I was first commissioned to write this piece in 2009. Three years is a long time by anyone's standards, but if you consider that I had just turned 17 when I was asked to write it and now I'm approaching the end of my teens altogether, then you may appreciate the extent to which my musical thinking has developed in that time, as has my broader outlook on life more generally.
Whilst this inevitable change may seem wholly obvious and inevitable, it was not something I anticipated or considered when I first set out on this journey. I suppose I was too preoccupied dealing with my initial conceptual ideas to think in the longer-term and to consider that my compositional craft would improve enough for the last bit of music I wrote to be noticeably better than the first ideas I committed to paper. This improvement did eventually became apparent to me though, particularly around the end of last year after I had completed the last section of the piece.
Structural problems or imbalances in the music can seem glaringly obvious once you have the whole thing laid out in front of you, and when I sat down to review the complete score of Breaking the Wall I realised that my introduction section was a) too lengthy and b) unfocused. It contained too much material from later sections of the piece and was slightly aimless in its direction. The one redeeming feature of the passage in question was the atmosphere it invoked - spacious, but with an air of tension (which is what I mark in the first tempo direction). So I resolved to change the notes, whilst maintaining the general mood I was trying to create.
I think most composers will tell you that the a strong beginning to any piece is essential when trying to captivate a listener. You are leading them into a world you want them to inhabit and pay attention to for the duration of the piece. So in this instance, revising the opening section at the end of the compositional process was a crucial step, and I think my second attempt is much better than the original. Not only is the atmosphere maintained, it is strengthened by the newly-found compactness of the section, and I feel that the listener is led more clearly from points A to B. I achieved this by cutting approximately a minute of music - quite a lot - but it is important to be ruthless when composing. It was far easier to accept this loss of music at the end of the writing period than it would have been when I first wrote that particular bit, because over a year had passed and the existence of the rest of the piece gave me a new perspective on it's role (or lack thereof) in the broader structure of the music.
In terms of the story, the introduction sets the scene - the sweltering, rugged lands of ancient Greece. I try to create a sense of vast space in the music by opening with a very sparse texture, initially just high harmonics in the violins. At the other end of the pitch spectrum, a low horn and bass clarinet tentatively introduce a principal motif in the piece (C to B). This reappears several times during the course of the piece and it features particularly heavily in the closing section, creating a quasi-cyclical structure. The piece begins in one place, and returns to that same place having been on a transformative journey, which is a reflection of Pheidippides journey from Athens to Marathon and back again. The lack of 'filling' in the harmony and texture, spasmodic bursts played on the temple blocks and a single-pitch trumpet fanfare motif, which like the C to B figure reoccurs several times over the course of the entire piece, all contribute a little to the sense of expectancy which pervades the opening section.
When I removed the unnecessary minute of music, a short section of new music was required to link the introduction with the next section. An advantage of returning to the introduction after composing the rest of the piece was that I could now use material from the end, to reinforce the idea of a cyclical structure. I chose to extract the chorale for bassoons, horns and trombones in the last 'march' section and plant it at the end of the first section with a simultaneous hint at the heroic upper string theme, also taken from the last section. The two combined gently foreshadow some of the heroism and grandiosity of the story to come, and the introduction ends with an emphatic repetition of the C to B motif.
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Next Insight blog coming soon...
23 February 2012
6 February 2012
The Blog returns...
I am utterly ashamed at how this blog has lay dormant for several months. I have no real excuse for not keeping it up to date, except for the fact I've been very busy completing my 'Breaking the Wall' piece. More on that in a moment.
But first, I'd like to announce that I have, at long last, joined Twitter! Yes, I've decided to move with the times and take the plunge, and I must admit I've enjoyed using it very much so far. In fact, I probably spend more of my time now on Twitter than I do on Facebook, as I find the up-to-the-second topical commentary and news you get when tweeting very appealing. Anyway, do 'follow me', I'm @LloydRColeman. If you follow me then I'll follow you in return.
Another bit of shameless self-promotion: if you have time, take a look at my website at www.lloydcoleman.co.uk. My Dad has spent time redesigning and improving the site - suggestions for further improvements are welcome. We hope the site will continue to evolve.
