Ottevanger's Omphaloskeptic Outpost

[karlhenning]

Sorry, misread your playbeack question - thought you wanted a piano sound. To change it you need to fiddle around with your sound sets (rarely seems to work for me, though!), but it's easier just to choose the instrument you want initially i.e. rather than 'treble stave' choose 'oboe' or whatever.

Yes, I see that now 

I haven't fiddled aright to 'fix' it;  but it isn't worth the bother in this case.  I know what a trumpet sounds like 

[lukeottevanger]

Yes, I see that now 

I haven't fiddled aright to 'fix' it;  but it isn't worth the bother in this case.  I know what a trumpet sounds like 

I would simply have created a score for trumpet rather than for treble stave. You could still do that, of course, with a little copy-and-pasting, but you'd need to do some reformatting to make your new score look as good as your old one! (Not too much in this case, though, as what you've shown of your score so far seems to be sticking to Sibelius default settings from what I can see) 

[lukeottevanger]

In touch with the conductor-to-be of Elegy and Ascent, I asked him if he had a copy of a review of my previous piece, The Chant of Carnus, which I only ever heard of verbally. He's just sent me it, so I reproduce it here for fun:

A world premiere, Abramski and an old favourite too
---------------------------------------
University Sinfonia with Ron Abramski
Fraser Noble Hall, Leicester
Review by Neil Crutchley
WITH a world premiere and an appearance by Ron Abramski, this concert was bound to be interesting — and so it proved.
Luke Ottevanger, whose Chant of Carnus was played for the first time, certainly knows how to write effectively for the orchestra.
His work is based on the legend of Carnus and is a study in victimisation, of one voice against the crowd.
Here, the single voice was represented by the solo trumpet, (David Cutler).   It was both compelling and moving.
Michael Sackin drew impressively committed playing from his forces (the work is dedicated to this orchestra and conductor)...

[lukeottevanger]

...and another, this one written by a participant, the horn player Roger Swann, who keeps an online diary of all his positive musical experiences (he doesn't mention the less enjoyable aspects!):

2nd Feb 2002 - 7:30 pm, University of Leicester Sinfonia- Michael Sackin - Ron Abramski (piano)
Fraser Noble Building, London Road, Leicester
Roger Swann = horn
The main thrust of the concert was the first performance of "The Chant of Carnus" by Luke Ottevanger. This work is based on the greek myth describing how Carnus (the name means 'trumpet') was murdered whilst chanting prophetic verses, being mistaken for an enemy magician. The composer points out the parallel with 'mob rule' overpowering individual voices in contemporary society.
David Cutler took the challenging trumpet part in his stride (both metaphorically and literally) as he approached the orchestra in stages before his final annihilation.
The piece showed a good sense of structure and certainly developed towards the exciting climax. Some of the tone colours around the piano writing seemed to be borrowed from Messiaen's note book but none the less one looks forward to hearing (or performing) more works by Luke Ottevanger.

...was never sure about that Messiaen comment - applicable to other pieces of mine, possibly, but not this one, to my mind!

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

Positive feedback is always nice...

[lukeottevanger]

More relevantly, Elegy and Ascent is now complete 'all the way to Z', in that I've reached the double bar. But I still need to go back and fill in some sketchy textures in the last couple of minutes.

Work on White Modulations hasn't progressed at all yet - I'm letting the idea live with me a little before I get down and dirty with actual notes. Also, I haven't had much opportunity to do more than think about it yet. But I'm very keen to get started - I can imagine it working nicely. BTW, another working title could be White Christmas. I don't see any problem with that, do you? 

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

More relevantly, Elegy and Ascent is now complete 'all the way to Z', in that I've reached the double bar. But I still need to go back and fill in some sketchy textures in the last couple of minutes.

Can't wait to see/hear the result.

Work on White Modulations hasn't progressed at all yet - I'm letting the idea live with me a little before I get down and dirty with actual notes. Also, I haven't had much opportunity to do more than think about it yet. But I'm very keen to get started - I can imagine it working nicely. BTW, another working title could be White Christmas. I don't see any problem with that, do you? 

No. Just check it out with the copyright owners, though. 

[lukeottevanger]

 

[karlhenning]

More relevantly, Elegy and Ascent is now complete 'all the way to Z', in that I've reached the double bar. But I still need to go back and fill in some sketchy textures in the last couple of minutes.

