in the music, it just sort of... happened. Originality/Creativity: You've been around on this forum long enough for me to recognize your style, and this piece was no different. However, nothing in this submission stood out to me as new or exciting (it sounded a lot like other pieces of yours I've heard). Score Presentation: Very nicely done, nearly professional quality. I noted some hairpins and crescendos that lacked dynamics, as well as an overabundance of articulations, but those were mostly negligible issues. Instrumentation/Orchestration/Playability: There are too many stops in the string parts, and while they're likely playable, many of them will require rolling or arpeggiation to execute, which disrupts the flow of the quick tempo. You also have passages that swap very quickly from pizz. to arco, even some in the middle of stops (like m. 143 in the 2nd violin). These may not be impossible to perform, but they increase the difficulty of the piece (and, in my opinion, not justifiably so). Execution of Given Challenge: This didn't feel like anything in particular to me. Taste: As far as soundscapes go, this is a compelling piece. I, however, prefer more structure and stronger melodic involvement and development. Thanks for submitting, and happy composing! Jordan

Hi, Wieland. Please see my evaluation of your submission below. Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste Overall 8 7 7 9 9 6 8 6 7.5 Melodies/Themes/Motives: The melodies were purely mimetic (i.e., attempting to portray the actual sounds in music rather than an emotional interpretation or representation) and therefore did not lend themselves to good melodic writing. Nevertheless, your use of themes and motives was very strong throughout, as meticulously noted in your score. Harmony/Chords/Textures: On the one hand, you employed a couple of devices - tremolos and trills - to depict the train's acceleration and birdcalls, which was innovative. This texture, though, began to feel overused after a couple minutes into the piece. Because this piece was more onomatopoeia than programmatic music, the harmonies you used felt arbitrary. Moreover, the use of actual chords in this piece was more limited than what I thought at first listen; a great number of lines was doubled by another instrument, either in unison or at some octave above or below. All in all, I felt that the five instruments you used were "under tuned" for a piece of this caliber. Form/Development/Structure/Time: There was good structure to this piece, though, again, because the piece was onomatopoeic, it didn't truly develop as much as it simply progressed from theme to theme. The break in tempo roughly midway through was appreciated, but the piece ironically lacked any sense of motion (to me, at least); the glue holding this together were the descriptive texts in the score that very unsubtly described what each motif was meant to portray. Without the score, the piece becomes a soundscape of seemingly disjointed musical themes abruptly changing from one to the next. However... from an objective standpoint, that you are able to conceive of these things in your mind and then organize them into musical sections is quite extraordinary. Originality/Creativity: I've not heard anything similar to this, and even if I don't agree with your choice of chords and harmonies, this is a voice that is your own, and for that, you get the highest marks. Score Presentation: Meticulous and thorough. Very close to professional quality, though a little crowded and over-articulated at various places for my taste. Instrumentation/Orchestration/Playability: In my opinion, this is the piece's weakest aspect, though I do not wish to be harsh here. I strongly question the decision to use two pianos, when for the vast majority of the piece, they either A) do not play simultaneously, or B) when playing simultaneously, they do not use all four hands. Furthermore, the string parts frequently double either each other or one of the piano parts. Taken altogether, this suggests that the piece could be more succinctly written for a smaller ensemble, such as a piano trio (violin, cello, and piano). The 13/16 time signature present for most of the piece is already difficult to count out and, when coupled with the onomatopoeic nature of the themes, makes me wonder if perhaps an ametric approach would be more appropriate. Lastly, but maybe most importantly, the string parts do not add much to the piece, which is carried entirely by the movement in one (or both, at times) of the piano parts. It might have helped to give the strings some passages without the piano also playing. Execution of Given Challenge: Again, I have to award high marks here simply because of how well you put this together. There's no question as to what your music depicts! Taste: I lean strongly into the impressionist camp and, I suppose by definition, do not take much interest in mimetic music. I would normally give music like this a much lower score, but your command of tone and texture makes this considerably more enjoyable. Nice work! Thanks for submitting, and happy composing! Jordan

