[classical - piano solo] Sonata 01 (MP3) 20th century style

[uncloned]

another one in garritain personal orchestra clothing.
steinway grand

http://www.neuon.com/uncloned/chrismusic/sonata01-GPO.mp3

[Sam_Zen]

Most of this seems to be according to the 12-tone concept.
I just wonder: this is a quite long exposition of different play on an instrument, but what's the communication ?
I can't discover some message, technical concept or theme with this.

[uncloned]

Most of this seems to be according to the 12-tone concept.
I just wonder: this is a quite long exposition of different play on an instrument, but what's the communication ?
I can't discover some message, technical concept or theme with this.

here is the info - sorry - it is most definitely not 12-tone - would you like to see the score? I have it as a pdf.

but since I wrote it for me... it fails as art for you if it doesn't communicate to you... but its still music for me...

Are you curious to see the WMR review of this? (remember them?)

This is a very divisive piece of music.

http://www.neuon.com/uncloned/chrismusic/SONATA01a.pdf

that's the score

Album:
Classical Clones

Artist's description:
This is the Garritian Personal Orchestra steinway version of this - see the soundfont version for lots of info and comments.

-----------------------------------------------------
This piece is in four movements though do not expect a "classical" treatment of the form.

The opening motive is a series of fourths and fifths with the theme restated as a quartal chord - and proceeds to develop with quartal/quintal harmony. Note: in some inversions 4ths and 5ths become major 2nds... There are two basic organizing ideas in the first movement – the equivalence of melodic and harmonic ideas (something I borrowed from the 12-tone serialists) and micro-development – take a few of the preceding notes and build on them in a fashion not unlike a "molecular growth program".

The second movement is more micro-development into a collection of tone clusters.

The third movement is based on a development of the opening third movement theme and contrasting melody through a variety of styles. Mostly tonal.

The fourth movement grabs various thematic materials from the previous movements and gradually develops them into a more coherent form as the piece nears its end.

There is no 12-tone serialism in this piece.

It has been accused (by several people) to have too much variation... you decide.

Contributors:
GPO
Cakewalk Pro Audio, Timidity, Sonar
>8,000 events (mostly notes)

The score is in the source section

Inspiration:
may ideas knocking around demanding to get out...

[Harbinger]

Setting aside your own personal importance in the piece, i gather that you may be interested to know how other ears receive it. In this vein i will analyze my own perception of this work. I listened to it from start to finish, and having composed many solo piano suites myself (altho with a different template in mind), i feel i'm qualified to offer you an experienced critique...

Yes, i quickly realized the chordal structure, while eclectic, was still "traditional" -- not twelve-tone or whole-tone. There seemed from the outset to be a play with rhythmic progression, like a child refusing to use only quarter- or eighth-note sequences. A nice tossed salad of staccato and chord-bleeding, seasoned with mentions of jazz here and a dash of punk (yes, punk at about 3:50 -- if you could play punk rock on a piano!).
I've learned that composers can create 5 types of works -- music for mathematicians, music for other musicians, music for teachers, music for the masses, and music for the "unlistening." This piece might be considered thesis work, both in performance and composition. It is what i would turn in to my professor to show my skill in music composition. The reason why this belongs to this group is that there is no apparent inspiration, or perhaps "vision" is a better word. Whether or not a piece of any art is "inspired" only the artist would know. But a work of art that translates the inspiration to the perceivers of it can be said to have a "vision," whether it's a scenic description (as in Vivaldi's "Four Seasons"), a story (like Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker Suite"), an emotion or abstraction (like Mascagni's "Interlude"), or simply an aural effect (such as Satie's "Gymnopedie"'s). Your sonata No. 1 does not send me its vision.
However, it is not without merit. It is great music for analysis, but for the background or for listening pleasure, no. When i listen to it, i find myself wanting to follow along with the sheet music,  and find the beauty in the technique. I'm not, however, inspired to learn how to play it. If you say it has meaning to you, i'm interested in my own time (and searching) to find out how and why by reading the score.
If you can play this piece, you have more skill and dexterity than i. If you composed it without playing it (as i have done with my own music), then you can compose blindfolded. The only thing i would say negatively about this piece is the ending. It seems unfin