Excellent!  May I have a look? 

[karlhenning]

I would simply have created a score for trumpet rather than for treble stave. You could still do that, of course, with a little copy-and-pasting, but you'd need to do some reformatting to make your new score look as good as your old one! (Not too much in this case, though, as what you've shown of your score so far seems to be sticking to Sibelius default settings from what I can see) 

I've thought of that (with but the fleetest of thought). . . may do, may do.

Many thanks, again!  No questions this morning 

[lukeottevanger]

Excellent!  May I have a look?

Yes, I'll post it here, but not this minute - the score is on my wife's laptop (where I have to do all my Sibelius work, the program not functioning on the PC for some reason - this is just one of the many reasons why my typesetting jobs always take longer than they ought to!). If you can wait a day or two then I ought to have the whole thing finished properly.




Though I said that about the Canticle Sonata, and look how many revisions I had to make of that one!

[lukeottevanger]

Many thanks, again!  No questions this morning 

Can I read that as 'I'm getting more used to it'? 

(Or as 'I haven't had time to do any more work on it'?  )

[karlhenning]

Can I read that as 'I'm getting more used to it'? 

(Or as 'I haven't had time to do any more work on it'?  )

Well, I did not work at Sibelius this morning . . . I did get some more work in last night.  That work, though, was more on the order of trying to catch up more with the MS., and the two or three matters I still haven't figured out, I left for another day.

On balance, getting more used to it.  And I am very pleased that it should be be so . . . I'm taking this trumpet piece as the occasion to roll up my sleeves for Sibelius, so that (I hope) when this score is in the can, I am in sufficent readiness that I can just get back into production on the ballet.

[Guido]

Thank you, Jezetha and Luke for your compliments on my previous flame waring. I feel this peace time has come to an end though, and Flame War II must commence. I was going to start by writing a diatribe against your resectve favourite composers, but thought that you would retaliate by insulting mine, so I'm staying one step ahead of the game and will slate my three favourites, thusly. You'll never outsmart me!

The problem with Finzi seems to be his complete lack of personality, severe lack of talent, reactionary conservatism, liking for and wholesale stealing of third rate trivial folksy wolksy English ditties and tunes and the nasueating provincial rhetoric of the poems he chooses to set and his 'ideas' on mortality, the arts and the place of the artist. What maudlin bullshit!

Barber is in some ways even worse, given that he showed some discernable early talent - Oh big whoop, you're a clone of Brahms except with added sevenths and ninths, aren't you a clever boy! I ascribe the paucity of his output to his homosexuality - this mental illness clearly contributed to the effete and mawkish nature of his music, and also to the pathetic whining he resorts to in all of his songs - my criticism of Wagner (see previous post) stands here too - Knoxville - a nostalgic remembrance of the past??! Real men don't talk about the past - he should have written about beating his wife (in the future), shooting animals, football hooliganism and all other the other male pleasures in life.

Ives is a total fraud. Not only a compulsive liar, he seems to have pulled off the greatest con of the century: there exist some people who think his music is good. The music is bombastic and pompous, horrendously self important, indulgent, terrible to listen to, and then horribly sentimental. Funny? More like funnot. Transcendental? More like transcendbollocks. And I've got news for you Ives: God doesn't exist so that invalidates that part of your 'music' too.

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

In a reticent mood are we, Guido?

[lukeottevanger]

Problem with that, Guido, is that it's entirely true from beginning to end. How can I argue with that?

[karlhenning]

Thank you, Jezetha and Luke for your compliments on my previous flame waring. I feel this peace time has come to an end though, and Flame War II must commence.

Oh, go into a wardrobe and inhale egg substitutes!

[Guido]

Well, now that I've covered my weaknesses, I guess I can start insulting your favourite composers then. Watch out Janacek, Lutoslawski, Brian, Shostakovich(?)!!!

Needless to say, I don't like any of them.

[karlhenning]

Last page

The opening and closing sections of the piece, and the link between the two choral settings, are probably the best music in here, which doesn't say much for the rest!

Delighted to have a look at these early pages, Luke.  And at even an early stage, you had no fear of leaving 'blank space' on the score!

[karlhenning]

. . . BTW, another working title could be White Christmas. I don't see any problem with that, do you? 

Tings is pretty bad dere at de moment, but dere does seem to be some hope of a constitutional settlement.