Moment Musical in A-flat major

This Moment Musical in A-flat major is the second piece of the four pieces I intend to write for relaxation after finishing the very heavy String Sextet. As the title suggests, I only want to achieve Schubertian simplicity with some contemplation here. The result is somewhat a bit beautiful and contemplative for me.

Here is the YT link and pdf for you:

5-4-2025 Moment Musical in A flat Major.pdf

This piece is the opposite with the Intermezzo in A, the first piece of the set, as it uses the theme from the 1st movement of my First Piano Sonata and the key and texture of the 1st movement of my Second Piano Sonata. The recording and this video is again made in a rush so the quality may not be good. Hope you enjoy this little piece!

Here is the previous Intermezzo from the same set:

Henry

I love these little pieces you're writing. I think it shows an abundance of craftsmanship with how quickly you're writing AND performing these for us. This reminds me a little of Schubert, but done in your own way to call it your own. Well done Henry!

I am not very familiar with Schubert's specific style. But this musical moment does take me back to that pure romantic period without the later great development.
I like the contrast between the almost choral part and the rest, which has a melody that has stayed with me.
I also like the chromatic bass in some measures, as a cadenza (measure 2, 7, etc). Although the one in measure 13 sounds stranger to me, perhaps because the chord is left in suspense, and resolves into something more unexpected. Something that I think is frequent in these composers.

A beautiful piece
Greetings.

Schubert is the answer! (no, really, literally it is there)

I understand bars 35-42 is meant to be a hybrid first theme/bridge, personally I feel like the piece could use more of a cadence in the new key instead of repeating the 4 bar phrase an octave higher.

Let me see if I can arrange the piece for pipe organ, at least the choral part.

Kia ora Henry,

I quite like the contrast between the 4/4 sections and the 12/8 sections in this piece. However, as I mentioned on Discord, the recording has room for improvement; you said it was recorded in a rush and it kind of shows. Regardless, like the intermezzo, I think this is a very lovely piece.

Ngā mihi,

Arjuna

Hi @Henry Ng Tsz Kiu!

What a beauty!  My favorite parts are:

1. The V/vi in measure 13 which doesn't go to vi but instead segues back into V.
2. The false recapitulation in Ab minor in measure 26.

Things I think you could improve on:

• In measure 30 you seem to rush through the grand pause into the next phrase.  But I think what makes such a grand pause like this more effective is allowing the silence and waiting period to really sink in and to do it with more metronomic accuracy.  Also, perhaps the figure in measure 29 could be repeated an octave higher after the pause before going back to the recap of the main theme proper.
• Your harmonic progressions are pretty smooth but very based in common practice.  I just felt like the piece could have been more adventurous.  Like even though you visit foreign tonal centers in your piece, you do so through very familiar and predictable means.  It would be so refreshing to hear you modulate to a new key without using a typical sounding secondary dominant or secondary diminished chord.  Perhaps experiment more with secondary augmented 6th chords?  Or use more line cliches and chromatic passing chords or chromatic mediants?

Nonetheless, I think you did achieve your goals of taking a sort of musical holiday after writing your sextet.  Thanks for sharing!

Yo Vince!

On 4/6/2025 at 1:06 PM, Thatguy v2.0 said:

I love these little pieces you're writing. I think it shows an abundance of craftsmanship with how quickly you're writing AND performing these for us. This reminds me a little of Schubert, but done in your own way to call it your own. Well done Henry!

Thx! Just hurry in a rush to finish this since I was busy yesterday haha! I would wanna write simpler pieces after the Sextet, since I know now that music doesn't have to be complex all the time.

Henry

Hi @Luis Hernández!

21 hours ago, Luis Hernández said:

I am not very familiar with Schubert's specific style. But this musical moment does take me back to that pure romantic period without the later great development.
I like the contrast between the almost choral part and the rest, which has a melody that has stayed with me.
I also like the chromatic bass in some measures, as a cadenza (measure 2, 7, etc). Although the one in measure 13 sounds stranger to me, perhaps because the chord is left in suspense, and resolves into something more unexpected. Something that I think is frequent in these composers.

Thank you! I like both the choral part and the rest parts haha!

For b.13 I might have actually take the treatment of chords in Bach's chorale, since he sometimes just ends a phrase on a dom.7 chord or something. Thx for listening and commenting!

Henry

Hi @PCC!

17 hours ago, PCC said:

Schubert is the answer! (no, really, literally it is there)

I understand bars 35-42 is meant to be a hybrid first theme/bridge, personally I feel like the piece could use more of a cadence in the new key instead of repeating the 4 bar phrase an octave higher.

Let me see if I can arrange the piece for pipe organ, at least the choral part.

For me b.35-42 is itself a contrasting theme but it comes from the reharmonization of the phrase b.10-17, because I just don't wanna repeat without some variations. I wanna keep the piece really simple so maybe I don't invite more keys that I should but I'm quite happy with the final product myself haha.

It would be wonderful if you arrange the piece for pipe organ! Thx for listening and commenting!

Henry

Hey My Arjuna,

6 hours ago, expert21 said:

I quite like the contrast between the 4/4 sections and the 12/8 sections in this piece. However, as I mentioned on Discord, the recording has room for improvement; you said it was recorded in a rush and it kind of shows. Regardless, like the intermezzo, I think this is a very lovely piece.

Thx! It IS made in a rush haha, and I wanna stop the children in the other rooms playing lolololol! The piano itself is not clear enough and my phone is as always, crappy and full of tears lol!

Henry

Hey Peter!

1 hour ago, PeterthePapercomPoser said:

What a beauty!  My favorite parts are:

1. The V/vi in measure 13 which doesn't go to vi but instead segues back into V.
2. The false recapitulation in Ab minor in measure 26.

Yeah for 1. I think I take it from Haydn because he always does that in the retransition to recapitulation, finishing on V/vi and then go straight to I. For 2. it's random thought haha, given my reputation as a random composer lol!

1 hour ago, PeterthePapercomPoser said:

Things I think you could improve on:

• In measure 30 you seem to rush through the grand pause into the next phrase.  But I think what makes such a grand pause like this more effective is allowing the silence and waiting period to really sink in and to do it with more metronomic accuracy.  Also, perhaps the figure in measure 29 could be repeated an octave higher after the pause before going back to the recap of the main theme proper.
• Your harmonic progressions are pretty smooth but very based in common practice.  I just felt like the piece could have been more adventurous.  Like even though you visit foreign tonal centers in your piece, you do so through very familiar and predictable means.  It would be so refreshing to hear you modulate to a new key without using a typical sounding secondary dominant or secondary diminished chord.  Perhaps experiment more with secondary augmented 6th chords?  Or use more line cliches and chromatic passing chords or chromatic mediants?

For me I treat b.26-34 as the reappearence of the original theme b.1-9, only changing the first half of the phrase an octave lower and into minor. Also, given my reputation as a composer who loves to use random pauses, I won't let anything to unrandomized my pauses!

Yeah the 2nd point is legitimate. For me I just wanna keep everything simplest but at the same time maintain some interest, so I didn't modulate to another key or using augmented six chord. I use bunches of secondary augmented six chords and Nepolitan sixth chords in my ( ) piano piece already so I don't use them here haha, since I don't wanna increase the drama here!

1 hour ago, PeterthePapercomPoser said:

Nonetheless, I think you did achieve your goals of taking a sort of musical holiday after writing your sextet.  Thanks for sharing!

Give poor Henry a break!

Henry