Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Sympony Finale

The finale to my symphony has turned very dark. I intended at first to contrast the opening with a faster major key section BUT the material connection just was not adequate to justify that. SOOO I have gone even darker and even dissonant with a return to the opening movements serial transitional passage being the chief theme of the finale's B section. This time, as opposed to hiding the theme in the classical textures of the first movement, I have the theme clearly in the center. Uttered in the winds at measure 34 of the movement. In a canonical passage. So far, this passage appears to be very rich and still not at conflict with the movement as a whole - which, I find, to be quite shocking...

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Fourth Movement

The fourth movement is coming along nicely. The introduction is richly romantic with classical overtones. The material is derived from that in the first movement. I've decided the overall form of the movement will be a Rondo form (ABACADA). The only additions to the form will be the largo introduction and a coda. My hope is to have the movement last for about 10 mins or so. Though, I wouldnt be surprised if I could draw the music out longer. The completed Largo section is around 2 - 3 mins in length!

Sunday, December 27, 2009

Fourth Movement Started

I started the fourth movement today. The opening is Largo (slow). And will slowly weave together the pieces that comprised the first 3 movements. My plan is to create a very expansive finale to the symphony as a whole.

Friday, December 25, 2009

Merry Christmas!!

To all those who are reading this blog, I would like to thank you and wish you all a very merry christmas and a happy new year!

Today and last night, I decided to take a much deserved break from composition. I have an idea where I plan to go with the fourth movement of my symphony and am now also considering ideas for the chamber work to accompany the piece. I think I may work on a string trio for that or perhaps a quartet.... hmmm..

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Reflections

This past year has been a year of many milestones in my compositional style. I started the year on a rocky foot with my first piano trio. Structurally, I think that work was one of my best. Each movement contained the same thematic material - the same 'germs' - but each was woven together in quite a different way. There were lots in that piece that I feel now could've been done much better. From January to May, I composed mainly smaller works. In May, with the end of an 8 year relationship and all that aspired afterwards, my output dropped to next to nothing. I suppose that was largely due to the fallout of the end of that relationship. From May till October, I began composing again - determined now, with nothing holding me back, to reach my goals. This short period saw the creation of a number of works this year. From October till now, I have had a few more projects on my plate - namely, a number of submissions to opportunities! With the dawn of the New Year approaching, my goal is to finally see one of my pieces to performance. Whether that piece is one of the many I've sent off to various competitions/opportunities or my first ever commission - there is no doubt in my mind that this experience will be rewarding AND greatly enrich my compositional ability.

List of Works completed in 2009:

Piano Trio no. 1
Piano Concertante
3 short trios for 2 clarinets and horn
Symphony no. 1 in C minor
Requiem
Christmas Mass
Pestis Eram for A Capella Choir
12 Short Pieces for Piano
2 Episodes for Piano
3 Episoes for String Orchestra
String Quartet in 1 Movement
3 Variations on a Theme of F. Chopin
Piano Sonata no. 1 in C minor
2 Essays for Orchestra
Domine Deus for A Capella Choir
Kyrie for SATB Choir and Piano

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Third Movement Completed.

I completed the third movement of my symphony. Now work starts on the fourth movement. My plan for the fourth movement is to create a work that fits the overall feel of the symphony as a whole. I was debating that since the works middle movements are short in length that the fourth movement needs to be longer and incorporate the full thematic materials presented in the work. Will have to see though.

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Symphony chugging along

The third of my symphony is chugging along nicely. I was stuck in a bit of a rut on it for two whole days. After the end of the first section, I was stuck with the prospects of not being able to devise a melody that would best suit the movements B section. My solution was to take the opening figure in the strings and transform it into its own melody through diminution (elongation of note values). That solved it perfectly!

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Why I write the way I do....

