Duet for Violin and Percussion - Part 3

As part of my Diabelli Project flash composition series, I wrote four sketches for violin and percussion. They seemed to have potential, and so I'm expanding them into a larger four-movement composition. And I decided to document my progress on this Duet for Violin and Percussion (primarily to keep me on task).

Sketch score finished!

The last time I posted about this work, I had just completed the first movement. Well, the other three followed in rapid succession (I was kind of surprised myself). 

Second movement

In contrast to the up-tempo first movement, this one's a little slower. The percussionist plays both marimba and glockenspiel, providing a 2-against-3 rhythmic pulse. The movement's in an AB form, so it doesn't return to where it began. Don't worry, though -- that opening percussion figure will appear later on. 

Third movement

Although this movement has a slower tempo marking than the second, it probably won't seem that way to the listener. There are fast runs all over the place providing a sense of energy and (I hope) urgency. 

The percussionist plays tympani, which is a tuned membrane instrument, and snare drum, which is an untuned membrane instrument. This movement's in ABA form, with a greatly abbreviated A'. 

Fourth movement

The final movement is fast and furiously played. It's in an ABACA rondo form. As the movement goes on, motifs from the previous movements reappear. Some just make a cameo, others get reworked. 

Next steps

I already see flaws in the percussion part I want to fix, and some parts I'd like to tighten up, but I won't. Not now. Now I'll just put it aside and revisit the work sometime in mid-April. That will let me approach it with fresh eyes (and ears). And in the meantime, I'll be subconsciously thinking about those details I don't like.

Next week I'll post another Diabelli Project flash composition sketch (which I still do almost every week). I've already started work on another piece, but I'll share the details when it's a little further along. 

Duet for Violin and Percussion - Part 2

As part of my Diabelli Project flash composition series, I wrote five sketches for violin and percussion. They seemed to have potential, and so I'm expanding them into a larger five-movement composition. And I decided to document my progress on this Duet for Violin and Percussion (primarily to keep me on task).

First movement finished!

Below is the sketch score for the completed first movement. This duet is going to be a set of miniatures so the movements will be very short. Nevertheless, I felt the opening movement needed an introduction, which I created from the motives at A (which is also the beginning of the Diabelli sketch).

The original percussion part had timbales plus cymbal. I decided to stay with just timbales for a more consistent sound.

The overall structure for the movement is A-B-A'. The return of the opening material is modified to change its direction and point towards the final cadence.

The overall playing time should be about 2:45 or so. The next step is to play through the movement and make revisions, but I won't do that until I complete the other movements. That will give me an opportunity to look at this movement fresh, and be able to better assess how it fits into the overall work (since I'll have it all on paper at that point).

So the next immediate step is to start working on another movement. And so I have -- the fifth.

And for comparison, the original Diabelli Project sketch:

Duet for Violin and Percussion - Part 1

The Diabelli Project had its desired effect.

I started the flash composition exercise as a way to loosen up the rust and get back to composing after too long an absence. If you've been following the series, you'll know that there were a number of the sketches that I wanted to revisit.

And now I've done so. Back in October 2016, I did a brief series of violin and percussion duets. Each sketch started a different movement of a presumably larger work. Those sketches continued to percolate long after I was finished with them. So last week I started work on the duet.

Here's the first page of the finished movement in manuscript, and below it is the initial Diabelli Project version. 

In addition to expanding the opening, I also reconsidered what the main motifs were. 

And something else. The sketch went 9 measures and stopped with only a hint of what was to come. I now had to actually figure that out. Which meant deciding what the form would be, how the roles of the players would change (or if they needed to), the actual tempo of the movement, how long it needed to be, and a few other details.

As with the initial sketch, for the most part, it all seemed to just... flow. The Diabelli Project had indeed loosened my creative muscles.

When I have a fair copy ready, I'll post it. I'll also provide occasional updates about the progress of the work. I'm pretty sure I'll have at least one more movement finished by next Monday.