Last time I bothered to post on here, I talked about the launch of the 'Power of the Flame' project, describing it as a significant milestone for Breaking the Wall. Today, 6th February, marked another important milestone as I handed in the completed scores and parts for my piece to the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, who will be performing and recording the piece next month.
Over the next few weeks leading up to that, I will be blogging about my experiences writing the piece. I want to help you gain an insight into how I approach writing a large scale piece like this. Some readers will find this interesting and enlightening, whilst others may discover it couldn't be of less interest to them. Do forgive me if you fall into the latter category and the next few posts fly over your head!
L x
But first, I'd like to announce that I have, at long last, joined Twitter! Yes, I've decided to move with the times and take the plunge, and I must admit I've enjoyed using it very much so far. In fact, I probably spend more of my time now on Twitter than I do on Facebook, as I find the up-to-the-second topical commentary and news you get when tweeting very appealing. Anyway, do 'follow me', I'm @LloydRColeman. If you follow me then I'll follow you in return.
Another bit of shameless self-promotion: if you have time, take a look at my website at www.lloydcoleman.co.uk. My Dad has spent time redesigning and improving the site - suggestions for further improvements are welcome. We hope the site will continue to evolve.
Last time I bothered to post on here, I talked about the launch of the 'Power of the Flame' project, describing it as a significant milestone for Breaking the Wall. Today, 6th February, marked another important milestone as I handed in the completed scores and parts for my piece to the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, who will be performing and recording the piece next month.
Over the next few weeks leading up to that, I will be blogging about my experiences writing the piece. I want to help you gain an insight into how I approach writing a large scale piece like this. Some readers will find this interesting and enlightening, whilst others may discover it couldn't be of less interest to them. Do forgive me if you fall into the latter category and the next few posts fly over your head!
L x
22 September 2011
The Power of the Flame
Today marked an exciting milestone for Breaking the Wall.
Organisers of the Cultural Olympiad officially unveiled the five projects that will make up "The Power of the Flame" project, a cornerstone of Wales' contribution to the London Olympics. £3 million is being spent to inspire and motivate young Welsh people to take their creativity to new frontiers, ensuring that 2012 can be a year of achievement for everyone, and not only for the athletes competing in the Games themselves.
Breaking the Wall has been commissioned under "Whose Flame is it Anyway?" - one of those five projects mentioned above. It is being curated by Disability Arts Cymru, who in partnership with UCAN Productions, have been fantastic in sorting out the arrangements for my commission. Without DAC and UCAN, Breaking the Wall would never have come into existance.
Many of the artists and partners involved in "The Power of the Flame" celebration were invited to an event at the Wales Millennium Centre this morning, to promote the cause to the general public. It was a nice opportunity for me to see what other work is going on around Wales in addition to my own project.
I also had the opportunity to speak with the media, the results of which you can see and hear by clicking on the links below. It was an early start this morning, as I had to be at the BBC Radio Studios in Cardiff ready for an 8 o'clock slot on Good Morning Wales!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-1501519 (click on video)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01494nz#synopsis (available for 7 days, skip to 2:16:00)
L x
Organisers of the Cultural Olympiad officially unveiled the five projects that will make up "The Power of the Flame" project, a cornerstone of Wales' contribution to the London Olympics. £3 million is being spent to inspire and motivate young Welsh people to take their creativity to new frontiers, ensuring that 2012 can be a year of achievement for everyone, and not only for the athletes competing in the Games themselves.
Breaking the Wall has been commissioned under "Whose Flame is it Anyway?" - one of those five projects mentioned above. It is being curated by Disability Arts Cymru, who in partnership with UCAN Productions, have been fantastic in sorting out the arrangements for my commission. Without DAC and UCAN, Breaking the Wall would never have come into existance.
Many of the artists and partners involved in "The Power of the Flame" celebration were invited to an event at the Wales Millennium Centre this morning, to promote the cause to the general public. It was a nice opportunity for me to see what other work is going on around Wales in addition to my own project.