Hi, Musicbro456. Please see my evaluation of your submission below. Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste Overall 6 7 7 7 3 3 8 6 5.9 Melodies/Themes/Motives: Great use of themes and melody in this submission! There were, unfortunately, quite a few issues with voice leading in which the solo viola would be completely drowned out or washed out amid the surrounding chordal textures, but your themes were solid... if a bit repetitive. Harmony/Chords/Textures: There was not a lot of harmonic movement: the piece remained mostly in G minor with some C minor chords sprinkled throughout, which sapped it of most of its harmonic strength. I noted excursions to D minor and A minor, as well... perhaps a journey along the circle of fifths? I felt your use of dynamics was compelling; emotional swells followed by quiet, captivating moments. This was good work! Form/Development/Structure/Time: The piece had great "bones." You effectively worked in several motifs that reappeared when expected, and the whole thing worked to a climax at rehearsal mark IV, followed by a denouement and resolution. The music really told a story. Originality/Creativity: The fact that you chose viola as the solo instrument gives you several more points in this category (I am a violist). Jokes aside, the instrumentation and musicality was, I felt, sufficiently original. I can tell you're trying to develop your own voice. Score Presentation: The score was chaotic and, at times, nonsensical. For example, it starts out with dynamics markings "mf expression," which perhaps was intended to mean espressivo. There were modulations to key signatures that were unnecessary. The note stems were randomly in different voices rather than all the same voice. The score was also very crowded in places, with directions from one staff bleeding over into the one above or below it. For some reason, solo viola was written in the treble clef, even though the viola section was in the alto clef and had higher notes written for their part. It's conventional to split the violins into two sections - violin I and violin II - but here they remained undivided. Instrumentation/Orchestration/Playability: There were multiple serious problems noted here. The solo viola would undoubtedly become overwhelmed by the divisi strings accompanying it in well over half the passages of this piece. Furthermore, the viola section was more technically challenging than the solo viola part, which is unconventional (but not illegal). There were also multiple passages intended to be played at an octave or double octave above what was written, some of which is technically impossible, especially at the dynamics supplied. It would probably help you in the future if you dedicated some time to learning how to write for strings. Execution of Given Challenge: This was solid, programmatic music, in my opinion, and sufficiently reminiscent of the blazing glory - and eventual hushed quiet - of a sunset. Taste: I liked what you were going for! I think your writing could be helped dramatically with more attention to music theory and (in this case) string part writing. Thanks for submitting, and happy composing! Jordan

Hi, Chenfeng. Please see my evaluation of your submission below. Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste Overall 4 5 4 6 5 N/A 0 4 4.0 Melodies/Themes/Motives: No real sense of melody was present, and themes/motives were simply repeated with little to no variation. Harmony/Chords/Textures: The piece remained in A major; in fact, it was largely just one A major chord. There was a brief transition to E major but without an effective cadence, this felt contrived and a bit jarring. Harmonic movement featured an overuse of parallel motion and therefore felt stagnant. Form/Development/Structure/Time: Despite the title, this was not a fugue; there was no subject or species. There was little development noted and owing to an utter lack of cadences or breaths, the music felt monotonous to me. Originality/Creativity: This submission was, perhaps, different than most other entries; however, I didn't feel it did anything to distinguish itself from existing traditional Chinese music nor did it adequately take on the composer's voice. Score Presenation: The score was readable, but no dynamics and very few articulations were supplied. Instrumentation/Orchestration/Playability: I do not feel qualified to evaluate this criterion, as I know next to nothing about traditional Chinese instruments or how they're played. Execution of Given Challenge: Unfortunately, the submission did not meet the competition's time length criterion. But length notwithstanding, I did not feel this piece evoked the image supplied (aside from the fact than both artists performed in traditional Chinese media). Taste: I love fugues, but this piece was merely pentatonic writing that had very little color. It sadly did not pique my interest. However, I think with more dedication to voice leading and harmonic movement, you'll drastically improve your writing style! Thanks for submitting, and happy composing! Jordan

just incase i need to review my own piece for that heavyweight badge Melodies Themes Motives 0 Harmony Chords Textures 0 Form Development Structure Time 0 Originality Creativity 0 Score Presentation 0 Instrumentation Orchestration Playability 0 Execution of Given Challenge 0 Taste 0 Average Score: 0 this sucks never compose again

i'd say this piece does a good job at portraying a somber afternoon. the simple viola melody guides the piece straightforwardly while the accompaniment of the orchestra stills. the score is a bit confusing to read, i feel: random ottava lines, inverted beams of the notes.i also question the playability of some of the violins passages but overall, its not bad!! some of the contrasts work well and they're effective! good jobb Melodies Themes Motives 8 Harmony Chords Textures 3 Form Development Structure Time 5 Originality Creativity 3 Score Presentation 5 Instrumentation Orchestration Playability 4 Execution of Given Challenge 5 Taste 3 Average Score: 4.5

this piece has that anger, yknow? thatof one losing a sheep and getting angry and sad, a cycle of grief. speaking of, it kinda represents the stages of grief, with the acceptance at the end. i imagine the contrast in this piece is like this shepherd, high in the mountain and he's mad to himself, alone, with nothing but his taragot. the different sections are distinguishable and the pacing is enjoyable. the contrasts between the sections are prominent and surprised me a bit sometimes lol. the theme and instrumentation certainly helps with this. its distinctive and full of characteristics. those low C string cello notes are powerfullll, same with the english horn and the high E string violin (again, effective contrast). absolutely using the instruments at their advantage me love chromaticsm porridge. the use of dissonance is very effective!!! the piece has a wide array of the dissonance range (soft to hard dissonances) and its usage is appropriate. i highkey like this piece Melodies Themes Motives 10 Harmony Chords Textures 10 Form Development Structure Time 10 Originality Creativity 8 Score Presentation 10 Instrumentation Orchestration Playability 10 Execution of Given Challenge 10 Taste 8 Average Score: 9.5