[uncloned]

the WMR Review of Sonata 01

Sonata

acoustic, solo, classical, modern (piano)

by Chris and the Clones

Shih Tzu


Tilt: Positive Overall: 95 Composition: 97 Technical: 87 Originality: 96 Samples: 86


Let me begin by saying that I am not especially prepared to write a review on a piece like this. What we have here is a contemporary classical solo piano, something that I might be able to thoroughly critique during, say, my senior year of college as a music major (I hope). Right now, I have only meager knowledge of classical music and an even drier well of information about contemporary music, but it's all I have to use. I'm sure that Chris and the Clones doesn't expect all WMR reviewers to be professors of music composition anyway.

The title would lead one to believe that the piece is a sonata, but if it is, it certainly is well disguised. It's very difficult to find any repeated themes in the piece. The few I notice include the theme that opens the piece, a theme that makes a strong return in the coda. Another recurring theme is CDEDF#CC, which appears both midway through the piece and at the very end. Since these two themes close the piece, one would assume they are important, and they may well be the two main themes of the sonata (again, presuming it is one).

It's not really possible for me to give an overall account of the form of this piece, since it changes style and mood so frequently, and I can't pick out any themes at all that would cue me in to a recognizable form, such as that of a sonata. I especially like a section in the first third of the piece where the midrange drones a single note that gradually becomes a small cluster while the bass and treble question and answer each other's melodies. Contemporary methods such as twelve-tone and tone clusters are present throughout the piece.

But wait! This is not only classical music, it's a module. Therefore, one must also take into account technical ability and sample choice. On the whole, I am impressed by the tracking displayed in this module. There are a few rough spots, most notably during fast runs and trills, where the illusion of actual piano playing is broken. Too many of these runs (like the one about 15 seconds into the piece) are limited to one channel; the ones that alternate between two channels sound much better. Generally, when one plays a legato series of notes on a piano, one presses down the next key before the first key is fully released, so at times two notes are actually sounding at once. This overlap is lost if a run is restricted to one channel. This technique is used throughout the piece, but it's only noticeable in the extremely fast segments.

The piano is generally a very good-sounding one, but it seems to pop when one note is cut off and a new one is played. Again, when multiple channels are used, this problem disappears. Unfortunately, the pops are evident throughout the entire piece, and one must simply put up with them. It's not a huge problem.

I like the idea of having the low notes to the left in the panning and the high ones to the right, but this might have been carried to extremes in this case. I'm not sure whether the lower half of the piano is used more often in this piece or it's just louder, but either way, my left ear seems to tire far more rapidly than my right. This is much less of a problem if one backs away from the speakers or lowers the span of the panning in the player. Still, pitch/panning correspondence is a good idea, and a logical one, considering the instrument simulated.

Other than those, I have no complaints about the technical aspects of the piece. Either the composer used some sort of hookup between his tracker and a keyboard or he paid a fantastic amount of attention to volume and tempo. This is some of the most believable piano playing I've heard in mod format, perhaps THE most. There are some patterns where the tempo and speed go absolutely nuts; I'm curious if the composer is using random tempos to explore the contemporary ideas of randomness and spontaneity in a tracking medium.

In fact, I'm curious about a whole lot of this piece. If ever a module would benefit from composer notes in the instrument list, this one would. All we get is "Chris and the Clones/Sonata 01," and I can't even resolve the 'sonata' claim. Although there is something to be said for letting the music stand on its own, it would be extremely interesting to hear the composer's explanation of the piece and learn things about it that one might miss at first glance.

