This is a successful assignment which includes well-considered piano writing and a
controlled use of harmony. The musical ideas are presented in a way which create a
sense of unity, and good use of melodic variation appears later in the piece to
avoid repetitiveness.
So far so good! Although I have played (and taught) piano playing for some years, I have never written for the instrument before, and it was something I was very keen to start doing. I was very happy to see that my harmonic experiments were lauded, and that my attempts at creating a varied by unified piece of music was conveyed to the listener.
The assignment shows some good compositional skills, and an ability to
manipulate material well. You have written well for the piano and created a sense
of direction throughout the piece. The melodic writing is suitable for this style of
composition, and the rhythmic variation you have created through the use of
duplets is effective.
Some more pleasing comments, which confirm to myself that I am on the right track with regards to composing for this instrument. This is helpful as I plan to write prolifically for the piano in coming years.
However, one of the main aims of this assignment was to avoid
the use of a perfect cadence until the end of the piece; it is intended as an exercise in the development and continuation of a chord progression. Your rather obvious use of perfect cadences (for example, the first one happens in bars 5-6, others at 11-12 and 16-17 and a very strong cadence occurs in bars 39-40) means that you have not fulfilled this part of the brief. This may pose problems at assessment, since you will be marked on how well you have followed the given instructions. You are allowed to revise your work prior to assessment, so I recommend making changes where appropriate to make sure you meet the criteria of the assignment.
My tutor had spotted a flaw in my harmonic structure, that of using perfect cadences within the piece. I was obviously aware that I had done this, but with good intentions! I had interpreted the brief in a way that made me believe this postponement of a perfect cadence until the very end of the piece was a suggestion rather than a requirement. This will require some modifications prior to assessment, although this shouldn't involve too many thematic changes. It should prove a challenge, as I will need to maintain the harmonic flow without the resting points that perfect cadences provide.
On the whole, the piece is well presented. While it may be guessed that the piece is
for piano, it is advisable to include something to that effect on the first page of the
score itself. The score would benefit from a much more detailed provision of
expression marks. Dynamics, while present, are a little limited - consider for
example the possibility of having the melody and accompaniment at different
dynamic levels to allow a clearer balance between the parts. Some phrase marks
might also be helpful in assisting a performer to understand your concept of how it
should be played. Pedal markings, too could be more detailed to demonstrate your
intentions. The con ped marking you have given is a little too vague and is open to
a wide variety of interpretations, from leaving the pedal down for the whole piece
to just using a small amount with frequent changes. It is important to be as specific
as you can with all of these markings to demonstrate precisely to the performer
what kind of sound you have in mind; you cannot assume that all pianists will have
access to the same stylistic references that you do. I noticed that you say in your
notes that ‘this piece is to be performed mostly legato cantabile’, but you do not
make this clear at any point in the score!
There are several points here, and I'll address each in turn:
Instrumentation - I had assumed that 'Song Without Words for piano solo' on the title page would be sufficient, however it will be easy to add this to the score, probably under the title on page one. (It is rare to see 'piano' stated in front of the first system, unless it is part of a larger ensemble).
Dynamic markings - I tried to go with 'less is more' here, but on reflection some more dynamic instrument would be helpful to the performer, and give more shape to the music. In terms of having a different dynamic level between the melody and accompaniment, in terms of solo piano music this is almost never specified - it is assumed that you would make the melody sing out over the accompaniment (especially with the cantabile instruction, and the fact that the style is a song without words). I'm not sure how I'd notate this further on the page, but it is certainly something I'll look in to.
Phrase marks - This is something I added to the score, then later removed. I agree that these should go back in, to make it clear that in certain parts, e.g. bar 1 the six notes should flow together, rather than two groups of three as might be assumed.
Pedal markings - con ped is a very common instruction is solo piano music. It allows the performer flexibility in how to pedal the piece to their liking, and is also used where the use of pedal is obvious, such as where there is a regular harmonic rhythm as in this piece. Personally I'd assume if someone were attemping to play this piece, they would be of around grade 3-4 standard, and would be well aquainted with legato pedalling. Perhaps in terms of assessment, I need to indicate these things more precisely in order to demonstrate my own knowledge of the technique.
Your compositional ideas are appropriate to this style of music and the use of
modes help to strengthen this style. I feel you could work towards the further
development of your own compositional voice (especially if you decide to continue
to level 2 composition, which I very much hope you will). You have clearly found a
language that works well for you, and the next stage is to find a way to develop this
language so that it is distinctively individual.
Some more pleasing comments. I don't fully understand the part about developing my own compositional voice, so will email my tutor for clarification and update this post with the response.
You have a good awareness of a number of styles which you have successfully
brought together in this piece. The piano writing is particularly idiomatic and
shows that you have a good level of knowledge in this area.
I do have a lot of musical influences that I can bring to the table, and I am glad that I was able to combine this successfully. Again, the comments on the successfullness of the piano writing was great news to me.
Overall, this was a very positive final report, and as always came with very helpful insights and pointers that serve to improve this and also u
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