I began composition over a decade ago - 16 years to be exact. My earliest pieces, now largely gone, were very misguided. I didn't receive instruction in composition till my junior year in high school. That year, while I worked at the local library in Indianapolis, I borrowed 3 books on composition. The book that I read the most and still own was Schoenberg's Functional Structures of Harmony. At that age, I barely understood all that Schoenberg mentioned in that treatise. It did effect my compositions at the time. I moved from rather rudimentary reliance on I - V - I progressions to more adventurous use of extended harmonies and foreign tonal regions. From there, I got bored, and ventured into creating my own synthetic scales - I would literally spend weeks ensuring that my scalar basis was unique to each and every degree. The works from this period were quite different than anything I've ever composed. The melodic material was very much ruled by the synthetic tonality in which they were created. From there, I dabbled in serial technique. That really bored me. The music didn't quite seem to sound the way I wanted it to sound. The material was, to me, not fully representative of my emotional self. After a few works like this, I abandoned atonality and returned to using other tonalities. It was at this point that I went to college. During my lessons with my teacher, I centered on the use of Phrygian tonality. I loved the use of that particular mode and the sonorities that it created. However, I got bored with it - as much as I got bored with college. I've always been the type of person to research and learn indepedently. I do well in school when I'm being challenged - when I'm not.. well, I lose my desire to care. So after 2 years of college, I decided to focus on my self for a change. My compositions in 2001, reflected my tumultuous life at that point. Finally, in 2003 I settled in on a return to tonality. My goal at the time was to master it fully. 6 years onward, I am still reaching for that goal. I still have that adventurous spirit that was there in my earliest works - BUT, for myself, the experimentation isn't necessarily the prime mover in my need to compose. Music, for me, has always been about the need to vent. I, at one time, stated that to know my deepest thoughts all one has to do is listen to me improvise on my viola or listen to one of my compositions. It has seen me through some very dark periods in my life and has been there during some of the most happiest moments as well. Today, my compositions reflect all that comprises me: my interests, my tastes, my desires, and my emotions. There are times when I return to my more experimental past and times where I am so much removed from it that you would never know where I been as a composer. My one goal, besides mastery of my art, is to merge in perfectly modern techniques deep into the fabric of the strong tradition. I want to do this in a way that makes the newer techniques more interesting and listenable. Hopefully, I succeed.

Second Movement Completed

I completed the second movement yesterday. I'm unsure about it - largely because of the fact that the overall sound of the movement is quite different from my previous slower movements. There is a beauty inherent in it that, despite at times its more melancholy moment, fascinates me in more ways than one. I am often taken aback at the pieces I create - especially here lately, as I've gotten stronger at orchestrating and creating more coherent structures. I've posted the work for review on an online forum that I'm a member of.

http://www.youngcomposers.com/pg/Music/jawoodruff/composition?entry=22098

Thursday, December 17, 2009

2nd Movement

I started the second movement today. After doing such a great job on the first movement, I'm a little worried on how I can best move forward on this work. The 2nd movement has to be perfect as well. I won't tolerate anything less. I've listened multiple times now to the first movement and have many ideas... but whether those ideas will eventually be set onto paper is the question. The scope of the first movement requires that the second movement contain a pathos unlike anything I have composed since. I can see now how this endeavor is the most complex that I have undertaken. Hopefully, I can deliver.

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Finished 1st Movement!!!

I am so excited at seeing this movement through to completion!!! And I'm also very proud of the results so far! As promised, here is a link to the mp3 rendering!


http://www.box.net/shared/prkujxbnod

New Work Update!

I am almost finished with the first movement of this new project that I have undertaken. I know its not finished yet - BUT - I feel that this work is my greatest work so far. The scope and intensity of it are unlike anything I have composed to date. The movement is so far 5 mins in and I just can't stop listening to it in awe at my creation. You ever notice those little moments in life where you know great things are happening? I feel with this piece that this is one of those moments - I don't know if i'm just filled with immense pleasure in composing this OR if it truly is one of those great moments BUT time will be the judge of that! I'll post the completed movement on here when finished.