Hello, Emilia, and welcome to the forum! I must confess; I both love and hate your piece. Post-impressionism is the style of music I personally enjoy consuming and writing, and you have done great justice to that genre with this work. However, as a violist, I feel very overlooked. That you would include the massive and unwieldy contrabass to the exclusion of the strings' darling alto voice is unforgivable. That's mostly hyperbole, of course. I am offended but I'll get over it. Now for my remarks on your hard work. First, the heartbeat pizzicato work very well, with the offbeat providing an organic rhythm that reminds me of something living and searching. Excellent voice-leading choice to put it under the violin's melodic line! I also really like that you showed genuine restraint throughout this work. There are large-scale dynamics and fantastic textural arcs here, sure, but you chose to hold back on the "crazy," and the result is a deceptively challenging piece that really showpieces what a... ahem, modified string quartet can do. Furthermore, the form and structure is very sound, with the return to the heartbeat texture being such a lovely touch. It's impressive that you captured the text's emotional essence rather than gave a programmatic rendering... but that's the mark of a true (post-) impressionist. My critiques are few and quite minor. What struck me almost immediately after listening to the work was how underused the contrabass part is. For the bulk of the piece it holds pedal tones (which is fine in moderation), but there aren't really any passages where it has an independent voice. If you're going to overlook the viola, please consider giving its replacement a more active role in its stead. ;) Also, some of the chromatic melody, like mm. 10-13 and 18-20 in the violin, is expressive, but some of the leaps feel arbitrary rather than intentional. This could be a matter of taste. If it is intended to represent something (searching, perhaps), consider using stronger support in the lower voices to provide context. Overall, I'd say this is a piece to be proud of. Your concepts are mature, the sound you've created is very much your own, and the connection to the text is genuine. Thanks for sharing (and good luck on the assessment)! Best, Jordan

Hi to all. I've now completed my orchestration of all three movements of "The Hour Glass" (originally for piano solo). This second movement was the hardest of all to orchestrate: so any tips on how to make it better would be very welcome! I found it especially difficult to create suitable harmonies for a string bed to go underneath the intricate arpeggios in the harp. Not sure I've done it very well. Also, some of the chromaticism in the harp part may be unplayable, because of the pedals? Haven't got around to adding slurs and phrasing yet, and as usual, my dynamics are designed for midi only. (N.B. Updated versions will be posted lower down the thread.) Frank Bridge - The Dew Fairy #28.mp3 Frank Bridge - The Dew Fairy #28.pdf

Thanks Kyle, I'm so glad you enjoy the piece, as I don't think it's very well known. The tuplets are crazy; but I was just reflecting what was in the original score. Bridge writes them as reduced size notes, rather like Chopin's flourishes; but this was the only way I could think to translate them into midi. One thing I'd like to fix is the tenuto accents in the harp part, as they're too strong at the moment. Will have to see if I can tweak the properties. Anyway, many thanks for listening and commenting. Alex

I must confess I'm not a fan of Bridge. I know he got more intriguing as he aged, which I find attractive. I really like this arrangement!

Not a harpist, so I couldn't speak to the playability of this piece, however, just judging off of the difficulty in the reading of this alone, I would wager to say that it would be either extremely difficult to perform, and would likely be reserved for only the best of the best harpists 😅 as far as your question regarding string harmonies, I feel that it was done very well. it blends well, and it very much so fits the description that your title suggests. Very ethereal, whimsical, magical etc... I was also gonna comment on the fact that you had a pppp for piccolo while they were playing in the high register, which would be physically impossible, but as I thought that it was likely just for the playback, your description of it affirmed that suspicion lol so I'll leave that one be. Though, I do wonder if this could be more legible if written in a different time signature? 🤔 Right this second, I haven't taken the liberty to subdivide what you have here, to suggest a specific time signature, however, I say this because the 11-lets & 15-lets, without having some sort of a split-beam, at least to me, become difficult to follow, and appear unsightly, but that's simply my own opinion on the appearance and readability of the score itself. The work itself is phenomenal! I'm simply unsure of how it would be best written to allow for the clearest interpretation while reading. Thanks for sharing, and apologies on my lack of suggestions for alternatives :/ at the time I've decided to login, my brain is just not at its peak performance, as I've just made it back home from a repair job and it's currently 12:32am my time 😅

This is a project I have slowly worked on for about a year. Thoughts/comments/criticisms welcome. Edit: I have cleaned the scores up a lot. Prelude No 1.mp3Prelude No 2.mp3Prelude No 3.mp3Prelude No 4.mp3Prelude No 5.mp3Prelude No 6.mp3Prelude No 7.mp3Prelude No 8.mp3Prelude No 9.mp3Prelude No 10.mp3 Prelude No. 1.pdf Prelude No. 2.pdf Prelude No. 3.pdf Prelude No. 4.pdf Prelude No. 5.pdf Prelude No. 6.pdf Prelude No. 7.pdf Prelude No. 8.pdf Prelude No. 9.pdf Prelude No. 10.pdf