I also had the opportunity to speak with the media, the results of which you can see and hear by clicking on the links below. It was an early start this morning, as I had to be at the BBC Radio Studios in Cardiff ready for an 8 o'clock slot on Good Morning Wales!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-1501519 (click on video)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01494nz#synopsis (available for 7 days, skip to 2:16:00)
L x
18 August 2011
Save BBC Four
BBC Four is under serious threat, according to a recent article in The Guardian:
The Big Brother/X-Factor reality-TV disease has taken over large swathes of the market, including the BBC's own flagship channels. For proof of this, we need look no further than "The Voice", a new singing competition being brought to BBC One to compete with the The X-Factor. How much has the BBC paid for this import? £22 million for two years. And according to some sources, this astronomical figure does not include wages for those who will appear on the show. When you consider that the whole of BBC One's output costs £1.1 billion per year, against BBC Four's annual cost of just £50 million, you wonder if the BBC are looking in the right places to make their "efficiency savings".
I love the BBC - I think it is an amazing organisation completely worthy of the license fee we pay for it. I listen to a lot of it's radio output (on BBC3, 4 and 5 Live) and I enjoy many aspects of its television programming too (everything from EastEnders to the Proms). But I really want it to remain committed to providing high-quality entertainment, across all styles and genres, and not for it to simply 'dumb down' for the sake of viewing figures. It needs to stand apart from its commercial rivals, who have no obligation to provide programming for all tastes.
If you want to show your support for BBC Four, sign the online petition or 'Like it' on Facebook.
L x
"BBC4 is emerging as one of the prospective casualties of the corporation's plans to find 20% of cost savings, with the scope of the channel expected to be scaled back."Whilst this is only a rumour - no formal announcement has yet been made by the Beeb - I feel that these reports are a cause for great concern. BBC Four remains the only television channel provided by the public-funded broadcaster to provide consistently high-quality, high-brow entertainment. When it was first launched in 2002, the slogan for BBC Four was "Everybody Needs a Place to Think." Nearly a decade on, the channel remains a kind of sanctuary for those looking for intellectually stimulating programming - something we seem to see less and less of in other areas of television, unfortunately.
The Big Brother/X-Factor reality-TV disease has taken over large swathes of the market, including the BBC's own flagship channels. For proof of this, we need look no further than "The Voice", a new singing competition being brought to BBC One to compete with the The X-Factor. How much has the BBC paid for this import? £22 million for two years. And according to some sources, this astronomical figure does not include wages for those who will appear on the show. When you consider that the whole of BBC One's output costs £1.1 billion per year, against BBC Four's annual cost of just £50 million, you wonder if the BBC are looking in the right places to make their "efficiency savings".
I love the BBC - I think it is an amazing organisation completely worthy of the license fee we pay for it. I listen to a lot of it's radio output (on BBC3, 4 and 5 Live) and I enjoy many aspects of its television programming too (everything from EastEnders to the Proms). But I really want it to remain committed to providing high-quality entertainment, across all styles and genres, and not for it to simply 'dumb down' for the sake of viewing figures. It needs to stand apart from its commercial rivals, who have no obligation to provide programming for all tastes.
If you want to show your support for BBC Four, sign the online petition or 'Like it' on Facebook.
L x
16 August 2011
The nature of change...
Regular visitors to this blog will notice the drastic changes that have been made to it's appearance. I have been blogging for just over a year now, and I was getting tired of the bright yellow theme of the original design. I feel the new design is more subtle and less garish, and I am particularly pleased with the new picture at the top, which was taken last year from a balcony perched on the side of the Southbank Centre.
I promised in my last post that I would update you on Breaking the Wall, so here goes. After a frustrating month of writing in June, July was more productive. I spent that month at home in Wales, and I reflected on some advice given to me by my teacher, Gary. He has repeatedly said to me this year that my music moves too fast - not in terms of tempo, but in terms of the rate of change within a section. For instance, I would start a strong idea (be it melodic, rhythmic, textural etc) but then I would turn away from it too soon, replacing it with another. In my own mind, I always used to justify this technique with 'I will return to it later', but of course I never did! As a result, the music sounds too fleeting, and the ideas run one into the other without much development, or even progression. I think I've worked out why I fell into this habit, and it has something to do with the fact that I am writing my largest piece to date (between 30-40 minutes). Somewhere along the line, my brain has become confused, and I equated writing a longer piece with writing more material than is needed. One of the first lessons any composer should learn is how to take an idea and develop it into a coherent structure, and this I managed to do well in some of my earlier, shorter pieces. What I have learnt with this project is that the basic concept of musical development must remain the same in a large symphonic work, but everything is augmented in scale. Ideas must be suitable for really sustained passages of writing (i.e. several minutes, not 30 seconds).
