Morning Snowscape

I like it. It's really pretty.

My suggestions/comments would be..

It feels like it starts and stops a little bit too much... The first time it comes to a pause near the beginning, is ok.. But the times after that, to me feels like the piece loses momentum.

The main melody is nice. I felt like it needed to be a little more clearly stated though, to make clear exactly what it is. It was sligtly obfuscated by the orchestration in parts and also, the second time you state it, It's different.. So I wasn't sure what the "real" version of the melody was supposed to be. It might be helpful to state it twice, clearly and simply, without any variation, so we really get what it's original version is supposed to be, before you alter it.

The B section is nice too. But could definitely be longer and the melody further explored.. I kept feeling like the music wants to break free.. (As pretentious as that might sound) but let the piece go.. Let the melody open up and develop for that B section. Then have that lead back into your A melody again, with the variations that 2nd time round.

These are just my first thoughts while listening to it a few times through..

 

Like the composition. Very pretty, like Debussy.

Mix wise, a bit heavy on the scoring noise. Clarinets feel too close to me, try EQing out the higs and lows and turning them down to push them back some. (Watch "Template Balancing" if you haven't already.) I think you could be a bit more expressivo on the strings. They tail off on the end of lines but I'd like to hear more dynamics in the melody.

But again, very nice piece.

 

I'm glad other people struggle with this. I've determined to put the work in to finish a number of pieces I feel are getting stale, but I almost wish there was a class dedicated to this specifically. I'm relatively confident better piano skills will help me, I often gravitate to overly simple triad drivel.

Lovely sounding piece, you certainly captured the aesthetic. Personally, I'd agree on the start-stop thing: I think "slow-downs" are appropriate given the overall peaceful and sort of silent nature of untouched snowscapes, but there was a strings-swell around the middle that I sort of wish continued on (even if it were quieter). I think leaving those quiet moments in add to the aesthetic but disguising them a bit more might possibly be more effective, if that makes sense. Of course, this advice is from some dude on the internet so take it with a grain of salt ;-).

 

Hey Matthias,

Great piece. Titled appropriately, def set the mood and vibe right away. Rubato sounds beautiful, nicely done. I see what you mean with it maybe not going anywhere, but this doesn't strike me as a piece that needs to. To my ears, it's equal parts pleasant and smart, without being pretentious. Nice work.

 

That's a good point actually. A great deal of the "fresh snow" vibe is precisely about hunkering down inside and simply watching the slow pace of nature.

 

Personally? I've never thrown out a "song" -- I'll discard themes, parts, motifs, etc, but something I personally try never to do is throw out what initially inspired me. If a song is asking for something other than what I've written, I'll shift and change it, but I think dedication to that particular aesthetic or idea can really be vital, and if you lose that, the piece loses significance. The music doesn't need to always "break free", and if you ask for input, people will always find something to point out to you. But if it feels the way it should to you, above all else, don't lose that vision.

Me too! The translation from mind to fingers isn't fast enough, and it's why I've started taking piano lessons and working on technical skill in addition to transcription and learning pieces.
I've been doing the same -- I'll have an idea for what I want something to sound like, but I'll boil it down to piano before orchestrating. Or, I'll mess around with orchestrating to try and get ideas, then go to piano and boil it down to its essence and work on that while retaining a certain aesthetic. Not sure this is the best method, but in any case I'm very much in the same boat that I need to be able to filter through and work on ideas more quickly, and I'm relatively confident instrument skill will help in this regard. What I've picked up through my own transcription and piece learning the last while already has.

 

I dunno, I say give this a mildly less dynamic mix and master, bring the bass in a little earlier, make the rhythm of the bass (eventually) slightly more constant and quarter note-based to drive it and call it a day.