Hello, friends. About three years ago, I penned this song cycle for a friend from El Salvador, based on poems by the beloved Salvadoran poet, Alfredo Espino. These hold a special place in my heart because they're the last music I've ever written, though they were sadly never performed. The songs and directions are completely in Spanish. Here they've been rendered by Cantamus (unfortunately sung in a Castilian accent and not the Latin American accent spoken in El Salvador) and the piano accompaniment has been [poorly] played by me. They're not the best recordings and some of the lyrics didn't render properly, but hopefully they deliver the music effectively. The cycle is chiasmic in structure (i.e., the first and last movements and the second and fourth movements mirror each other) and it tells the story of a day in El Salvador. I. Madrugada: This means early morning. The lyrics and music represent the waking of the Salvadoran countryside: farmers starting their day, roosters crowing, birds chirping. It begins mysteriously but soon "warms up," preparing us for the rest of the song cycle. II. Plombagina: The title is about a tiny flower found along the riverbanks in El Salvador; here it represents the playfulness of the river and the hopefulness of midmorning. This one is unmistakably waltzlike and lyrical. III. Tardecitas: "Little afternoons" is a piece about watching the rainfall in the heat of the day. It's lazy and less ambitious than the others in the cycle, representing the languor of a dreary, rainy day. IV. Estrella in el río: We return once more to a song about the river, this time in a more contemplative frame of mind. "Star in the river" is shimmering and reflective, capturing the tranquility of twilight as the stars begin to pinprick the sky and cast their reflections into the river below. V. Nocturno: While "Madrugada" expresses the joys of a new morning, "Nocturno" explores the angst found at the close of the day. It's by far the most restless of the cycle, employing a sort of perverted tango rhythm in mockery of the soothing sway of a nocturne. In it, you'll find themes of grief and fear and anxiety, embedded in harmonies very reminiscent of Spain/Latin America. Even if you don't understand Spanish, I hope these songs move you and perhaps inspire you. As ever, I'm happy to receive any feedback you may have. Best, Jordan Canciones de El Salvador.pdf I. Madrugada.mp3 II. Plombagina.mp3 III. Tardecitas.mp3 IV. Estrella en el río.mp3 V. Nocturno.mp3

Hello Folks, I'm glad to be showing a little bit more music for you all. Today I'm showing a piece I wrote a while ago, but never planned on showing because Musescore can't perform it. But I recently upgraded significantly to SWAM instruments. Much less lush but more controllable, this piece was the first I wanted to do because of it's intimate feeling, and use of overtones and unusual techniques.. This piece is meant to reflect my experience of grief, specifically, the kind that surfaces while I’m trying to fall asleep. On some nights, like the one that inspired this piece, sleep feels impossible. Stress, homework, expectations—they all build up, one on top of the other, and under their weight, grief begins to surface. Suddenly, my thoughts are filled with loss. It’s not painful exactly, nor is it something I want to erase. But it carries a quiet melancholy, releasing the sadness, anger, and tension I’ve accumulated over time. In a strange way, this grief becomes a kind of relief. A way to let go of everything I’ve been holding in. Still, it lingers. It loops in my mind. Eventually, I have to let it go so I can rest. I have to keep living. I can’t stay immersed in sorrow forever. So I walk along the river, letting the sounds of the water drown out my thoughts. I walk until my legs are sore, until exhaustion replaces emotion. Then I go home, lie down, and finally sleep—my grief forgotten, at least for the night. Also this piece was one of the few I actually (somewhat) planned ahead. This is what I had planned "Walk to forget Bass Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, 1 Percussion, Violin, Viola, Violoncello. This piece is intended to in some way, describe my experience of grief, specifically while trying to fall asleep. Some nights, like the night this piece is based off of, I struggle to fall asleep. Stress, homework, expectations, all pile on top of each other, and this pressure releases grief. Suddenly my mind is occupied by grief and loss. It’s not painful, or something I want to forget. But it’s melancholic, it releases the sadness, anger, and stress I’ve felt over time. This grief is actually a chance to release all my struggles. But it goes on and on. At some point, I must forget my grief again, so I may sleep. I must go on with my life, and cannot wallow in my grief. So I walk along the river, till the sounds swallow my mind. I walk until my legs are tired and that’s all I can think about. So I go home, go to bed, and have forgotten my grief, and everything that caused it, and sleep. So how do I convey this in a piece of music? I need a theme/motif for grief: I imagine something in the alto saxophone. I think introducing it with a poking/prodding motive, like a repeated note, taken from instrument to instrument. An idea that represents the stress of life, poking my brain to the edge. This I’m not sure will work with the time constraint, and I may just begin at the next part. Then a swell and complete change to the grief motive. In this context, I imagine something legato and sostenuto, non-triatic and lacking “home”. I think the alto saxophone should appear in the high register for the first time, everyone should be in a higher register than before, which might make the prodding motive earlier less effective, but this grief motive more effective. The grief motive must have a rhythmic element to it, so that it is recognizable as key centers change, and the pitches can be moved around functionally, to allow moments of tonal beauty amongst the quartel nature of the motive. There also needs to be a nature element, an ostinato to represent walking, and getting distracted by the wind, the stars, the river. The grief motive slowly becomes less and less present until it is taken over by the nature motives. Then we sleep. A meditative ending." Walk.mp3 Izaak Thoms Walk Final.pdf

