A fanfare I wrote that hopefully will be performed once the pandemic is completely over

I had a creativity outburst at the beginning of the pandemic, and wrote many pieces. In this it's a fanfare following a late-Romantic, slightly cinematic aesthetic, reminiscent of Korngold and Richard Strauss.

The score can be seen here: https://albertdelaf.com/op13_en/

Hi. Lovely and inspiring piece. I like this "fanfarrias". This one took me for a moment to the Verdi's one in Aida, but the second part is more "post-romantic" here. Nice work.

Wow this fanfare is really beautiful and cinematic. I aspire to compose a fanfare like this, but my most recent take on it isn't really satisfactory and I might rework it based on yours.

Nice job!  I love the flutter-tongue on the high trumpet note at the end!  Also you do a great job building a nice and warm contrasting theme that really creates a sense of calm - it's almost reminiscent of Elgar's Pomp and Circumstance marches at their more tranquil and serene parts.  (My band friends always referred to them as the Pompous Circus Dances).  Overall this is a very well written fanfare with very clear and memorable themes presented and a well chosen ensemble for the task.  Thanks for sharing!

On 5/24/2021 at 5:06 AM, PeterthePapercomPoser said:

Nice job!  I love the flutter-tongue on the high trumpet note at the end!  Also you do a great job building a nice and warm contrasting theme that really creates a sense of calm - it's almost reminiscent of Elgar's Pomp and Circumstance marches at their more tranquil and serene parts.  (My band friends always referred to them as the Pompous Circus Dances).  Overall this is a very well written fanfare with very clear and memorable themes presented and a well chosen ensemble for the task.  Thanks for sharing!

 

Thank you! While I had more something like Mahler/Strauss/Korngold in mind, Elgar's a composer I admire a lot, so his influence popping out here somehow doesn't surprise me.

That flutter tongue at the end is actually the only spot in the piece that really concerns me! The 1st trumpet always plays a bit high (I'm more used to C trumpets, but most bands use Bb instruments), and I think I read somewhere that fluttertongue that high was quite hard, and that's combined with the fact that the player's supposed to attack a high note without an intervening rising scale. I wouldn't be surprised if the trumpeter hated me, but I only have contact with the 1st horn, for whom I wrote some of the nicest parts.

In most sections - This definitely has a Korngold flavor! 

Fabulous in context. I recently attended a Royal Marine passing out parade and this would have been a brilliant entry for the band as the ceremony started.

But you know what you're doing. You've exhibited your skills several times. The balance is as good as it gets, the scoring is interesting and varied (you have an excellent aural imagination) and the rendering is great. I couldn't see the score in detail as I'm currently on a laptop and there's no zoom facility. But that didn't matter. Just listening was a pleasure. 

Edit: Found the score. At first the link wouldn't load. Now it has.

Bravo!!! Wonderful piece

On 7/19/2021 at 11:00 AM, Quinn said:

Fabulous in context. I recently attended a Royal Marine passing out parade and this would have been a brilliant entry for the band as the ceremony started.

But you know what you're doing. You've exhibited your skills several times. The balance is as good as it gets, the scoring is interesting and varied (you have an excellent aural imagination) and the rendering is great. I couldn't see the score in detail as I'm currently on a laptop and there's no zoom facility. But that didn't matter. Just listening was a pleasure. 

 

Edit: Found the score. At first the link wouldn't load. Now it has.

 

Thanks Quinn! Such encouraging feedback is really  welcome in those difficult moments.

On 7/19/2021 at 4:54 PM, Brinsonian said:

Bravo!!! Wonderful piece

 

Thanks!

The overall quality is absolutely excellent. Some bits are a little predictable harmonically, but that really isn't a technical problem. Congratulations! Would love to hear it performed live!