In one sense, this topic relates closely to a brilliant piece I heard the other night - Steve Reich's Music for 18 Musicians. This is a seminal work by the American minimalist composer, who turns 75 years of age this October. Music for 18 Musicians lasts for nearly an hour, but is based on a cycle of just 11 chords. It is a magnificent piece which can teach a composer a lot about the rate of change in music. Reich seems to have a brilliant sense of how and when to change - always keeping the listener entranced even though the music uses a minimal amount of musical material. The 11-chord harmonic progression is played in full at the beginning and the end of the piece, and the vast space in between is filled with a series of 'pulses' (to use Reich's terminology), each of which are based on one of the aforementioned chords. A single pulse might last several minutes, which means extended periods of time with completely unchanging harmony. The effect is of all this is wondrously hypnotic, as the tempo remains exactly the same throughout. If you haven't heard it, search it online and make yourself comfortable! I've found this kind of music to be very helpful to my concentration too - if you have a long essay to write, then stick this on in the background and you may find it helps you to focus. It works for me.
L x
I promised in my last post that I would update you on Breaking the Wall, so here goes. After a frustrating month of writing in June, July was more productive. I spent that month at home in Wales, and I reflected on some advice given to me by my teacher, Gary. He has repeatedly said to me this year that my music moves too fast - not in terms of tempo, but in terms of the rate of change within a section. For instance, I would start a strong idea (be it melodic, rhythmic, textural etc) but then I would turn away from it too soon, replacing it with another. In my own mind, I always used to justify this technique with 'I will return to it later', but of course I never did! As a result, the music sounds too fleeting, and the ideas run one into the other without much development, or even progression. I think I've worked out why I fell into this habit, and it has something to do with the fact that I am writing my largest piece to date (between 30-40 minutes). Somewhere along the line, my brain has become confused, and I equated writing a longer piece with writing more material than is needed. One of the first lessons any composer should learn is how to take an idea and develop it into a coherent structure, and this I managed to do well in some of my earlier, shorter pieces. What I have learnt with this project is that the basic concept of musical development must remain the same in a large symphonic work, but everything is augmented in scale. Ideas must be suitable for really sustained passages of writing (i.e. several minutes, not 30 seconds).
In one sense, this topic relates closely to a brilliant piece I heard the other night - Steve Reich's Music for 18 Musicians. This is a seminal work by the American minimalist composer, who turns 75 years of age this October. Music for 18 Musicians lasts for nearly an hour, but is based on a cycle of just 11 chords. It is a magnificent piece which can teach a composer a lot about the rate of change in music. Reich seems to have a brilliant sense of how and when to change - always keeping the listener entranced even though the music uses a minimal amount of musical material. The 11-chord harmonic progression is played in full at the beginning and the end of the piece, and the vast space in between is filled with a series of 'pulses' (to use Reich's terminology), each of which are based on one of the aforementioned chords. A single pulse might last several minutes, which means extended periods of time with completely unchanging harmony. The effect is of all this is wondrously hypnotic, as the tempo remains exactly the same throughout. If you haven't heard it, search it online and make yourself comfortable! I've found this kind of music to be very helpful to my concentration too - if you have a long essay to write, then stick this on in the background and you may find it helps you to focus. It works for me.
L x
7 August 2011
Summer so far...
Hi all. I write at the end of a very busy week, which I will talk more about in a moment.
But first, I must tell you about my new digs! I moved in last night, to find one of my housemates cooking dinner. She kindly offered to make me some, and a very nice pasta dish it was too. This year, I am living near Finsbury Park in North London, with four other students from Academy. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it) I will be cooking my own meals from now on, so I have a lot to learn! But it should be good fun, and I hope it will give me even more independence after living in halls for the first year of college. I will update you on how far my culinary skills progress!