Hi @Churchcantor , I split your post from @Fruit hunter 's original post: I do this because we want to follow the rules in our forum etiquette: In rule 2b it says: We have this rule because by posting your own music under other members' post, it will 1) divert the original intention when the member wants some feedback on their own music rather than your music 2) causing your music to lose chances to be reviewed since it is posted under other members' posts 3) It is impolite to do so. I know that you only want to respond to other members' posts without malice. But you also need to know that this may cause some disturbance and dismay to them since you repeatedly post your own works to other members' posts without much discussion, thus they won't have much gain from your posting of your own work as a response. It would be better for you to just create your own post for your own work and then quote it under other members' posts. You are also to be reminded that if you keep posting your own piece of music to other members' posts in the way you do this time, you may receive warning points for that. Hope you understand that we clearly don't want to issue warning points to any members. Henry

To commemorate the date designated as Bach's actual birthday under the Gregorian calendar, this time I have decided to upload the definitive revised version of another one of my previous fugues, originally in the key of E minor though still for the same ensemble. I would also like to dedicate this fugue as a birthday present to my dear friend Julia as well, whose family has been going through exceedingly difficult times for more than one year now. Since the loss of a very special loved one has taken a severe toll on us all, my sincerest hope now is that she and her family can start anew and rebuild their lives from the ashes of their grief, even when all hope for a better future seems gone forever and endless mourning seems to be the only thing left to live for. Bach himself was no stranger to painful, heart-wrenching losses. Even as he lost both parents at age 10, his first wife at 35, and in line with the astronomical infant mortality rates of his era, more than half of his 20 children during childhood, he was likely reassured that his dedication to God alone through his music would be worthy of a place in Heaven for all those he loved and whose safety he prayed for daily. This key of F-sharp minor in our currently standardized A = 440 tuning always evoked in me a far greater sense of mourning in the wake of tragedy than any other. Perhaps because of this reason I felt naturally drawn to it when thinking of those precious loved ones we may have lost along the way, the precious, cherished moments that will never again come to pass, and the longing memories broken by the sudden wound their departure left forever imprinted in our hearts. Scrolling video link (YouTube) Fugue in F-sharp minor for String Quartet.mp3 Fugue in F-sharp minor for String Quartet.pdf

It’s always a pleasure to give my opinion (I don’t think it’s quite right to say ‘judge’...) on the works of my fellow musicians. And these competitions make you listen to the pieces more carefully.

Hi @Fruit hunter ! I think the introduction does a good job of creating a mood/vibe and sets the expectation for the rest of the piece. The introduction is static in harmony but active in melody. Then you seem to develop the piece with a wide array of percussion instruments that create a cinematic portrait of "the creature". There are short motifs that recur throughout the piece in the harp and pitched percussion instruments and even woodblocks which is cool. Then, before the 4-minute mark you start a sort of simple chorale that's very affecting. This calm and tranquil lull quickly builds into a sustained intensity that is very powerful! The harp motif from the beginning returns near the latter half of the piece before a percussion frenzy and foreboding strings. The intensity rises perhaps to its highest pitch before the 10-minute mark. The hurried ending seems contrived, and I think a soft fade out could have been a more artistic choice. The piece overall seems to start in F# minor and end in B minor so I can't say that it didn't modulate or take the listener anywhere harmonically, but it seems to have done the minimum amount of adventuring through different keys that it could while sustaining the moods it was trying to convey - that's my only critique though without looking at the score. Thanks for sharing!

We start the competitions based on the members interest in one.

Hi, Marc. This was a pleasant listen. It evoked a sense of carefreeness, like watching clouds in a spring meadow. The melodic writing could use some attention. I felt like it competed with, rather than complimented, the rhythmic structure of the piece. Some of the harmonies were a bit ambiguous, too. I think the piece needs a more cadential framework so that the harmonic progression doesn't float around so much. I loved the various imitations of the main theme in the different voices! Thanks for sharing. Best, Jordan

A very beautiful piece; I like the way it has such a restrained use of colour. And the piano part is very characteristic of the style. Well done.