Still, I don't have to know exactly what's going on to say that I find it all extremely interesting, and definitely worth listening to. Chris and the Clones has (or have) crafted a marvelous, inventive, highly enjoyable work, composed with incredible talent. Classical mods live on!

Skullsaw


Tilt: Positive Overall: 90 Composition: 95 Technical: 95 Originality: 85 Samples: 70


Hoo boy, if this isn't a mod made for a select listener, then I don't know what is. Sonata is a solo piano piece. It is definitely a product of the 20th century, this isn't Chopin or Ludwig Van, but more closely aligned with Zappa, Stravinsky and Ginestera. I swear I can hear Keith Emerson influence in the heavy use of riffs and even in certain melodic lines.

As a composition, I think Sonata is pretty impressive, especially when compared to 99% of the mods I've listened to. There is a lot variety in texture, density and dynamics. The piece moves smoothly through atonal, modal, freeform and traditional styles. The coding is excellent, whether intentional or by accident, the piece sounds like it was entered via a piano, pedals and all.

The only real fault I can find as a module is the piano's sound. It's too machine-like in tone but, frankly, I think it's impossible to do a truly accurate piano sound in the mod format. The piano has too many subtleties for a tracker to handle no matter how well it's coded. That being said, I don't think it can be done any better than this.

This is the second piece I've reviewed by Chris and the Clones, the other being The Bells, and I must say they're (actually he's) on a roll with me. Sonata is original, daring and very refreshing. You won't come away humming any melodies after hearing this one but you will hear something you haven't heard before.


Rebriffer


Tilt: Positive Overall: 80 Composition: 90 Technical: 60 Originality: 90 Samples: 80


Reviewing XMs is usually a doddle, but every once in a while, a track is so difficult to categorise that reviewing becomes very hard work. Chris and the Clones specialize in this sort of track.

They (he, actually) has been active for around about a year and a half, mainly concentrating on Real Audio files but they have made the occassional XM. The last XM release I reviewed was The Bells--which, I have to admit, I liked, but there again I would.... See, the problem is that C&tC occupy a very uncomfortable area of MODdom--you either love it or you hate it. This is not music to drift off too.

Sonata No 1 is not at all like their usual XM fare, however, as it is a pure piano peice, but not yer typical piano outing by a country mile. C&tC are no great shakes in the tracking department but they more than make up for that in the depth and breadth of their musical vision. There's only one sample (piano, surprisingly enough) but it is a clear, well balanced piano, and its use is little short of dazzling.

Now, before I get into the standard "C&tC are god" speech, let me be quite clear on one point: C&tC are definitely an acquired taste, and don't say I didn't warn you. However, for this reviewer, they are always fascinating, complex, incredibly deep and above all extremely uncompromising.

So what do we actually get for our sonata's worth then?

A piano piece that harks back both to some of the best classical and/or jazz traditions and a lot more besides. It's a very simple peice that somehow evokes storms of memories--some real, some put there by the piece. It's chock-a-block full of the most innovative runs and riffs I've heard this side of some of the very, very best jazz pianists (Keith Jarrett springs to mind, automatically), so if you like 'cool' in the jazz tradition, this'll do ya! It isn't easy to get into by any stretch of a fevered imagination but once you are there, it's definitely worth it. Handle with care, and if you like a challenge....

Emit


Tilt: Positive Overall: 65 Composition: 65 Technical: 60 Originality: 80 Samples: 25


Coming in just shy of 11 minutes, Sonata is a "modern classical" track, (however much a contradiction that may be) reminiscent of some of John Cage's piano pieces. It has the distinction of not repeating a single pattern throughout the entire module. Nevertheless, there is a very pleasing flow to it, as melodies are bumped into and then discarded in an almost accidental manner.

The samples are the main source of my criticism; they are samples of piano and either heavily processed piano or some type of synth tone. Their quality is somewhat lacking, especially the piano, which comes across as dull and muffled.

