This category contains articles that analyse musical works, discussing what they can teach us as composers, orchestrators and arrangers.
Many of Chopin’s Nocturnes follow a ternary structure, or ABA form, where melodies of the A-section repeat and flank a different middle section. Interestingly, however, Chopin’s Nocturnes often implement subtle embellishments to each repetition of these A-themes. His first Nocturne Opus 9, Number 1 is a good example of these melodic variations. Taking a closer […]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYqfTcI3Ztk&t=9s&ab_channel=AnyOldMusic Paul Dukas’s The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (1897) is a musical composition based on a poem, of the same name, by 18th-century German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Goethe was a product of the later Enlightenment. However, he had a profound impact on the European 19th-century and Romantic culture. For instance, Dukas is only one of many composers
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice – Paul Dukas (Music Composition Techniques Analysis) Read More »
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYUPk1vKxQk&ab_channel=AnyOldMusic Witold Lutosławski’s Chantefleurs et Chantefables is a song cycle for soprano voice and chamber orchestra, completed in 1991. Textually, the songs use the poetry of twentieth-century French surrealist Robert Desnos (1900 – 1944). A series of children’s poems, compiled and published posthumously in 1955, under the title Chantefables et Chantefleurs (Lutosławski reverses the title
Chopin’s 20th Nocturne in C#-minor, published posthumously, is a brooding piano solo that boasts, unsurprisingly, facets quintessential to Chopin’s Nocturnes. These qualities, in Chopin’s nocturnes, have long fascinated me as a composer. Simple in design and modest in development, they demonstrate that complexity and quality are not synonymous. Instead, it is about doing enough and
Nocturne No. 20 in C-sharp Minor, F. Chopin – Composition Analysis Read More »
Analysing Bach’s Badinerie, I discuss texture, harmony, tonality and melody. It is a treasure trove of composition technique presented by the prolific master and 18th-century musical craftsman Johann Sebastian Bach.
Badinerie (Orchestral Suite No. 2 – B-Minor) – J. S. Bach – Composition Technique Read More »
Delineating a string quartet and string orchestra in the instrumentation and engraving of Elgar’s Introduction and Allegro for Strings impacts its composition, orchestration and arrangement. The reason is that it imposes a compelling dichotomy between a string quartet (solo strings) and a string orchestra (sectional strings). Doing this allows and, undoubtedly, encourages Elgar’s exploration of the solo
Introduction and Allegro for Strings (Edward Elgar) – String Orchestration Read More »
In this article I look at Ralph Vaughan-Williams’ 5 Variants on Dives and Lazarus. A study in blending string timbres, I discuss Vaughan-Williams’ use of divisi and blending of solo, section and specific-string timbres.
Dives and Lazarus (RVW) – String Orchestration Read More »
In this article, I analyse and discuss Arvo Pärt’s Für Alina. Unearthing facets of tintinnabuli, I also discuss its origins and how these influenced the composition of Für Alina.
Für Alina – Composition Techniques Read More »
In this article/video, I take a look at the composition technique used in Christopher Tin’s composition for Civilisation 6, Sogno di Volare. Unearthing more than I expected to, there is a range of techniques to take from this piece. For example, the interconnection of musical structures and the use of established form.
Sogno di Volare – Music Composition Techniques Read More »
In this article I analyse and discuss the music composition techniques that John Williams uses in his film cue The Flag Parade.
The Flag Parade – Music Composition Techniques Read More »