Hello @Tónskáld . Thank you very much for your review, which I consider to be the most thorough, honest, and balanced of them all. I think you’ve literally addressed everything there is to say about my work, pinpointing its weaknesses while also highlighting some of its strengths, and in your final assessment, you’ve acknowledged the ideas and effort I put into it. I really appreciate that, and it helps me a lot to evaluate where I stand with my work—especially with this particular piece. Usually, when composing, I focus primarily on thematic development, since my compositional genre—writing preludes and fugues, that is, the application of contrapuntal techniques—inherently requires this. But for this special competition, I took the opposite approach as otherwise, focusing first on the story and the “soundscapes” to be depicted, with the result that the thematic and harmonic development is indeed somewhat “thin” and “simple.” And interestingly, I was the only participant who interpreted (or misunderstood?) the challenge in this way—translating sounds or noises from nature or civilization into music—and thank you, now I know the technical term for this approach: “onomatopoeia.” 😀 Yes, that’s right. Even though this is a new composition for the competition, I just started to compose the piece for piano solo (since it is easier to it sketch out first, and on the other hand I wanted to include it in my collection of preludes and fugues) and in a second step „enriched“ the piece with the further instrumentation by the strings. Perhaps, if having some more time before the submission deadline, I had elaborated the string parts a bit more to avoid the unisono with the piano, at least there is a theme or motif in the “Nightingale” B section, played by the strings (measures 35–37 by the cello and measures 44–47 by the violin), that does not appear in the initial version for solo piano. Why two pianos while not often playing simultaneously? I’m a bit scared about the playability of such long passages with (fast) tremolos by a single player. Thus the main objective for the two pianos was to give the players/hands enough rests between the tremolos. On the other hand, the two pianos produce a bit more color in the main texture which is, in fact, completely performed by the piano(s). Thanks, but maybe I went a little overboard; I just wanted to spell out the exact execution of the tremolos, glissandos, and trills.

Hi, Ferrum. Please see my evaluation of your submission below. Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste Overall 8 8 8 8 6 2 6 6 6.5 Melodies/Themes/Motives: There were a lot of nice, catchy themes and melodies in this piece, but there was also a significant amount of empty space (where there was no motivic movement). Furthermore, the melodies/themes tended to be couched in thick harmonies and textures, which served to detract from their potency (i.e., rarely, if ever, did we hear the melody "naked"). Harmony/Chords/Textures: While I applaud the effort in 250 bars of very textured music, it was simply too much. The rhythms were wild and overused, constantly competing with those of the countermelodies. The harmonies employed were adventurous and exciting - if a little too all over the place. I also felt the dynamics varied too much too often. Form/Development/Structure/Time: This piece was built around a solid form that was easy to follow. Themes were developed masterfully and with many exciting variations. However, I felt it was entirely too long; the themes could've been expressed in about half the time and nothing would've been lost in the music's general presentation. Originality/Creativity: This was a truly original piece with an eclectic array of instruments! Score Presentation: I noted multiple issues with the score. For one, the staves are not a uniform size, and there's a lot of crowding. I also think the piece suffers from over-articulation and too many dynamics. Instrumentation/Orchestration/Playability: This piece is insanely difficult to play, bordering on impossible. The string parts are rife with double, triple, or quadruple stops; left-hand pizzicatos; and rapid pizz-to-arco switches. The horn and especially timpani pose a real danger of drowning out the strings. The piano part is also very challenging. All in all, this would likely take professional musicians more than 20 hours of rehearsal to even come close to performance. Execution of Given Challenge: This did not sound like a ship voyaging under a starlit sky to me, but it did sound exciting - which is an emotion I assume folks sailing under a starlit sky might have. Taste: I liked the exciting rhythms and fast pace, but the length and excessiveness were not to my taste. Thanks for submitting, and happy composing! Jordan

even worse than my random pauses lol!

i do kinda hear the vision with the motifs, and it is recognizable. but thats kinda it ngl its a bit of (sry if its too mean lol) kinda fun to listen to though Melodies Themes Motives 3 Harmony Chords Textures 3 Form Development Structure Time 1 Originality Creativity 10 Score Presentation 1 Instrumentation Orchestration Playability 3 Execution of Given Challenge 1 Taste 3 Average Score: 3.12

Entry: Lamentare Ciobanului - “The Shepherd’s Lament” by @ComposaBoi Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 8.5 Average Score: 9.81 Review: Great job! I think your use of space in this piece really helps paint the picture of a lone shepherd in the mountains like you intended. The cello solo near the beginning of the piece followed by the English Horn solo with underlying soft pizzicato chords really sets a very tranquil and pastoral vibe. I feel like your musical voice has matured since the last time I’ve heard. There is a very beautiful use of unresolved non-harmonic tones or extended harmony in this piece. The melody very often emphasizes the 7th or 9th of the underlying harmony on a weak beat which I find very affecting. Well done! Thanks for your participation and I hope you win the “Pastorale” award that I created specifically for this piece!

