Assignment Five: Tutor Feedback

I was very pleased with the result of my final assignment; it's a piece that I enjoy playing myself and think sounds evocative and appealing. It's always with apprehension that I await tutor feedback, and I'm pleased that I mostly hit the mark with this assignment, with only a small error in interpreting the brief.

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

Assignment Five: Song Without Words

Title: Song Without Words

Time Signature: 6/8

Key: B Natural Minor / D Major

Instrumentation: Piano


As a pianist I was very much looking forward to composing this short piece for piano. As is usually the case, I used some of the ideas from my brainstorming session, but not others. I think it's important not to use too many different ideas within the same piece, especially one of only 3 minutes in length in order to provide cohesiveness within the piece as a whole.

One thing I was sure of though was that I wanted to write the piece in a natural minor key (otherwise known as the aeolian mode). This would give the piece a more 'modern' and unusual sound, while still allowing me to fulfill the brief of following the circle of fifths chord progression.

I wanted to create a flowing and lyrical, but poigniant, melody, similar in style to the piano transcriptions of Japanese composer Nobuo Uematsu's scores for the Final Fantasy series of video games. Other inspirations included Italian composer Ludovico Einaudi, British composer Christopher Norton (who wrote the popular Microjazz series of piano tutor books) and German romantic composer Felix Mendelssohn who himself wrote many Songs Without Words.

The piece has a rough form of ABACAD. Recurring motif's from the A section interspersed with new ideas create a cohesive but interesting framework.

I make extensive use of extended harmonies; 7ths, 11ths and 13ths are frequently used, both as chords and broken chord accompaniments. I also use altered chords at a few key points in the music.

Excerpt from Song Without Words

Download Audio File       Download Complete Score

Score Analysis

Bars 1-4: A mostly unaccompanied left hand serves as an introduction in the key of B natural minor.

Bars 5-11: A sort of pre-theme, alternating between chords I and IV, before ending on chord V, which creates a perfect cadence with chord I at the start of the main theme in bar 12.

Bars 12-26: The main theme of the piece, repeated twice times with slight modifications, including the use of duplets. The chord progression here over eight bars utilises both an interrupted and a perfect cadence as follows: I - IV - V - VI, I - IV - V - I.

Bars 27-39: The dominant harmony at bar 26 is now prolonged for 14 bars, in contrast to the quick cadential resolution at bars 18-19. Interest is maintained over the static harmony with an increasingly active left hand rhythm, shapely dynamics and use of the Arabic scale in an improvisationary style.

Bars 40-54: There is now a repeat of the pre-theme and main theme, but with an unexpected modulation to the relative major, by using the dominant of the new key at bar 46, forming a perfect cadence to the new tonic chord at bar 47. This key change gives a feeling of optimism in a thus-far bleak soundscape.

Bars 55-65: At bar 55 chord VI of D major is used, which is also chord I of the original key of B minor. This brings us back to the minor mode, where the harmony rises by step through chords V, VI and VII, before being interrupted by chord II, instead of the expected resolution to chord I. The chord type used here is a C13; the C is naturalled to remove the tritone and to give a pleasant major sound. After the pause, it is followed by chord VII (A9) in two different voicings, then chord I (B11#9). Here the chord VII is functioning as dominant, creating a perfect cadence.

Bars 66-73: The introductory material from the beginning of the piece returns, this time repeated to make eight bars in total.

Bars 74-83: The last notes of bar 73 lead back into D major this final section, essentially a coda. These bars consist of stepwise semiquaver runs over I - V harmony, followed by a slowing down of the melodic movement over I - IV - V harmony.

Bars 84-86: Chord V from the previous four bars resolves to chord I, with hands in contrary motion. The movement is abruptly but softly interrupted with a staccato quaver in bar 86.

Bars 87-89: After five beats rest in bar 86, the piece ends on an elaborated perfect cadence. The first chord is III7 (F#m7), functioning as dominant as it contains the notes of the dominant triad. This is then followed by another dominant chord - V13 (A13). To complete the cadence there is a simple resolution to the tonic triad.
 

Meeting The Assessment Criteria

 

Technical Presentation

Many of the presentation type issues noted by my tutor in the last assignment (such as the sibelius 7 plugin not converting to sibelius 6, and inconsistent use of octave transpositions) weren't relevant here as my score didn't include them. My main 'tool' for presentation of the score was my knowledge of piano music. I also made use of Sibelius 7's 'magnetic layout' function to keep objects on the score from colliding, and also made an adjustment to staff size as I thought the initial 6 systems per page was too crowded.

Compositional Skills

In this assignment I feel I have met the requirements of the brief, but taken them in a slightly different direction by introducing modulations to and from the key of B natural minor. This allowed me to produce the sound I wanted while still following traditional chord progressions. I also incorporated elements found in earlier exercises, such as a lingering on the dominant. Other times I used 'fragments' of the chord cycle, for example moving repeatedly between chords I and IV. The brief suggested not to produce a perfect cadence until the very end of the work, but instead I used them several times, to end phrases and to modulate, as is usual.

