Henry Ng Tsz Kiu

@therealAJGS One question, do you have an intended title for this piece? We can change the title so it better represents the music.

Hi my Jonathon @ComposaBoi ! I am so happy and overjoyed to know that you love my piece and even STUDY it!! How come I deserve this kind of respect and attention towards my little music pieces! Thank you so much!!! Yup I did chop some bars there since I find the original version a bit long for the transition and modulation, but I think it really is personal taste haha! I absolutely enjoy how honest you are. Believe me, I am the one who dislike my pieces most since I always finds tons of errors and ways to improve my pieces, and can seldom really enjoy my pieces in their own way, knowing that it could have been better. I check both version of the score and don't find the dissonance (augmented chord) removed. Can you specify which chord? I can explain on that: I feel like the original version with the dominant pedal in clarinet a bit too flat, so I remove the first G in the clarinet, replace it with pizz., and then change the second G to an Ab to make it sound like "is it really that peaceful?" by making it a bit more suspenseful, and hence the counterattack of the dominant preparation and retransition can sound more fiercing and dramatic. Yup it's just for fighting the playback, as with the actual grace notes the playback will cancel the whole slur and make all notes non-legato, so I compromise and write with that strange notation. But with a published score I will definitely have the actual grace notes back. And the inconsistency is due to my careless proofreading lol. Thx! Yeah I do pay a lot of attention in the breathing of the clarinet. And as always, all pieces can be better and mine is definitely no exception. Thank you very much! I guess this piece is different than the Sextet: this one is more about subjective suffering and despair, and the resolve of it towards the end, while the Sextet's suffering is less personal as it's more objective and worldly. You are right, I deliberately ruin what I create in the first movement. It's interesting to know that in the first 14 minutes of the movement (two-thirds), the tonic C minor only lingers for 2 minutes, so basically in the first two-thirds the music is under a subconscious influece of tragedy without knowing it, to my understanding. The positive things like beauty and serenity are all ruined without knowing why, until after minute 14 when all is suffering and the despair arisen to the level of conscious. The surprising return of the second theme in its original key is a last struggle, which is brutually defeated to achieve a more tragic effect, hopefully. The structure more or less is influenced by the film Mulholland Drive I guess. And obviously I am no Mahler. Haha I will still cut things out in movement 2, but I will retain all of the passage in mov 4 and will even add passages in mov 3! Stay tuned! Henry

Hi @Markus Boyd ! Thx for your listening, as it proves that you aren't one of the ipad kids! This one is indeed only the 1st movement of the Quintet, and sorry for making it 21 minutes lol! This movements last for an almost 3 year span from 2016 November to 2019 July, so definitely my thoughts kept changing and adding things to it so the music grows like this. But I do disagree with having a short work means it's easier to receive more detailed reviews. I have made posts with longer playing time before, for example my Sextet 2nd movement, but I did receive tons of valuable and detailed reviews, particularly the one by @Fugax Contrapunctus , and I guess it's more the willingness of wanting to review or not. Henry

Hey My Chee, I quite like the moment as well, and yeah it could have been a waltz, which indeed there are some waltz moments in the movement, tho not with this theme (for example in b.169, 315 and 361). That's good news to hear haha. It's absolutely ok to have something you don't like, since probably I am probably the one who dislike my pieces most, finding all sorts of errors and holes in them. I am working! (Tho not this week as I am ill all week) Henry

Hi @Musicman_3254 ! First, one thing for the scoring: as this competition signifies It would not be appropriate to use divisi for the strings, unless it's for a string orchestra. The soundtrack and the scoring suggests that this piece is for a string orchestra rather than a string quintet, which could have been resulted in disqualification. The octaves sign aren sometimes not realized in the recording, and you should write the notes out instead of using the sign anyways, like those in the beginning section. But put that scoring aside, I quite enjoy your music here! I like how you achieve some varieties with a simple unchanging melody by changing the instrument to play the melody, the register, the thickness/thinness of accompaniment, I especially like the moment when you invite motions of semiquavers in b.50 which really makes the music more exciting. Use of tremolos are great too to enhance the drama. Maybe one suggestion is that you can vary more with keys and mood. The piece is in C minor with the same melody throughout the whole piece which is fine for me, but it will be more interesting if you can somewhat modulate to other keys. For example even with the original melody you could have a Eb major chord supporting it and make the mood change. Thx for sharing! Henry