The samples have been looped at the end, so as to allow control of the decay of the sound. However, one of the samples has not been looped very carefully, and as a result, CLICKS. While I am interested in the critique of a digital medium and the use of noise in music, this particular sample frustrated me to no end. I found it difficult for me to listen to the track without making a sour face every time that sample played.

Overall, the composition was interesting and dynamic. The music is layered piano, which ranges stylistically from fairly simple to very complex. There are some impressive build-ups and explosive moments scattered throughout the track, as well as some very effective uses of silence. However, there were also several moments during which some samples were repeated far too quickly--this caused the piano sample to sound more like a whacked synth sound. I found this sounded too unlike the rest of the track and weakened the integrity or 'wholeness' of the piece.

In general, I was fairly impressed by this track, both in itself and because it is a genre of music I've never heard attempted in any modules before. The file is only 78k, so I would definitely suggest if you're at all interested in modern composers such as John Cage, Steve Reich, or Terry Rilley, that you give Sonata a listen.

Ming


Tilt: Negative Overall: 40 Composition: 55 Technical: 50 Originality: 100 Samples: 50


There are four kinds of modules. There are modules that sux, and there are modules that rox, and there are modules that finds a little place to live and set up a home, grow old and die between those two definitions.

And then there is Sonata by Chris and the Clones.

There are four kinds of music. Music that fills a purpose other than listening pleasure (like movie scores, commercial jingles, etc.), music that fills no other purpose than listening pleasure (aka Easy-Listening), and music with an artistic message.

And then there is Sonata by Chris and the Clones.

There are four kinds of composers. Those who make music to please as many as possible, those who don't give a shit what others think, and those who do their thing, and hope pepole will like it.

And then there is Chris and the Clones, composer of Sonata.

A very (at least in the modscene) odd composer, this Chris fella (who, despite the name, actually is one person). With an artistic fingerprint so different from your common hit chart stuff it probably scares most people off at first contact. But not me. Oh no, not this deathdefying reviewer. So, plunging myself headforward into the deep waters of Modern Serious Music (the coiners of the style obviously don't regard any other music as serious, but that's their problem, not mine or Chris'), I'll continue this review with a brief description.

It is an all piano piece. The only sound in the tune is (ta-daa) piano. So far so good. It's when describing the music, themes and styles of composing that clouds of problems start gathering on the horizon foretelling real shitty weather further on (where's that umbrella?). It is fairly indescribable. If I were mean, I could say something like "If you put a thousand monkeys in front of pianos, one of them would eventually play Vivaldi's Four Seasons, but the first hour or so, would sound like Sonata." No, it is not true, but for some people it will probably sound that way. Just random notes.

There is one difference, though. In a manner of total self-sufficience and boldness, I pride myself of recognising musical correctness. And in Sonata every single note (and there are plenty of them, in over 120 patterns) is totally correct. Nothing is put there that doesn't have an obvious function in the song. But (always those damn buts) that alone is never enough. There is no coherence, no theme to follow, no engaging melodies. No nothing that makes this, in my opinion, structured music. There are patterns, now and then, where everything fits in, and where a sudden burst of inspiration on C's behalf has produced painfully beautiful sections. But they never last for more than a couple of seconds, before the monkey is back, hammering mindlessly. Even though those few patterns are enough to, at least, keep the song on my drive, I can't say I'm impressed by anything other than C's musical knowledge.

Referring back to The Bells, a tune which I, as a representative of the minority at that time, really liked, I can just say that, even though my reaction (a big laugh for a great funny tune) turned out to be quite different from what the composer intended ('twas a serious tune! ), it did mean something to me. It did communicate, although in an apparently unintended way. I kinda interpreted the tune in my own way. Art is in the eye of the beholder and all that funk.

However hard I try, Sonata can't make me do that.

