JustinC

Thanks for the comments, both of you. Actually, I haven't proofread the piece yet. That is my last step. ALL of the sharps and flats in the piece are a result of the tetrachords that I established before writing the actual piece. In order to not confuse myself, I have left the combination of flats and sharps, which of course I am aware would look quite confusing to a performer. I am a performer myself, so this comes as no surprise to me. Basically, I'm not concerned with readability at this stage. In terms of the piano part lacking a pianistic quality, that was part of my goal. I chose to eschew normal playing patterns as often as possible. I want the piano to lose it's identity as a piano and become a part of the ensemble in a different way. Having said this, I think you are right to say that it will be difficult. Luckily, I have found a great and ambitious local pianist to perform the piece, and I am fairly confident that she will be able to tackle it. Thanks for the advice. Once it is proofread, I'll let you know.

Wow this really beautiful. What a wonderful piece. Your description of it in terms of it's romantic leanings is apt. It reminds of Schoenberg's Verklarte Nacht--not in terms of harmony, but in terms of it's sweeping gestures. My first instinct was to say that this would be fantastic film music, but I really think that it can stand alone, too. It's definitely not atonal, but it's definintely not functionally tonal. How often does this vary from a diatonic collection? It sounds to me like it could nearly be all diatonic. Great use of it, though. In terms of improvements, a couple things jump to my mind. I like the sculpture that you have used, but perhaps you have under-interpreted it. The sculpture has grooved surface. The grooves are quite small relative to the grander archs. This implies to me short rapid notes that move along longer archs and gestures. I'm not suggesting that you drastically alter the piece, but instead that you allow for a texture that deviates a bit more. Some rapid repetitive figurations that briefly erupt through the surface (albeit every so slightly) could make this piece even more dynamic than it already is. I don't mean any major themes or anything; I just mean perhaps repeating notes or oscillation between two pitches. The plucked bass notes work really great in the way that I am talking about, too. I think this could give you varying texture, but it would still allow you to maintain the color, which might imply the statue a bit better. I may just be missing your interpretation a bit, though. Please let me know how you saw it. Great work!

This is the first movement of a piece which will consist of 2 full movements and a (very) short interlude. The other two sections are nearly complete. Harmony: it utilizes tetrachordal pitch collections that are "infected" by minor 2nds. Listen for these infections! They perhaps the most interesting aspect. Thematicism: The primary theme is heard throughout all of the piece in some way. It is altered to fit the different harmonies. Texture: The piece is for two vocalists and one pianist. Usually the vocalists are pitted against the pianist, but occasionally more minimal textures arise and all three work together. Sometimes, the pianist splits between supporting the vocalists and also playing contrasting material in a different register. I have attempted to use the harmonic infections to also introduce new rhythmic ideas. I think the flow of the piece is a real achievement for me. I feel as though I tend to keep one step ahead of the listener, but I hope you could all tell me whether or not that is true. I utilize a rather linear approach to form, hoping that the theme will keep it coherent, but perhaps I could make the piece more reflexive. Performance: I think the piece will be challenging to perform, but the two vocalists that I have talked to have told me that they will definitely be able to do it with some practice. It will be performed in May! Unfortunately, I was having a lot of trouble with the dynamics in sibellius, so I would appreciate it if you looked at the score while listening to the soundclick file. Let me know if anyone has any more questions! I have been working on this for a couple of months and I would love some feedback! Click the file labeled "GAGDE" GAGDE.sib GAGDE.pdf GAGDE.mid

It's actually quite easy to get through the piece...minimal isn't a particularly good label for it, if that's what you are thinking. Just the beginning uses an additive process, and the motion basically incraeses throughout the piece. should I move this to a different section? Is it too contemporary for this section?

"Points, Lines, and Spikes" For piano and two vocalists. This is my first post to this forum. It is of the first draft of my longest piece so far (over 9 minutes). The vision here is the gradual deconstruction of tonality and stable rhythm, with a brief recapitulation nearing the end. The first section of the piece is an attempt to create an ambiguous modality that is clarified (or further complicated) by the arrival of the vocalists. The second section utilizes a denser, more continuous texture in which rhythms are exchanged between "voices". Harmonically, there is more of a challenge to tonality here, as the segment stretches the confines of Cmajor and eventually moves to zone of unclear tonality with a fully diminished 7th chord. Finally, the last section utilizes a different harmonic method. Chord progressions are eschewed in favor of a gradual realization of a twelve-tone saturation. The soprano line is an actual 12-tone row. The piano and second vocalist parts share a small collection of notes at the beginning, and each note that the soprano states is added to that collection. The influence of Steve Reich's approach to melody exists in each of the melodic lines. As the section continues, the rhythms break down to create busier and more complex textures. Finally, the piece recapitulates, albeit with some Stravinskian alterations. Issues: the playablity of sections two and three are in question. I will certainly be revising section two (those sixteenths in the soprano line are KILLER, for sure). Section three seems to lag a bit. This is due to my use of a hyperbolic speeding process. I wanted the increasing rhythmic complexity to increase exponentially, but I think it may just begin too slowly. Also, I have yet to determine an appropriate text for the piece. Missing are dynamics, articulations, etc. I'm not too concerned about the readability of the score, yet. The piece won't be performed until May, so I have some time to clean it up. I had to add a third staff to the piano part near the end of the piece because I don't yet know of a good way to show three very rhythmically independent voices moving in the same cleff. I would appreciate any advice on this. Please let me know what you think! I will include the sibellius file, even though I really think that it obscures what the piece will hopefully sound like. I suggest listening to the MP3 version that I have linked to, as the Reason instruments used sound much better: SoundClick MP3: Justin Crowell - Band page with free MP3 music downloads on SoundClick Points, Lines, and Spikes.sib Points, Lines, and Spikes.pdf Points, Lines, and Spikes.mid

I have found Bruce Arnold, a New York Based (somewhat)free-jazz guitarist's method to be quite excellent. His web site is muse-eek.com. Starting from the beginning of his series has been really enlightening for me. He focuses on the sound of each note in a key. For instance, you learn to identify the m6 of a key not by comparing it to something else, but actually by knowing that specific sound. It has opened many doors for me, as I now hear and feel the music. The differences between each of the notes have become so clear to me, and these differences suggest so many things to me that I didn't hear before. Sorry for the overwhelming praise...I just think this guy is great!