Hi @TristanTheTristan ! There's nothing fugal here but it's definitely Chinese. Sadly there are no available soundtrack for dizi and erhu, as if they are used it will for sure enhance the unique color of the piece! Just like @Kvothe said the piece is too short, as the compeition requires an entry to have a minimum time of 3 minutes, while here it's not even 2 minutes long. I like the heterophonic nature of the piece, and I think you can have added more details in it like dynamics and slur markings even it's for Chinese instruments. To me it sounds like a typical Chinese music with its pentatonic harmony, maybe you can add some contrasting episodes so that the music will exceed 3 minutes mark and make it more interesting. Thx for sharing! Henry

Hi @therealAJGS , I would be regret to say that this one is a less competent piece in this competition. i don't quite think the music captures the landscape of a rainy weather to me. The scoring of this piece is not as polished as other entries, as the music to me is in B minor but there are many unnecessary accidentals in the score without a key signature. The flow of the music is less moving as well, sometimes it just stays without moving forward, especially in passages when there is only one instrument lingering, Even though it may be harsh for you to receive comments not so positive, I hope you will take it as a learning opportunity! Thx for joining the competition! Henry

Hi @BipolarComposer ! I really really enjoy the serene atmosphere portrayed by traditionally pastoral double reed instruments. The combination of them with harp definitely enhances the pastoral mood. The sparse spacing, rests and register really gives peace and thoughtfulness to the piece. One strange throught: I imagine the piece would be even more serene by having the bassoon played a Chinese Dong Xiao and oboe by an alto flute, as there are many lower register for the oboe which would sound unnecessarily strong with a low register oboe. Another thought is that, even I enjoy the serene mood very well, maybe you can invite some contrast in between, For example like @Kvothe suggests, you may write some passages with harp playing wider and stronger chords. Also to my observation, the bassoon never really plays its strong lower register which would make some more powerful passages. With more contrast the serene mood will sound more treasured to me. Thx for sharing! Henry

Hi @Fruit hunter ! I thoroughly enjoy this entry! To me it perfectly captures a childhood memory and a landscape through a child's lens. The variety of the percussion instruments, the "wild" and apparent "lost" flow really enhances the cute and naive nature of a childhood. After all we all have been children and didn't we pick up what we have at the moment to play with each time? The lack of clear structure to me is not a detriment, but excactly why this music gives rise to our own childhood impression. I love your use of the three keyboard instruments as the main carrier of the melodic narrative, and use other instruments as "sound effect" which reflects the situation you were facing at that time. For example I imagined the out of nowhere rhythms as "naughtiness and curiosity", and clearly ocean drums are portraying raining or seaside scene, The confusing of modes (Phyrgian/Locrian vs minor) in the b.52 passage is very funny to me, and clearly the gongs signify what we bad boys did (tricks lol). And the end is clearly reflections when your mum shouted "oh we need to go home now!" (SAD) What I would suggest is maybe there are more linking passages between each episodes. Also, I would like the piece to be longer a bit because I really enjoy it. Thx for sharing! Henry

Hi @InstrumentalistElle ! I really enjoy listening this entry. To me I love your concept here that you submit a descriptive music just like a portrait, rather than a narrative music. This makes this entry really fits for this particular competition. The constant use of artificial harmonics really enhances the mysterious and sublime quality of the Zhangjiajie mountains. To me this entry is more moody and descriptive in nature, hence it is somewhat unfair to have a low score for melody, as I think the variety of timbre and mood and hamronic color completely compensates the less noticable melodic element. I love the harmonies throughout the piece, its non-triadic nature definitely provides some eerily beautiful sound which fits the mystery of nature. I also enjoy the occasional non-harmonics passages, it really contrasts well with its own earthly character as you usually use the lower register of the instruments for the melodies in these parts, comparing to the heavenly harmonics passages. Also you use register really well. By means of register you portray a narrative, rather than relying on melodic materials. That's really great job! Thx for joining the competition! Henry

Hi @L.S Barros ! I think the part writing here is solid and I like your more antique mood with the constant picardy 3rd ending of each phrase and the use of Sackbut, as well as using a Dorian key signature for a minor key work. I think the piece does capture well a hunt in a broad mountain area. Thx for sharing. Henry

https://andrewhugill.com/manuals/violin/harmonics.html I usually use this website to check with the harmomics stuff on strings, as I'm no string player myself. Henry

