Tokkemon

Files have been updated! (See original links in OP) I removed the cadence section and rewrote it to transition into the first theme material. I like it a lot!

Thanks for the kind comments! Nice idea about the sudden triads at 314 etc. I decided to rewrite that whole transition and it's a lot better.

Trolls are fun.

So this piece came in a fit of rage (or more accurately frustration) that I hadn't really written anything new of substance in a long time (except the Istanbul piece but I have been working on that one for maybe two years so it no longer feels fresh). Since graduating college my output slowed to a crawl, partly because my full time job is so musically draining and partly because I didn't have ensembles to write for anymore. But I got sick of the stasis and threw together this ditty I present for your lambasting now.It's a Clarinet Sonata. Incredibly (miraculously?) I've never written a full-length solo sonata except for some early works which are garbage. I decided to do a sonata because it's the polar opposite of an orchestra piece and allows me to focus more on the fundamentals of harmony and rhythm and counterpoint, etc. I might try and write a few of these until I've improved somewhat before I attempt to write for orchestra/band again.Problems with this piece: the secondary theme ended up being way more schmaltzy than I anticipated but I do like it. I worry that it's so out of character compared to the other material that it doesn't make sense. Also, I got to the end of the second theme in the recap and I hit an obsidian wall. I have no idea what to do next. Most sonatas that I've seen might have a short recap of the first theme or both themes or some sort of code, but the ending cadence is so strong that I didn't feel any *need* to continue. Anybody have ideas?Please note the engraving is merely adequate. I didn't bother to put a lot of work into that yet since it is still in progress. (What's a bit weird is I find this engraving messy. Goes to show how publishing has forced my standards higher.) Further movements will be forthcoming, or this might just be a one-movement concert piece. Score is here in dropbox. My computer doesn't have Sibelius sounds so you'll have to suffer through a MIDI rendering. SCORE: https://www.dropbox.com/s/amlqtbbbys1goch/clarinet%20sonata.pdf?dl=0MIDI: https://www.dropbox.com/s/6hfc2zn2pp3pbq0/clarinet%20sonata.mid?dl=0Please enjoy and feel free to eviscerate this one! I want to improve.

So I've been gone for, like, 5 years. I'm back with a new piece that I finished late last year. I've been working on it for a long while but finally got it finished and sent out to competitions, which I promptly lost. :D Keeping the losing streak alive! Have a listen and let me know what you think. Program Notes After taking a trip to Istanbul a few years ago I was greatly moved by the culture and people of the massive city and inspired to write this piece. It follows in a long line of “ethnic” capriccios such as Tchaikovsky’s Capriccio Italien and Rimsky-Korsakov’s Capriccio Espagnol. It takes the famous elements of Islamic and Middle Eastern music such as maqam scales and unusual time signatures, and puts them in the Western framework of the orchestra. Much like the city itself, this piece bridges east and west. The capriccio is divided into four sections, with fragments of the same theme being woven throughout: The Introduction, depicting the Azan, or call to prayer. It is often heard echoing throughout the city for miles as the various mosques intone the call. Ottoman Empire influence is heard in the march depicting the goings-on around Tokapi Palace, the home of the Sultan. Janissary Bands and Ottoman military drills echo out a humorous and grandiose march. Next the more reverent side of the city is depicted with Byzantine Chants in the Hagia Sophia, one of the oldest and largest churches, then mosques, in the world. Scattered throughout is various Islamic intonations as if heard from the Blue Mosque a block away, considered one of the most impressive mosques in the world. Finally, we go to the Bazaars and streets of Istanbul, where bands play a unique blend of Eastern European and Middle Eastern music. Asymmetrical time signatures and non-western scales come together for the final dance. Score attached. Rendering on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/tokkemon/istanbul-kapricyosu-istanbul-capriccio

Constantly getting faster.

Learn to transpose by interval and do it the right way. Learning to transpose by clef is 100 years out of date at this point because anything even moderately outside of tonality is next to impossible to transpose by clef with accuracy.

I wrote a set in every key. Let me know if you'd like to purchase them.

Well you haven't listened to the users on how to improve the community in the past before, so why should we listen now? Pardon me for being cynical but your reputation precedes you.

I don't get it.

If they're not playing what's on the page they're not a very professional musician. Perhaps the fact that the performer is a close friend is causing the professionalism of the relationship to break down?

I think it boils down to a sort of "intellectual superiority complex" which is prevelent on the internet, especially in the venues you mention. You'll notice that in real conversations between actual musicians in real-life settings these debates rarely are had or are amicable and tasteful if they are. But the internet strips the personal away and people are able to just trumpet their own point of view with no regard to anyone else. So debates like tonality vs atonality are ripe for exploitation in this context. The "atonalists" often feel intellectually superior because they understand this grand technique that very few people understand and certainly the general public at large doesn't understand or like. They are the elite of the composers, the "best" of the classical music world and should be respected because they like atonality, dammit! Then you have the tonalists who hate anything that isn't tonal, and it becomes comical how each group fights the other. It reminds me a great deal of atheists and theists battling it out, as if atonality and tonality were fundamental philosophies on life and living! Of course, when I was younger and more naive I think I believed this to an extent. But through learning about atonality more and learning about how tonality isn't just I-IV-V-I, I began to appreciate the need for both, especially as a composer. Generally speaking I don't like atonality, I don't listen to it for pleasure (most of the time! :musicwhistle: ) but I can understand it and really dig into why it exists as a valid form of expression for an artist. And that's the goal of any discussion, eh? Understanding. I wish some other musicians would learn that, but of course that takes a lot of work and its simply easier sticking to your own POV and posting a YouTube comment. Sith agrees too: :sith:

Looks fine to me.

Responses in Red

Imagine writing a Mahler Symphony in this stuff...