Once the work is finished, then the real challenge begins -- finding performers who are willing take a look at the score (let alone actually playing it). But that's a project for another day.

Introducing The Diabelli Project

Even composers can have writer's block -- and that's exactly where I was a few years ago. After a long dry spell, I decided to do something about it. Ira Glass' talk on the Creative Process inspired me to get over my writer's block and start posting to this blog daily (that month-long experiment started in 2011 continues to this day). (click on images to enlarge)

 My first flash composition from 2011. You'll see a legible version
of this in next Monday's post.

I always enjoy attending our church services; the time before the service invites contemplative thought. One Sunday I had a modicum of inspiration, and scribbled the opening to a canon on the bulletin. It was the first thing I'd written in quite a while. The next Sunday I did it again, and over time it's become part of my Sunday worship routine.

It's starting to work. Without the pressures of needing to complete a work, or even worry overmuch about the quality of the piece, I find I can dash off little ideas on a regular basis. It's sort of the equivalent of flash fiction -- save that I don't complete the work because I don't want to limit myself to a 4-bar composition week after week.

Over the past 2 years, I've accumulated a lot of church bulletins with these little musical sketches on them. And it's been interesting to see how they've developed over time.

My most current offering. I went from pencil to pen
as I gained confidence.

The Diabelli Project

In 1819 the publisher and composer Anton Diabelli wrote a short theme that he sent out to all the leading composers of the day -- Franz Schubert, Johann Nepomuk Hummel, et al. -- to write a variation to be published in a collection. Ludwig van Beethoven took the idea and ran with it. His 33 Variations on a waltz by Anton Diabelli, Op. 120 is considered one of his masterworks.

So here's the deal. I'll be Diabelli, and you can be Beethoven (or Hummel, if you prefer). Each Monday I'll post one of my Sunday sketches. And you can use them as you wish. Write your own theme and variations, or fugue, or whatever. It doesn't have to be a classical work. Think there's a catchy melodic hook buried in there somewhere? Use it.

I just ask a few things:

1) If you use any of these sketches, just let me know.
2) If possible, please send me a recording or notated score.
3) Please credit me appropriately if you offer your work to the public

That's it! I'll post the first excerpt next Monday. And there's another personal challenge in this for me. I used to be a professional music copyist -- another skill I've neglected over the years. I'll be writing these sketches out by hand to bring back those chops. 

Minimally Successful

There were two things I wanted to accomplish as a young man:

1) Have my music performed and recorded professionally.

2) Have my creative writings published professionally.

Well, as of today both those things happened -- but I have to say if there's a way to accomplish these goals in the smallest way possible, I managed to do it.

The music
As a classical composer, I've written over forty works, including a symphony, some smaller pieces for string orchestra, two string quartets, several collections of short piano pieces, and some chamber music as well. And some of it has been performed by professional ensembles.

But only one of my compositions has been recorded professionally. It's an early work of mine entitled "Three Etudes," Op. 2. They are three very short (each one is under a minute) little pieces for piano, written primarily as a composition exercise. The etudes were originally recorded by Robert Ian Winstin for the ERM label, and appeared on his release Piano Art. Very nice, but it's out of print.

Pianist Leanne Rees really liked the etudes, or at least the third one. She performed it in concert for a while, and was kind enough to include it on her album Women Composers & the Men In Their Lives released on Fleur de Son.

The writing
As readers of this blog know, I write continually. Professionally, I write articles, reviews, and other technical copy. I enjoy it, but it's not creative writing. Yes, I've written six novels, but they're definitely not ready for prime time.

But I do participate in the #operaplot contest, and have placed in the finals two years running. And that earned me my second goal. Because the contest winners were published as part of the Best Music Writing 2011 by Dacapo Press. Which means that I am now a published author (I got paid, and I'll get a copy of the book, so there).

So there it is.

I've now technically accomplished both my goals with a one-minute piano piece and a 140-character tweet.

Somehow, I don't have the feeling of accomplishment I thought I would....