I was also careful with my voice leading, for example where the parts travel in similar motion I generally strive for intervals such as thirds and sixths. Melodic shape is important also, and I feel my piece uses a good amount of the piano's range. There are some very large intervals, especially in the left hand parts. The performer would be expected to pedal this piece in legato style throughout in order to smoothly produce these intervals, as per the instruction con ped at the beginning.

Dynamics are used throughout the piece to help shape the mood, and articulation is used sparingly; this piece is to be performed mostly legato cantabile, with just a single staccato and a handful of accents so as not to jarre with the overal feel of the music. 

My piece follows a loose but identifiable structure, and I reuse existing motifs as well as introduce new ideas throughout. This makes sure the music sounds cohesive as a whole, rather than a scattering of random ideas. Where repetition is used however I have been careful to make subtle alterations to pitch and especially rhythm to keep the listener interested.

Creativity

As already stated, my main aim here was to run with the brief, but interprete it creatively. I very much enjoy pieces written using the modal system, and its something I've done in previous assignments. Here I chose the Aolean mode, otherwise known as natural minor. This allowed me to create a less ordinary sound, but it was still straightforward to keep to a traditional chord progression and make use of cadences as well as modulate freely to the relative major with which it has all notes in common.

Extended harmonies play a huge part in this piece, and all my ideas revolved around them. Broken chords in the left hand are almost always 9ths, 11ths and 13ths, and extended harmony also allowed me to decorate cadences, with extended chord VII and III acting as chord V.

The piece has distinct changes of mood, made possible with modulations between the minor and major, the use of an unsual scale (Arabic) and the various changes of dynamic and tempo.

Stylistic Awareness

A raft of composers came to mind when brainstorming this assignment. I wanted a similar feel to the works of Einaudi, but with less repetitiveness, such as those works by Uematsu. Mendelssohn wrote many Songs Without Words, and his Hunting Song provided inspiration for the semiquaver runs on the last page. Norton's Microjazz series has pieces written in many different styles (not just jazz), and he frequently employs the modes. The pieces from his Microjazz books are of a similar style and length to the brief of this assignment, so they made a good reference.

Ultimately however it mostly came down to my own experience as a pianist. Although I've never composed for piano before, I am aware of some common patterns and styles used, so I had a bank of experience to draw on. The piano is an instrument I'll compose for a lot in the future, mainly as I'm able to perform it myself!

Brainstorming for Assignment Five

Before I begin work on the fifth assignment I'm going to put together a plan here, as well as a brainstorm of ideas that I may or may not use in the piece.

Some ideas to consider:

Flowing, lyrical piece for piano.
Tonal, major, but in the style of aeris' theme (Uematsu), or optimistic minor theme.
An extended section on the dominant or submediant chord.
Essential to use an interrupted cadence.
Experiment with a plagal ending to continue the 'serene' theme.
Four bar phrases.
ABA form.
Lots of extended chords.
Chromatic passing chords.
Left hand 10ths.
Tempo changes.

Listening to the Prelude of Das Rheingold

Das Rheingold is the first opera from Wagner's Ring cycle. The prelude to an opera is an instrumental 'introduction' to the opera. This prelude is around four minutes long, and uses only one chord - Eb Major (Eb, G, Bb). I find it interesting how Wagner is able to keep interest for this long using only one chord. He achieves this by gradually building up the instrumental texture and volume, as well as utilising increasingly interesting rhythms. The prelude from start to finish feels like it is building towards a climax, as it proceeds without pause into the first scene.

The piece begins with around 16 bars of just bassoon and double bass. The double bass part sustains an Eb throughout the prelude, as a drone. The eight horns are then introduced one at a time with a simple dotted rhythm, slowly increasing the texture of the score. More and more instruments are added, with the cello the first to play an arpeggio figure around the key chord.

A static harmony can be very effective at reinforcing the tonic, or the dominant, or any other chord, when other variables are used to create interest. I could perhaps experiment with sustaining the submediant chord as part of an interrupted cadence in assignment five. 

Improvisation on a Dominant

This is quite a substantial exercise, requiring a composition of around a page in length. The idea is to play the dominant chord in the accompaniment part, and make the melody interesting in order to prolong this dominant chord for as long as possible. Secondary factors include varying the rhythm of the static harmony (something I already explored a little in the previous exercise), and the brief hints at the possibility for a modulation.

I am very pleased with my attempt at this, especially at how its clear to hear how the harmony is 'static' and doesn't feel complete until the end. As in the previous exercise there was lots of creative scope here which is always enjoyable.

I chose D Major for the key, which meant that the majority of my piece would be centred around A, its dominant chord. I chose to use the dominant 9th chord instead of the triad as this would give me a greater 'sound world' to play with. For much of the piece the root of the dominant chord is in a held bass note, lasting the full bar, with other notes of the chord played above in a quaver pattern. The melody consists of notes of the chord, along with passing notes for melodic decoration. At bar 9 there is a new section, where I move to the dominant 9th on C. This means that the C sharps in the previous chord are now naturals, and the B's are now flattened. There is also a slight rhythmic change here to inject some vitality before two dark sounding bars at 11 and 12 where the chord moves back to the dominant 9th on A (rootless). The harmony finally resolves to the tonic in bar 15, interrupted by the dominant triad, then finally resting on the tonic. This convential cadence at the end using non-extended chords adds to the feeling of finally resolving.