If there is an artistic idea behind this song, I'll be damned if I can find it. And if there is a message, it's far beyond my grasp. I do not understand this song, I do not understand this style, and I absolutely do not understand why he has released this as a module. The fact that the tracked format does not give this tune the dynamic chance it would have on a real piano is another thing, but as I regard composition to be the only real part to judge in this tune, I'll leave it at saying that the technique is...okay, at least. The main problem is that the modscene is absolutely not a potentional audience for this kind of music. It is a quite tolerant society, but when it comes to music with such a different attitude, I think people will start getting intimidated. Just a thought, isn't there other media where this actually could do well, both in presentation and in terms of success?

At its best, if those fantastic seconds I told you about could have been developed into a more traditional style and coherence raised a thousand percent more than it is now, this could be a gem. But that's not Chris' style. But whatever his style really is, he alone knows. It does very seldom happen, but this time, I have to say that the high originality does tend to lower the overall. A module is too 'normal' a framework for such an abnormal composition.

Ka'PQat


Tilt: Neutral Overall: 30 Composition: 60 Technical: 10 Originality: 80 Samples: 20


This song was created with only one sample, a piano sample that clicks often and is a bit hissy. I don't know how it was done, but the piano instrument, without panning commands, automatically pans to the left for the low notes and right for high notes. This would be fine and good except there are only about 5 panning positions instead of a continuous spectrum; the top and bottom 5ths of the keyboard come only from the right channel and only from the left, to very distracting and unrealistic effect.

It is a very modern classical-style piece that seems to noodle and meander endlessly, punctuated by stammering, dissonant chords and continuous, seemingly aimless, leaps from key to key. It will probably be intolerable to most listeners, especially ones not as hungry for musical ideas as I am. I am convinced that certain people very close to me would be spraying bullets through the neighborhood with an AK-47 by the end of the piece, were they forced to listen to the whole ten minutes of it. This is especially because, in addition to the above flaws, it seems to have been created by using some MIDI device to play it live into MOD-conversion software, with very little modification through commands to smooth it over. This causes both unnatural note cutoffs, especially in the sections using only 4 of the 24 tracks, and irritating errors in timing in sections of very fast arpeggios and riffs that were incompatible with the quantization/pace of the tracking patterns.

This tends to make it sound like a very skilled college-student pianist annoying all his friends by constantly fooling around and attempting to improvise on the piano, while in reality, he is combining little snatches of various pieces by other composers he has memorized, with interludes of just random notes questing for a transition, sprinkled with periods of autistic obsession with certain finger/hand movements.

If, by any chance, you can get past all that and give it a closer listen purely for the composition and musical ideas, it gets fairly interesting. The overall feel, once you can discern the theme to it, is like the soundtrack to a very analytical and dispassionate public television travelogue detailing the points of interest along a certain train route. The theme phrase even sounds like one of those musical blurbs that plays when the logo of the station that produced the show is displayed on the screen. There are certain passages with train-like rhythms, and even a 'hill-climbing' ascending passage. It could be pretty tolerable, even pleasant and evocative, if only a 'true' tracker had created this XM. Anyhow, picturing a train ride through moderately interesting countryside helped me to almost enjoy it. I thought I could detect traces of George Winston influences in it, also.

It seems to be divided into 5 sections. The first introduces a simple 5-note theme descending on major fourths, and continues with slightly chaotic but recognizable variations on the theme. The second seems to reverse the theme into an ascending one, and develop that into more of a 12-tone section. The third introduces the first hints at recognizable emotional references/'catchy' rhythmic sections that are rather jazz-like, but immediately deconstructing and unraveling each one. This is bracketed by interludes of distant, sustained descending triplets with a contemplative feel. The fourth section toys with applying baroque and classical dance forms to the theme to surprising and pleasing effect, and by this time the tracking has become a bit more sophisticated, as if the composer was learning as he went along. Finally, the original theme returns and is built up to a fairly logical conclusion.