Monday, December 14, 2009

Orchestral Work

Today, and last night, I started my orchestral work for the next project. The work is coming along quite nicely. I have decided to finally return to a larger scale piece - after a period of focusing on smaller works tendering my orchestral/musical style. The scope of the work so far is massive in sound and landscape. I am very proud of where I am in the process of composing this. My ideas for this work are as follows. The work will be in 4 movements, fitting the classical symphony. Whether or not this work will be a symphony is still in question - though the thought has crossed my mind. The first movement is Allegro ma non troppo (Fast, but not to much). The first theme is broken amongst two thematic ideas. The first idea is a play of a minor second. The second is a series of quarter - half - quarter. Under pinning this is a rhythmic pulse that is new to me - never used before. The second theme is first introduced at measure 48 and is quite noble in sound and scope. I introduce the second theme in a false fugue entrance!

Sunday, December 13, 2009

New Project Started

Tonight, I spent a good amount of time contemplating WHAT my next work will be. With this third project now before me - to compose an orchestral and a chamber work (both of which must be the BEST representation of me) - I decided to devote time to the orchestral first. The piece, after contemplation, will be a large scale symphony. Something of which I've worked on many, many times in the past - and have completed many rudimentary ones. This one, however, has to be different - I will expect nothing but my best work out of it! The opening is already complete and I have introduced the first theme of the work and am now about to expand on that theme. So far the work is a far cry from my earlier symphonies... this one may truly be deserving of the title itself!

New Work Ideas

Well, after completing my second project this weekend, I am now turning to my 3rd project. The criteria for this project are to send 1 representative of my best orchestral work and 1 representative of my best chamber work. So, my goal is to complete 2 new works within the next month. The postmark deadline is 2/16/2010! So, I have set my own personal deadline to 1/20/2010. That will allow me to prepare the materials and mail them in ahead of the deadline. I've not really had any ideas concerning a chamber work BUT have plenty for orchestral. I may have to do something to help nurture ideas!!

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Pestis Eram

Well, I completed work on the A Capella piece: Pestis eram! The form is ternary, a sectional form comprised of 2 parts - the first part being repeated. I'm lukewarm to this piece - though, I feel that my contrapuntal writing has improved - I feel the work could be much better.

Friday, December 11, 2009

Got to bar 56 on my A Capella choir piece. Had a very hectic day today. Cooked, woke up late, got little time to work. Sometimes I wonder is it all worth it?

New Work Started

With the first submission submitted and 3 others to go. I set down last night and began working on my a capella vocal piece. The text for this work is one that I have been wanting to set for quite some time. At the beginning of Poe's Metzengerstein is a quote by Martin Luther: Living I was your plague, dying I shall be your death. This text is powerful to me in both meaning and power. When I first seen it, I knew that it deserved musical setting! So, onward I compose!

Thursday, December 10, 2009

First submission

Today, I sent off my first submission to a new music ensemble in New York. The work is from a series of short piano pieces that I composed last week. I'm very happy with the series as a whole and each movement independently. The work is in a form called binary form - a sectional form which is comprised of two independent, yet thematically related, sections. The opening section is soft and contemplative. As I listen to it, I get a feeling of time itself - slowly moving from the beginning to the end. The B section is faster and more animated in comparison. On my listening of this section, I got the feeling of man's immortality. The knowledge that we all have short lives in comparison to the vast age of the world and space around us. That's just my interpretation of it.

V. Andante Sostenuto

Getting Established

Classical music for me is a passion unlike any other. Being a composer, I find the intricacies of it to be quite mesmerizing to analyze. When I listen to music, I don't hear just pretty notes or emotions being conveyed. I hear the notes and their relation to one another. I can see the textures that the composer sought to create and am able to 'lose' myself with in them - especially when the texture was well created with many strata. My own music has taken quite a while to gestate and mature. At 29, even, I don't feel that I'm as mature as I musically can be. My music is personal yet public. Emotive, yet restrained. As I turn 30 this next May, I feel that the time has come for me to make my musical creativity a career. The only question is, how does one do that? The purpose of this blog is to chronicle this path that I have chosen to take - from my first steps to (hopefully) my full establishment as a composer.