Entry: The Voyage of a Lone Ship by @ferrum.wav Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste 10 10 6 10 10 7 10 10 Average Score: 9.13 Review: Your piece, despite being of very high quality and being well developed and conceived overall, highlights both kinds of disqualifications that we’ve encountered in the competition this time around. The piece is too long (although by no means am I saying you should have somehow tried to shorten it just for the sake of the competition) and uses too many total instruments. The timpani player can be expected to play up to 6 (sometimes some pieces call for 6 individual timpani drums) timpani and given that Fruit Hunters “Sacrificed to the Wilderness” was disqualified for the same reason I think the same rule should apply in your case. It’s a shame, because I was hoping to give out two more badges - a “High Seas” award for your piece and a “Nature is Wild” award for Fruit Hunter’s piece. But alas, under the current rules, the theme-ing and creation of the badges was limited to pieces that strictly qualified under the contest rules. Perhaps in future contests we can opt to allow multiple percussion instruments per player as counting as just one “polyphonic instrument”, but we didn’t think of it this time around. But I love your piece from many sides. My favorite part is perhaps the solo timpani hammering out the preview/teaser of the main theme fragment at 4:20 and 5:05. The piece overall is very melodious and easily gets stuck in my head - it’s very lucid. I’m glad you took this composition so seriously that you decided to work the piece to its natural conclusion despite it being over the time limit. I can really imagine a galleon or clipper sailing through some rough seas with this music. And the use of the timpani and horn was very idiomatic for such a context. I think your instrument choices were driven by the conception of this as being a kind of miniaturized orchestra. Great job! As much as I would have liked to vote for your piece for 1st place I can’t in good conscience do so since I had to mark you down in the Time and Instrumentation categories. Thanks for your participation and good luck in the popular voting polls!

Entry: “Warmth” by @UncleRed99 Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste 6 9 7.75 8.5 10 10 8 8.5 Average Score: 8.47 Review: A very affecting and heartfelt piece of music! Although the piece has a certain pop music vibe, very often repeating 4-bar, 4-chord structures over and over with variation and some modulations which bring a momentary sense of brightening, it does adequately portray the sense of “Home and Hearth” which is the badge/award that I created for this piece! I can imagine this kind of music used in one of those hidden object mobile games. The player is presented with a room from inside a cozy home with a fireplace burning and has to find objects strewn around and hidden in plain sight. Great job although my chief complaint is that the piece lacks melodic substance. But it’s a very good, easy listening, feel good, cozy piece perfect for the purpose you intended it for. Thanks for your participation and good luck in the popular voting polls!

Entry: City Rail and Nightingale by @Wieland Handke Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste 8 8 9 10 10 7 10 8 Average Score: 8.75 Review: Very clever to try and incorporate the natural and artificial sounds of your particular landscape into your piece through the use of sound mimesis of the Nightingale and the train. The Nightingale was perhaps the more successful of the two, giving me a more obvious musical association. I think if you wanted to depict the acceleration of the train, a more successful approach might have been to include an actual literal accelerando in your piece much like the Copenhagen Steam Railway Galop does (upon repeated listenings I did notice that you do in fact include a slight accelerando in your piece). I really enjoyed the sounds of the train as well! My favorite part was perhaps the passing of the railroad crossing in which you included an actual written out doppler effect! Very clever! I must say that my enjoyment of this piece grew the most from repeated listening in this competition. Thanks for your participation and I hope you win the “Nature and Civilization” award that I made specifically for this piece!

Entry: Sunset Suite in C minor by @Musicman_3254 Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste 8 8 7.5 8 7 5 8 7.5 Average Score: 7.38 Review: This is indeed a very solemn theme! I think you used it very effectively to paint a sunset scene. There is much longing and bittersweetness. The two big weaknesses in your piece are how it repeats the main theme over and over and that the instrumentation includes a string orchestra instead of individual string instruments. The main theme starts in the basses and keeps rising through different keys. I think it would have been effective if you kept varying the register and key of your rising motif throughout the piece instead of repeating it mostly in C minor like you have currently. You do this in the beginning of the piece but then settle down into the C minor key to the detriment (imo) of the piece. Thanks for your participation and keep composing!

Entry: Morning On Whidbey Island by @BipolarComposer Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste 8 8 8.5 9 10 10 10 9 Average Score: 9.06 Review: Very nice tone painting here! I think the picture and the music match very well. The use of space is very effective here, conveying the peace and tranquility of the scene. The music is a sort of mosaic of the photo you took. It’s literally a still landscape. As a result it’s not really trying to develop or tell a story. There is definitely a recognizable theme but it’s not developed by roaming into foreign keys - it’s mood music that intends on sustaining the vibe that it creates while staying musically interesting (as a secondary priority). For this reason, some might say that the harmony might be a little static and the development stilted. But I don’t think every piece has to have a traditional western harmonic development. Thanks for your participation and I hope you win “The Peace of Nature” award which I created specifically for this piece!

