Composition Masterclass #3: Fermatas and the "Band Sound"

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Classical Nerd is a video series covering music history, theoretical concepts, and techniques, hosted by composer, pianist, and music history aficionado Thomas Little.
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Music:
- Mikko Sirola: Three Waltzes for Piano [MIDI render]
- Thomas Little: Dance! #2 in E minor, performed by Rachel Fellows, Michael King, and Bruce Tippette
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Questions and comments can be directed to:
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All images and audio in this video are for educational purposes only and are not intended as copyright infringement. If you have a copyright concern, please contact me using the above information.

[@ClassicalNerd]

I've got so many pieces in my inbox and I'm looking to get through them all in a mammoth fourth installment. Stay tuned!

[@alfred6272]

I really liked Mikko Sirola’s pieces

[@pawncube2050]

love this series

[@NeonBeeCat]

The satie sounding one was nice

[@user-pf7jv8sv8w]

Wow, so many composers, I wish there were a way to find you all.

[@caterscarrots3407]

I have tried to arrange the Pathetique Sonata for orchestra and boy did I get quite the response, and not in a good way. I was thinking "Well it has this orchestral sound to it on the piano, the orchestration has been done before, it shouldn't be that hard to arrange for a symphony orchestra". But boy was I wrong on that one. I kept going through the exposition of the first movement and then reached a block at the development section. A lot of people were asking "Wait, why do you have a bass clarinet in your orchestra?" to which I would respond "So that if the bassoonist gets tired, there is another bass woodwind to play that role besides bassoon". Other questions I would get would be like these: Um, the alto trombone isn't used anymore, why do you have it here? Do you not understand that in the low mid-register of the flute, a forte dynamic isn't possible? Why do you even have piccolo here if you are just using it as an extension of the flute? To which I would respond: But the alto trombone can play higher notes, like trumpet high while keeping that characteristic trombone sound. I thought it was just in the lower register that forte isn't possible on the flute, not in the lower part of the middle register. Because some of the notes just are too high for a flutist to play faithfully or at all, so those notes go to the piccolo which can handle those high pitches just fine. And it would lead to these long arguments where I felt like I had to defend my orchestration by telling them exactly why I orchestrated it that way. But that was months ago, and since then I have been getting more positive feedback on both my compositions and my arrangements.

[@jorgeluiz1698]

Hi Thomas, what type of archive my piece need to be when I send you the email?

[@ClassicalNerd]

I prefer PDFs for scores and some kind of audio file for pieces (WAV or MP3). I can manage others, but it generally doesn't look as good.

[@jorgeluiz1698]

@@ClassicalNerdThanks, I'll look foward to get those done and submit them to you.

[@kanelbullenochkakan3118]

h0h? What is this? Thomas helping us to write our music better? How do you send in your scores? Lentovivace website?

[@ClassicalNerd]

I receive submissions via e-mail, which is in the description of every video.

[@kanelbullenochkakan3118]

@@ClassicalNerd Thanks, thomas

[@wilh3lmmusic]

8:55 or playable piano music

[@themajor2072]

I’m not sure I wholly agree with the line of reasoning for writing in a wind ensemble. Not to say that the skill of an ensemble shouldn’t be taken into consideration, that much is a given, but even at the collegiate level any wind ensemble worth their salt should absolutely be able to hold their own against some pretty exposed and challenging orchestration. A wind band would be, for instance, expected to pull of Lincolnshire Posy by the collegiate level if it has any merit, and while a lot of the writing is not necessarily soloistic, Grainger was always getting the maximum out of coloristic options by avoiding conventional doubling and giving each instrument an abundance of independent (though perhaps not soloistic) and challenging material. The opening bars of Lisbon come to mind, or the flutter tonguing of the trumpets in Rufford Park Poachers, to say nothing of the Brass writing in Lord Melbourne, or about the actual solos like the trumpet in Horkstow Grange, or the Sax solo in Rufford Park Poachers, or the oboe, Sax, and euphonium in The Brisk Young Sailor. I’m not saying that doubling is inherently a bad thing or that it doesn’t have it’s uses, because there most certainly are uses for it, but it should be a coloristic device to achieve a certain sound, not a crutch for an ensemble. Far more important to ensemble security is idiomatic writing, know the instruments you are writing for so you know the difference between an engaging (but ideally musically challenging) part and an unwieldy awkward part that’s more of a headache than a musical challenge. In any case, I don’t think it’s desirable to limit coloristic options by defaulting on doublings, because the wind ensemble really relies on it’s variety of sound colors to compensate for a lack of the fullness of a conventional orchestra. The string section is easily the most full-bodied and overtly expressive instrument group, and the wind ensemble sacrifices this velvet blanket of sound in exchange for a whole new set of wind and brass colors to play with, I think that to play to the ensemble’s strengths the last thing you should do is rely on doublings in your scoring instead of simply thinking of doubling as an extension of the given color palette. Anyway, thought I’d just give my two cents, and in the end if there was only one way to view and write music then music would be pretty boring so I’m not going to pretend my word is gospel and you can feel free to agree or disagree and write however you want to.