Maybe in my dream and @Kvothe divined it 😅

Listen more, analyze more, find some good harmony books on it! Henry

Hi! Long time for not posting anything! I'm revising my old Clarinet Quintet and learning orchestration in the process. Here's something I'm working on. Clarinet Quintet in C minor is a work I finished 4 years ago in 2022 which I accidentally began my revision of it in April 2026. It's a work in four movements and in it I want to share my feeling towards despair, dream and hope. The piece is dedicated to my friend Ms. Merina Fung. Speical Thanks to @Thatguy v2.0 for making the audio for me. Here is the youtube video of the movement: Here is the structure of the 1st movement: 00:00 1st subject, Exposition. Introduce the "despair" motive (0134), in some sort of sad waltz in C minor. The passage in 01:26 is directly copied from an old piece of mine named "Boredom" 01:48 Transition. Follow the tonal plan of the first movement of Tchaikovsky's Fourth Symphony and modulate to tritone major Gb major (which is the tonic key of my next major work, String Sextet in G flat major). 04:09 2nd subject, Exposition. Introduce the "dream motive" (0247) and subsidary chromatic motive of (0123). Conflicts of the despair and dream motives continue, the dream seems to win at 06:53 with its own climax but easily defeated with a bold C minor half cadence right before the close of the exposition with a forceful perfect cadence in Gb. 08:42 Development, part 1. The dream breaks expectedly I really like the counterpoint in 08:59. Modulates to E minor for the transition theme, then build to a really beautiful climax in E major in 11:10 which I really love. Makes this movement sounds a bit less tragic. 11:36 Development, part 2. Another false serenity after the beautiful climax by a disappointed passage in G# minor in 12:38. The serene texture returns in B major in 13:17 but falls short to a dominant preparation of C minor in 13:50. I really love the retransition as it sounds really passionate to me (Actually I love all parts of the remianing parts in this movement after this point). A review of the keys visited in 14:27 with an octatonic falling scale, ending with two sorrowful monologue of clarinet and cello, just like the beginning. 14:53 Transition. I skip the 1st subject reappearence in the recap as it's completely meaningless to do so, given how the motive is developed in the entire movement. I really love the tragedy here, as I even have this passage reappears in the coda of 4th movement, after 40 minutes or so lol. Another false serenity in tonic major in 15:24, and I really love the nostalgic sounding passage in Ab major in 16:01, still base on the dream motive. The German sixth chord in 16:36 must be stolen from Schubert"s Quartettsatz. A fugato in 16:42 trying to fight despair and reclaim dream once more and "sucessfully" modulates to Gb major once again. 17:31 2nd subject, Recap. But when you want more you hurt more, as despair harms you more when you have hope. This time a hard C minor half cadence comes. The dream theme now becomes a nightmare in 18:07 and continues to sigh. 19:20 Coda. Previous themes keep reappearing as I myself used to ruminate my sadness all the time. Finally it ends with what begins the piece, the realization of despair in its original form. Structurally I am not really satisfied with how I expand the themes in the 2nd subject of exposition (Dream part) and how I treat the materials in development, as I am afraid I overextend too much. However I just retain most of the things originally as I wanna keep true to my old self. It's an absolute low when I composed this piece, as I really questioned myself whether I could really compose something good back then. Luckily I did finish the entire work and gave me some confidence, plus meeting some really good friends here. The whole 4 movement piece is composed with three motives mentioned above, as I wanted to keep the piece coherent. The inspiration of the work comes from Brahms’s Clarinet Quintet as I wanted to write a more tragic piece than his (of course this goal fails), but I am happy with what I’ve done. Strangely only now do I find how Brahmsian this piece is. One interesting thing is that despite the movement is in C minor, in the first 14 minutes (two-thirds) of the movement, only 2 minutes are in the tonic. In this revision I mainly modify spots I find unreasonble, some voicings and slurs, and breathing spots for Clarinet. Hope you listen through the music and read through the description, and my wish that enjoy the work! Feel free criticize the work as I know it's far from perfect. P.S. the old version of this same Quintet is posted before: It's my biggest mistake to post an hour long piece here as my first post. So I will chop up the 4 movements and post it one by one now! Henry Clarinet Quintet in C minor 1st mov V3.mp3 (For YT)Clarinet Quintet in C minor 1st mov final 20260501.pdf