Entry: Amidst the Clouds & Flowers by @InstrumentalistElle Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste 7 8 9 10 9 10 10 9 Average Score: 9.00 Review: Wonderful piece! One has to be a very active listener to catch all the programmatic allusions that you intended to have in the piece. I feel it would have helped if you had given the listener a breakdown using timestamps of what’s intended to happen and when. Also, something that didn’t help is that the score is very difficult to follow, and also isn’t labeled with any of the intended programmatic meanings of the music. In order to really try to hear the events you intended in the music I had to just let myself listen and get my head out of the score which wasn’t helping me. It’s a very ethereal piece, much like the mountains you sought to portray. I personally heard a hint of John Williams when the garden melody first comes in at the beginning in the cello I believe. Thanks for your participation and I hope you win the “Nature’s Garden” award which I created specifically for this piece!

Entry: Padovana et Gagliarda “Detta la Lombarda” by @L.S Barros Melodies Themes Motives Harmony Chords Textures Form Development Structure Time Originality Creativity Score Presentation Instrumentation Orchestration Playability Execution of Given Challenge Taste 7 7 8.5 7 9.5 10 10 8.5 Average Score: 8.44 Review: Beautiful writing that certainly does paint a scene/landscape! And it does this despite, or maybe because of the fact that it’s a pair of dances! I can totally imagine this playing in a medieval court or at a rustic Italian tavern of some sort. It would also go really well in an RPG game in that kind of medieval location. For me the soundfonts sound quite good as I am not a connoisseur of medieval instruments so I can’t tell the difference. I think this rendition of the piece is quite sufficient for the competition and for letting us appreciate the intent of the composer. I don’t know how different it would sound if it were played by a historically accurate ensemble. I think that having two parts to the composition - one relatively slow and the other fast - is quite a good choice to provide the listener some variety. The music with its varying tempi could be used to accompany quite a few different rustic scenes. Besides a tavern I can also imagine a rustic town of Lombardy (or whatever - I don’t know if that town actually exists). Or some kind of castle in the Italian mountains and all the bustling activity at said town/castle. It is quite exciting! Perhaps because of the style of this music, I found the melodies and harmonies quite pedestrian and unsurprising. But some of the other categories more than made up for that. Thanks for your participation and I hope you win the award I created specifically for this piece - the “Rustic Mood” award!

mmmh, warmth, the thing that one can feel, the snug and fuzzy and cozy feeling deep down inside, the senses you feel as you walk through fallen yellow leaves in autumn, maybe at start of a new chapter in one's life. i can definitely say for certain that this piece invokes exactly that. this style is simple and direct. it communicates effectively with the listeners about what it wants to express. unfortunately, as with @ComposaBoi , im not into this style very much. thats why im giving you low scores in originality and taste (sorryyyyy) the themes are presented clearly and the interplay between the instruments are balanced. the middle section kinda wanders a bit but the recognizable theme pulls it back. score is pretty clear, i do agree with @Henry Ng Tsz Kiu with the two repeated notes staccato instead of the tremolos. i guess you can do with the tremolos but instead of one staccato dot, its two. though i do prefer the first option. Melodies Themes Motives 10 Harmony Chords Textures 6 Form Development Structure Time 7 Originality Creativity 5 Score Presentation 9 Instrumentation Orchestration Playability 10 Execution of Given Challenge 10 Taste 4 Average Score: 7.75

Hello all. I had a really hard time figuring out what to do. I had a piece I wrote a while ago about Princess Tuvstarr and Skutt the Elk, where a geological formation called a tarn has an important role, but I decided I need to practice writing things for a deadline, so I needed some new idea. For those that don't know, I am ethnically largely Romanian (though I live in the US), so I settled on some Romanian landscape, and what better than the Carpathian Mountains! In fact, I had a drawing I made a while ago of a Romanian Shepherd (obviously as a furry, if you know me at all) in the mountains playing a Taragot - which sounds like a mix between an English Horn and a Soprano Saxophone. There's an old Romanian tale of a shepherd who lost his sheep, so I wrote this piece following that theme: a shepherd lamenting the loss of his sheep. Please enjoy :) Audio.mp3 Score.pdf

Hello @ferrum.wav , thank you for your kindly review of my piece. I’m pleased that you could follow the imagination and story I wanted to depict musically! Since there was still plenty of space on the score, I decided to follow the example of @Henry Ng Tsz Kiu 's “Joking Fugue on Jingle Bell …", which also includes such humorous comments ... Yes, that’s right. Even though this is a new composition for the competition, I just started to compose the piece for piano solo (to include it in my collection of preludes and fugues) and then „enriched“ the piece with the further instrumentation by the strings. Therefore, the main texture is performed by the piano(s) alone and the strings serve to create more „color“ or „soundscapes“. However, there is a theme or motif in the “Nightingale” B section, played by the strings (measures 35–37 by the cello and measures 44–47 by the violin), that does not appear in the prelude for solo piano.