[@ClassicalNerd]

I'm not sure what you're disagreeing with, exactly, because I'm not making a stand either for or against the practice of doubling, just pointing out that it's a confidence-booster in lesser-quality ensembles. There are more amateur wind bands than there are orchestras, and confident performances are more easily procured from these amateur groups if a larger chunk of the ensemble is playing what you're playing. This, of course, sacrifices available orchestrations, which hinders the composition on top of the obvious concerns of making a piece both technically idiomatic, interesting, and well-crafted. What I could have included, on second thought, is a distinction between a repertoire piece and a newly-composed one. A lot of youth or otherwise amateur musicians will learn their ensemble repertoire through recordings, and software renderings often don't cut it, so the level of comfortability they have going into a new piece will be less than ideal.

[@themajor2072]

Classical Nerd My point is not necessarily one of disagreement per se with the point, but the point seems to take the wind ensemble to be amateur as almost a sort of given. I think it goes without saying that there are far more high-school level wind ensembles than there are Military Bands or high level collegiate bands like North Texas, but when you get down to it the same could honestly be said about orchestras and the “orchestral sound” isn’t defined by this fact. Naturally if orchestration or parts become too complex the piece is unusable by certain ensembles, speaking from experience the chances of some of the semipro/adult volunteer orchestras I’ve worked with to program something like Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben or Mahler’s 6th Symphony is practically 0, but this fact doesn’t change their standing in the repertoire. I think it unwise to assume this doubling principle as almost a given part of the “band sound” when it really doesn’t have to be. I don’t think handholding on the part of the composer for it’s own sake is something to strive for, unless you know for certain what kind of ensemble you are writing for and the needs of said ensemble call for such an approach. My problem is not that you are wrong, my problem is that I think what should be kept in mind situationally should not be used as a general orchestration philosophy. You present the conundrum of stable performance and varied orchestration as the problem in writing for wind band, but I think that such approaches that allow for stable performance without relying on overly simplistic and doubled orchestration already exist. That’s why, as I said, I think the answer to this conundrum should not be “when in doubt, double” unless you know that such a remedy is required for the ensemble. Knowledge of the instruments and their capabilities, and then using them to maximize on potential coloristic effects in a way characteristic of the instrument and how it is played should take priority in my opinion.

[@iknowimaysoundgaywhenisayt386]

Upload dude am getting depressed

[@ClassicalNerd]

Patience! I'm getting back into a once-a-week schedule, so a new video will be out this Thursday.

[@iknowimaysoundgaywhenisayt386]

@@ClassicalNerd oooof!! Finally

[@iknowimaysoundgaywhenisayt386]

And also dont upload 30 minute vids lol we know u want the revenue.But i have to admit they are masterpieces and am quite found of em nonetheless good luck in your music career

[@ClassicalNerd]

I am committed to cultivating an interested audience by putting out quality content, so I don't use clickbait or a ferocious production schedule to get a larger number of ultimately superficial views. Given the content that I do, I'm not sure it would do any good, even if it were possible to do the adequate research and find time to edit on a day-in, day-out basis. I'm here to provide a resource, not to try to make a living off of it.

[@iknowimaysoundgaywhenisayt386]

so u actually dont make money from it.my bad

[@ClassicalNerd]

Well, I make some money from it, but not a lot. It's not my primary goal.

[@iknowimaysoundgaywhenisayt386]

@@ClassicalNerd thanks for your content anyways, i was just mad that you dont upload more.

[@jordanmays9551]

@@ClassicalNerd also I LOVE how long the videos it's kind of a religious experience to sit down and watch these. I get to set aside time and just enjoy.

[@iknowimaysoundgaywhenisayt386]

Ifu want to get popular upload 5 days a week or daily and clickbait others by using ovveractiative faces.Am saying these cause you are good and if u want to get popular or atleast be stable on your feet and make a stand living or pocket money.Whatever am just saying these for your own good