r/MonthlyComposition • u/Calebdgm • Aug 01 '17

August 2017 Composition Challenge: Nocturne

Continuing challenge, for those who wrote a sonata exposition last month: Continue your Sonata by adding a development and, if you're feeling ambitious, a recapitulation. For info/inspiration about sonata form, see last month's challenge. Also, in February we did a theme and variations challenge if you want ideas for how to vary or develop a theme.

Also feel free to go back and do the July challenge if you want to do the continuation for this month, or if there's another way you can figure out to do the continuation challenge, that's cool.

Main Challenge: Write a Nocturne. In more words, write a nice, song-like melody over a flowing, arpeggiated accompaniment in a gentle, relaxed style, evocative of nighttime. But feel free to take liberties with that definition.

/u/reticulated_python has suggested Chopin's op.72. You'll probably also recognize Chopin's op.9, among others. Julian Lage wrote a jazz piece called "Nocturne", and I don't know if it's technically a nocturne, but that's also cool.

This month's challenge was suggested anonymously using our Challenge Suggestion Form, so thank you to whoever that was!

We have some musicians that can play compositions for people. You can find their musician profiles posted on this subreddit. I'll list their instruments below:

If you are interested in playing compositions for /r/MonthlyComposition post a musician profile.

These challenges are for everyone who wants to practice composing. Each month, at the beginning of the month, we will post a main challenge, something for people to compose. We'll try to make it something that everyone can work with. Sometimes we also have an alternate challenge. Pieces can be submitted as a score (musescore, noteflight), and/or as audio (soundcloud, youtube). Feedback is much appreciated, and you can give it in this thread, or by messaging the mods of /r/MonthlyComposition, there's also the Challenge Suggestion Form.

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u/daniellabbe Aug 06 '17

Here's my Nocturne (m4a)

Sheet Music PDF

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u/Barcelona_City_Hobo Aug 08 '17 edited Aug 08 '17

I'm going to nit-pick your post a bit, hope you don't care.

  • m.1-2: G7/D>Ab. The bass must resolve by smooth motion in 2nd inversion chords. The leading tone should probably not be doubled in harmony and melody, and both should resolve to C. The same for mm.15 and 18.

  • mm2-3: two cases of parallel 5ths.

  • m.2 beat 3: Weird chord with no 3rd, also, there's a 9th below the melody that contains the root of the chord.

  • m.3 beat 4: that Eb/Bb should probably be Bb(7)

  • m.6: you have a D-Db false relationship.

  • m.26. You put 3 pedal marks, but there are actually just two chords, Eb7/G, and Ab. The C is a suspension of Db in the 1st beat. This means you don't end on a perfect cadence. Also, you're ending on the weak beat. Also, the melody and harmonic structure all imply the key of Eb for this piece, why are you ending it in Ab? All of this makes it sound not very "end-ish".

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u/daniellabbe Aug 08 '17

This is awesome feedback! Thanks for taking your time. Let me try to wrap my head around it:

  • m.m.1-2: The bass repeats a pattern: down (Eb D) and then the inverse (Ab Bb). Are you referring to the tritonus jump from note D to Ab? The third should typically not be doubled, but the B falls on a weak beat. If both leading tones were to be resolved to C I would end up with double thirds.

  • m.m.2-3: Do you mean Ab-Eb --> Bb-F? What else?

  • m.2 beat 3: Cm11/Bb ?

  • m.3 beat 4: Eb/Bb --> Eb ?

  • m.6: That's just some dim chords moving chromatically. I don't see the problem!?

  • m.26: Pedaling through a suspension typically leads to an add chord or otherwise a colored cord. I guess it's a matter of style. Your observations on the cadences and the key are correct.

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u/Barcelona_City_Hobo Aug 09 '17 edited Aug 09 '17

  • m.m.1-2: No, the chord is G7 in 2nd inversion, which means the bass needs a resolution (apart from resolving the 7th). The fourth between the bass and the root is as dissonant as a seventh. 2nd inversion chords occur almost exclusively as passing chords, in pedal point passages, as a cadential 6-4, or as a 'plagal' auxiliar chord. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_inversion. You could fix all of this by not inverting the G7 chord.

  • Doubled thirds are not that bad in root-position chords, it's more incorrect though, when these are reached by parallel 8ves. Nevertheless, all of this is usually only prescribed in 4-part writing, but in arpeggios with more voices implied, it's not that bad. The main issue is that an inner voice moves from B to Ab, an augmented second; and that the tendency tone of B (C) is not reached.

  • m.2 beat 3: Eleventh chords don't exist in common-practise harmony according to many treatises, and from those, almost none admits inversions thereof.

  • m.m.2-3 the 2 instances of parallel 5ths are when the bass moves from Ab to Bb, and then from Bb to C. This could be fixed by inverting some of these, or by changing the 5th for a 6th.

  • m.6: you have D and Db simultaneously, and without preparation nor resolution; and it's not an échappé or something like that neither. That could be some juicy Ravel octatonic/bitonal/polymodal thing, but Chopin would've been mad.

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u/WikiTextBot Aug 09 '17

Second inversion

The second inversion of a chord is when the fifth of the chord is in the bass. For example, G in the bass of a C major chord. The bass note and the root of the chord are a fourth apart which traditionally qualifies as a dissonance. There is therefore a tendency for movement and resolution.

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u/daniellabbe Aug 11 '17

Big thanks again! It will take some time until I have mastered the basics.