This is a folk rock tune I've been tossing around for a couple years that has only recently begun to really develop. The image I get with this music is gorgeously majestic to me--driving along a flat stretch of interstate in the middle of the desert in Arizona, small brambles and cacti dotting the landscape, the high plateaus in the distance sticking up like giant gumdrops painted by the varying shades of the earth. And further off, several miles away, I see the rolling purple clouds of a July thunderstorm, hosing down the old, dry bones of this earth.
This is a piano solo that is almost like a really slow jazz ballad--practically a dirge. The real challenge of this piece, however, comes in its dynamics, requiring much of the piece to be played as softly as possible on a piano yet still with good clarity.
This project, oddly enough, is a big reason why I chose to major in music composition. This symphony, which I have been drafting for almost 6 years now, is based on a story by the same name being written by a friend of mine, Tracy Butler. Basically, the story is about a fictional war taking place in a fictional medieval setting. The war is waged onto the protagonist country and the most highly developed and advanced (for its time), Ainessa, by its neighboring countries, Saobha and Iaban. I've always been a fan of these types of fictions about wars. Ironically enough, though, I'm not as interested in real wars...heh... Well, anyway, if you check out Tracy's website (provided on my Links page), you can read up on all the wonderfully deep character descriptions that she has out.
Tracy was kind enough to supply me with a lengthy summary of the story which has helped tremendously in planning out this symphony. The style of the symphony is a mix of some classical elements, a lot of Celtic influence, and just my own odd style of composing (naturally). I'm planning for this piece to be approximately 45-60 minutes long. As it stands now, there are ten movements. However, I only have really the three final movements planned out, and sketches and ideas for the rest of the symphony. I'll make it work, though, so don't worry!
The eighth movement, "Hopes of Snow," is something that was performed in December 2003 by a small chamber wind ensemble. You can listen to the mp3 of the movement here: Hopes of Snow MUCH gratitude goes to all the performers and conductor who were willing to perform this piece.
This is an arrangement for band that I'm working on--it starts out slow and almost chorale-like, but then busts into a rockin' Riverdance feel. Lots of play between both of the themes, but I think "I Saw Three Ships" will still be the dominant focus.
Yay for band literature! I'll be using an older theme as one of the themes in this medley of sorts--the same theme I used as a sort of "entry piece" for a film scoring job.