Three Pieces for Viola and Orchestra

Still working on the score (I’m very slow at transcription) made a few dynamic adjustments in the recording.

I enjoyed listening to this piece. A lot of it works. Here are a couple of things I don't think work so well:

1. I can't quite put my finger on why, but the forte/fortissimo orchestral tuttis in the first movement sound like a 1930s horror movie soundtrack.

2. The expressive heart of the piece feels like it's in the orchestra and not in the viola. The soloist has a lot of work to do, but (especially in the last movement) it's more mechanical than expressive. Others may disagree, but to me the viola is being kept in a pretty restricted box.

Hi there ... my take on the work.  I hear lots of ideas, however, I have difficulty finding the common thread throughout.  There are lots of tonal effects which I feel need more integration.

Your harmony in the first movement is quite cacophanous and chromatic.  I like it!  It sounds quite melodramatic which might contribute to perceptions of the movement sounding like a 1930's horror movie.

I think the viola only really takes on a soloistic role once the second movement begins amidst those wonderful chiming, and bell-like pitched percussion figures.  The ostinato you build with those chimes is something that sounds really magical to me.  And the lyrical melodies you weave over the top of it are mystical.  A personal association that this brings to my mind is of Zeal - the magical kingdom from Chrono Trigger.

The final movement is quite quirky rhythmically.  It doesn't however sound finished to me.  It just stops at a place that sounds totally unresolved harmonically imo.  It just sounds like it should continue further and fashion some kind of more convincing finale.  That's my take on it.  Thanks for sharing!

@Tom Statler I wanted the first piece to have a little bit of a horror feel to it. My inspiration for it was a little apocalyptic. 
I would say the solo part is more obbligato, than concerto, in the first two. The third piece was intentionally more technically challenging. I had just seen a performance of Beethoven’s violin concerto and was inspired by that.

@MJFOBOE thanks for the feed back

@PeterthePapercomPoser the ostinato in the second are 2 vibraphones, xylophone, celesta, marimba and crotales. Years ago, I heard an arrangement of Debussy’s Pagodes for a percussion ensemble, and I wanted to write something like it.
I wanted to keep the pieces fairly short, so that might have caused me to cut it off a little short. I might revisit the end and expand it some more. 

It would be useful to see the score.

@Jerry Engelbach finished a basic score (I hate transcribing).

Thanks. That's helpful.

The piece has an interesting monotonal strangeness, which is intriguing, but wears a bit thin after a while. I find myself wishing for more orchestral texture.

Cheers,
Jer