What Are You Practising / Composing Now?

[Jonathan]

While I was unemployed over the summer, I did manage to finish 2 movements of my piano sonata. My original plan to have a cheerful happy ending to the 1st movement fell by the wayside and it turned into something much darker (which led well into the 2nd movement funeral march). Must've been due to my state of mind at the time and my lack of a job. Anyway, since I started work again, I've not written any music (or CD reviews, for that matter). My piano playing has also reduced (very long commute again) until this week when my enthusiasm has returned. In order to get my fingers working properly, I picked a very difficult piece to work on so I'm working on Liszt's Remeniscences de Robert le Diable. It's fun! Also playing Franck's Prelude, Fugue and Variation in the transcription by H.Gheel. Lovely stuff!

[kea]

Have been strongly considering trying to learn Schumann's Carnaval just because I always have fun when I bash thru it....

[BBMmk2]

I have become involved with a band in Kent. And I have been commissioned to write for them Berlioz’s Symphonie Funébre et Triomphale. Yes I know it’s for band already, but I have to update it for modern wind band.

[Nevilevelis]

A set of Preces & Responses (for Evensong) just completed!

NVV

[Joseph K]

One of the things I'm practising is an arrangement of the first movement of Beethoven's Moonlight sonata for guitar. Watch this space for a video.

[BBMmk2]

One of the things I'm practising is an arrangement of the first movement of Beethoven's Moonlight sonata for guitar. Watch this space for a video.

That should be most interesting to hear!

[Jonathan]

Still practicing Franck's Prelude Fugue and Variation in the transcription by Geehl. The fugue doesn't look difficult but certainly isn't easy.

[vinteuil]

I have become involved with a band in Kent. And I have been commissioned to write for them Berlioz’s Symphonie Funébre et Triomphale. Yes I know it’s for band already, but I have to update it for modern wind band.

.

... I learn from wiki -

"Berlioz scored the symphony for a large military band or concert band, with optional choir and string instruments. The following list reflects both the number of instrumental parts and the number of musicians Berlioz intended for each instrument:

piccolos (4 players), flutes (5 players), oboes (5 players), E-flat clarinets (5 players), 2 B-flat clarinets (26 players total), bass clarinets (2 players), bassoons (8 players), contrabassoon (ad lib)
6 horns in F, A-flat, E-flat, G, D and C (12 players total), 4 trumpets in F, C and B-flat (8 players total), 2 cornets in A-flat, G and B-flat (4 players total), 3 trombones (3 tenors or alto and 2 tenors, 10 players total), bass trombone (ad lib), 2 ophicleides (6 players total)
2 snare drums (8 players total), timpani (ad lib), cymbals (3 players), bass drums, tam tam, turkish crescents
choir and strings (both ad lib)
In addition to the three trombones, a solo tenor trombone appears in the second movement. The choir, if used, only appears in the final movement. The strings, if used, only appear in their entirety in the final movement, with the cellos and basses also appearing in the first movement."

- so, Brassbandmeister - are you going to use ophicleides? If not, why not?? And if not, what substitutes can compare???

( ... and I hope you find room for those Turkish Crescents ("pavillons chinois") ! : "Hector Berlioz used them in his massive piece for military wind band with optional choir and organ Grande symphonie funèbre et triomphale (1840). His "dream ensemble" of 467 instrumentalists included four pavillons chinois among its 53 percussion instruments. He said about the instrument: "The Pavillon Chinois, with its numerous little bells, serves to give brilliancy to lively pieces, and pompous marches in military music. It can only shake its sonorous locks, at somewhat lengthened intervals; that is to say, about twice in a bar, in a movement of moderate time")

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkish_crescent

.

[BBMmk2]

Vintiuel, in place of opheiclides, I’m using the tuba. Horns will all be in F, I’ll be including saxophones, as well as clarinets(as per the score). The cornet à piston in Bb(will be cornet in Bb) the trumpets will all be in Bb, trombones, tuba, also euphonium, trombones, including bass trombone, timpani and assorted percussion instruments. Including those Turkish crescents. Generally though with this band in question, it will be scored for modern concert band.

[kea]

It's not really "composing" but I've never found any of the completions of the minuet of Schubert's "Reliquie" Sonata D.840 to be convincing or satisfactory, so I wrote my own, which I think respects the direction the music was going towards when Schubert abandoned it—I don't know if it's a direction that actually "works" (if so it could easily be taken further & become more harmonically radical) as I haven't had access to a piano in some time. If anyone's curious, let me know how it looks: https://www.dropbox.com/s/zdrrt4sif6...D.840.pdf?dl=0

[Serial_Apologist]

It's not really "composing" but I've never found any of the completions of the minuet of Schubert's "Reliquie" Sonata D.840 to be convincing or satisfactory, so I wrote my own, which I think respects the direction the music was going towards when Schubert abandoned it—I don't know if it's a direction that actually "works" (if so it could easily be taken further & become more harmonically radical) as I haven't had access to a piano in some time. If anyone's curious, let me know how it looks: https://www.dropbox.com/s/zdrrt4sif6...D.840.pdf?dl=0

I often think if only Schubert had lived a bit longer, I might well have got to like his music. For me Max Reger's String Trio in A minor Op 77b of 1902 offers suggestions as to how Schubert's music might have evolved.

[BBMmk2]

Doing rather nicely with my current commission. The Berlioz as mentioned above. I’m sure it will take a while.

[Joseph K]

That should be most interesting to hear!

Here it is, though sadly cut off three quarters of the way in:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6NCDUCKPdI

[Joseph K]

Here it is, though sadly cut off three quarters of the way in:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6NCDUCKPdI

And in today's 'what the hell' kind of feeling, here is some of the fugue from bwv 998:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-edvU9Cf-NQ

[Joseph K]

Here it is, though sadly cut off three quarters of the way in:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6NCDUCKPdI

Not so sad, I made a bit of a pig's ear of this, really.