This is one I never would have listened to had I not been reviewing it, but I'm rather glad I did. I would not, in general, recommend it; but I do hope Chris and the Clones either acquire a good tracker or develop good tracking skills themselves and perhaps put out more realistic and beautiful renditions of their work, which already seem pretty thoughtful, intriguing, and certainly indicative of musical skill. I get sort of an impression that they may have simply used the tracker to build their composition in order to listen to it without having to do all the writing first, but without forgetting their musical ideas either. I suspect this because that is what I have done myself with my own piano arrangement, which doesn't sound much better.

[uncloned]

Setting aside your own personal importance in the piece, i gather that you may be interested to know how other ears receive it. [/qoute]

Yes, I'm interested in how others perceive my music. Not to improve and not to stroke my ego. Many times people have the most unique views that I would never have dreamed of.

Look at the comment on the bottom of this page

http://www.traxinspace.com/song/40416


"Yes, i quickly realized the chordal structure, while eclectic, was still "traditional" -- not twelve-tone or whole-tone. "

The opening (and about half of the piece) uses quartal and quintal harmony. Whole tone scales lead to augmented chords.


"There seemed from the outset to be a play with rhythmic progression, like a child refusing to use only quarter- or eighth-note sequences. "


The piece is built on expanding rythmnic motives and exchanging melodic and harmonic elements - like the 12-tone serialists without the tone rows.


"A nice tossed salad of staccato and chord-bleeding, "

what is chord bleeding?


"I've learned that composers can create 5 types of works -- music for mathematicians, music for other musicians, music for teachers, music for the masses, and music for the "unlistening." This piece might be considered thesis work, both in performance and composition. It is what i would turn in to my professor to show my skill in music composition. The reason why this belongs to this group is that there is no apparent inspiration, or perhaps "vision" is a better word."

It is a string of 4 experiments with references to each other. My music is often an experiment to see if I can. However, I dislike limits of any kind. I find too much classification is just to simplify the problem. This is good in the sciences but I think not in the arts. Human emotion is analog not digital and too many today are, IMHO, classifying music to death.


"Whether or not a piece of any art is "inspired" only the artist would know."

I am not sure art needs a vision. Communication yes, but not vision.

The piece I linked to above had no vision - but many find it quite emotive and it was for me as I performed it. But being totally an improvisation it had no plan and no vision. It just "is" in my mind.

"But a work of art that translates the inspiration to the perceivers of it can be said to have a "vision," whether it's a scenic description (as in Vivaldi's "Four Seasons"), a story (like Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker Suite"), an emotion or abstraction (like Mascagni's "Interlude"), or simply an aural effect (such as Satie's "Gymnopedie"'s). Your sonata No. 1 does not send me its vision."


20th century (and place this style smack dab in the middle) generally has a hard time with most people in this respect.... and remember it was not written for anyone else but me.

"However, it is not without merit. It is great music for analysis, but for the background or for listening pleasure, no. "

Most of this style is not for those purposes.

"When i listen to it, i find myself wanting to follow along with the sheet music,  and find the beauty in the technique. "

Actually I enjoy watching the score scroll by in Sonar myself. It has become part of the experience and I enjoy doing that with other composer's music as well. It adds a visual dimension.

"I'm not, however, inspired to learn how to play it. If you say it has meaning to you, i'm interested in my own time (and searching) to find out how and why by reading the score."

I do not think it has the type of meaning you seek.


"If you can play this piece, you have more skill and dexterity than i. If you composed it without playing it (as i have done with my own music), then you can compose blindfolded. The only thing i would say negatively about this piece is the ending. It seems unfin"


It was composed. At times it would require four hands to perform (Barry will yell at me for that!! )

You may be interested that my college piano professor liked it. I had not talked to her since the seventies. It was good to connect with her - she retired this year and it was the last chance I had.

Thank you for the very detailed comment. You may find Sonata02 more to your liking - I think I have a link to it here as well.

Chris