I used several ideas to keep the piece interesting while I was sustaining the dominant:

• Rhythmic variation in the bass.
• Interesting flowing melody incorporating triplets and syncopation.
• Change of dominant chord and back again.
• Contrasting arpeggiated figures in the middle section.
• Dynamic contrast.
• Extended dominant chords giving colourful and 'exotic' harmonies.

 

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Elaborate Cadences

 For this exercise, we are asked to make four contrasting attempts at 'dressing up' a perfect cadence, each in a different key, of which two should be major, and two minor. I was looking forward to attempting this exercise, as the theory is straightforward but there is lots of room for creativity.

Elaborate Cadence 1 - A Major

 

 

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For this first cadance the left hand follows the basic cadential progression of V7 - I, in the form of sustained chords. The right hand initially starts with a dotted rhythm using notes of the chord, but in bar two becomes a descending chromatic triplet pattern, before resolving simultaneously with the bass on chord I. The chromatic notes in no way distract the ear from the very strong harmonic movement, strengthened with the use of effective voice-leading to create contrary motion.

Elaborate Cadence 2 - B Major

 

 

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For this cadence all of the notes are diatonic to the key. To create interest I opted to use 'extended' chords; the right hand playing V9, then V11, then V13 before a simple chord V triad, and a rhythmic use of three tonic chords. Some people may recognise this cadence to be very similar to that used at the end of Burgmuller's etude The Storm; I did heavily borrow from that piece, but experimented with my own choice of chords.

Elaborate Cadence 3 - C Minor

 

 

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I wanted to see if I could compose my own version of the baroque/classical cadence that I heard in my research pieces. The left hand plays the dominant triad in alberti bass style, and with the right hand I wanted to include some chromaticism to see if I could 'throw off' the cadence. The right hand starts with an arpeggiated diminished 7th chord before returning to notes of the scale, with more rhythmic vitality. The move to chord I is anticipated with a fast trill in the right hand, terminating with a mordent onto the tonic. The sense of a perfect cadence is strong throughout.

Elaborate Cadence 4 - B Minor

 

 

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This cadence has a Latin feel, due to the key, syncopation and jaunty rhythm. All notes are diatonic to the key aside from the raised 7th note of the scale. The resolution to the tonic feels prolonged as the arpeggio figure in the bass falters on the leading note, finally resolving in bar five.

Conclusion

 

This was a fun exercise, and as stated in the introduction it's all about the creativity. There's little in the way of technical work, as a perfect cadence is always V - I; its about how you can creatively express the chord change. The exercise also demonstrates how strong the cadence is, and how it exerts its dominance even with varying rhythms or chromatic melodies.

Listening to Cadenzas

 In this first piece of research for part five of the course, we are asked to listen to some cadenzas by well-known composers. Firstly though, here is wikipedia's definition of a cadenza:

In music, a cadenza, meaning cadence; is, generically, an improvised or written-out ornamental passage played or sung by a soloist or soloists, usually in a "free" rhythmic style, and often allowing for virtuosic display. Indicated by a fermata in all parts if improvised, a cadenza is usually over a final or penultimate note in a piece or important cadence and the accompaniment rests or sustains a note or chord. Thus it is often before a final coda or ritornello.

Beethoven Piano Sonata No.3 in C Major

 

This first example exemplifies the above definition. The cadenza in this movement appears at the end of the recapitulation, and is followed by a coda. It is written out, as opposed to improvised, utilizing a four semiquaver - two quaver pattern, first in the right hand then in both hands, eventually landing on a G7 (Dominant 7th) chord, followed by a short chromatic descending run to land on a C chord, completing the V-I perfect cadence. There are no bar lines in this written-out cadenza, suggesting a certain freedom of tempo.

Mozart Piano Concerto No.23

 

This concerto was unusual in that the written out cadenza was included in the manuscript. Usually if the cadenza was composed rather than improvised, it was included on a seperate sheet. This is the only one of Mozart's piano concertos where the cadenza was included in the manuscript. The character of the cadenza is that of fast runs interspersed with slower sections, often in the minor mode (I could hear fragments that were reminiscent of Mozarts Fantasty in D Minor). The return of the orchestra was signaled with a right-hand trill and a single, heavy dominant chord in left hand, the trill terminating in a turn or mordent.

Bach Brandenburg Concerto No.5

 

This is a very long cadenza, at 65 bars and around 3 minutes that Bach notated. It starts off fast paced but fairly innocuous, before building to a frenzy from around the two minute mark. Like the Mozart, this cadenza appears to end with a trill and a turn or mordent on the end and the dominant chord in the left hand, which is a clear signal that the other instruments should return. This cadenza is obviously written to showcase the virtuosity of the harpsichord player.