Musically, I've had a brilliant week. I've been playing and assisting on the Sound and Music Summer School, which takes place annually at the Purcell School. Around 70 young composers aged 14-18 join the course, and are split into groups depending on their compositional interests. These areas include writing for film, voice, instruments from different cultures and jazz. The group of composers I was involved with were concerned with writing contemporary concert music for orchestral instruments, and I played clarinet in many of the pieces that were written throughout the week. There was plenty of sight-reading to be done and, on the whole, I managed reasonably well. It was nice to have such an intense week of playing after a year of not doing very much work on my instrument. Playing other people's compositions reminded me how important it is as a composer to keep thinking of the players you are writing for, and in particular how crucial it is to be clear and concise in your score. Clear notation will nearly always result in a better performance of your work.
As well as playing, I assisted David Horne, the Key Tutor for the group, in keeping track of what was going on with the compositions being developed and, where necessary, I gave advice to those who wanted or needed it. I enjoyed sharing my thoughts and experiences of compositions with others; when you talk to other composers you realise that many people face the same problems as you. Discussing these issues openly can be a really useful way of overcoming them, as I think many of the composers did on this particular course.
The work that was produced on the week was outstanding. All of the pieces were well crafted, and there were even some instances of wholly original ideas being explored (which in composition is less common than you might think). I hope to work with everyone - students and staff alike - again at some point in the future. The people at Sound and Music are experiencing some difficulty in funding next year's course: everyone knows that times are hard at the moment. But I am sure it will be back in some shape or form, because it has a unique place in the summer school arena. No other course offers so many young composers, both experienced and less experienced, to be creative together in one place.
In my next post, I will update you on Breaking the Wall.
L x
But first, I must tell you about my new digs! I moved in last night, to find one of my housemates cooking dinner. She kindly offered to make me some, and a very nice pasta dish it was too. This year, I am living near Finsbury Park in North London, with four other students from Academy. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it) I will be cooking my own meals from now on, so I have a lot to learn! But it should be good fun, and I hope it will give me even more independence after living in halls for the first year of college. I will update you on how far my culinary skills progress!
Musically, I've had a brilliant week. I've been playing and assisting on the Sound and Music Summer School, which takes place annually at the Purcell School. Around 70 young composers aged 14-18 join the course, and are split into groups depending on their compositional interests. These areas include writing for film, voice, instruments from different cultures and jazz. The group of composers I was involved with were concerned with writing contemporary concert music for orchestral instruments, and I played clarinet in many of the pieces that were written throughout the week. There was plenty of sight-reading to be done and, on the whole, I managed reasonably well. It was nice to have such an intense week of playing after a year of not doing very much work on my instrument. Playing other people's compositions reminded me how important it is as a composer to keep thinking of the players you are writing for, and in particular how crucial it is to be clear and concise in your score. Clear notation will nearly always result in a better performance of your work.
As well as playing, I assisted David Horne, the Key Tutor for the group, in keeping track of what was going on with the compositions being developed and, where necessary, I gave advice to those who wanted or needed it. I enjoyed sharing my thoughts and experiences of compositions with others; when you talk to other composers you realise that many people face the same problems as you. Discussing these issues openly can be a really useful way of overcoming them, as I think many of the composers did on this particular course.
The work that was produced on the week was outstanding. All of the pieces were well crafted, and there were even some instances of wholly original ideas being explored (which in composition is less common than you might think). I hope to work with everyone - students and staff alike - again at some point in the future. The people at Sound and Music are experiencing some difficulty in funding next year's course: everyone knows that times are hard at the moment. But I am sure it will be back in some shape or form, because it has a unique place in the summer school arena. No other course offers so many young composers, both experienced and less experienced, to be creative together in one place.
In my next post, I will update you on Breaking the Wall.
L x
26 June 2011
Brilliant Bartok
I went to an absolute dream of a concert the other night. The Philharmonia, under their Principal Conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen, played a programme of Kodaly (Dances from Galanta) and Bartok (his Second Violin Concerto with soloist Christian Tetzlaff and the famous Concerto for Orchestra). Many of you may be aware that I have always admired Salonen as a conductor - his very physical presence on the podium always seems to inspire the best out of his players, a rule to which this concert was certainly no exception.
The fast dance movements in the Kodaly and the thrilling finale to the Concerto for Orchestra were played at tempi that were nothing short of ferociously fast, but remarkably not a single important detail in the orchestration was lost. Salonen and his band manage to balance sheer panache and swagger with a careful attention to clarity in their playing - the perfect combination in my view. And don't be led to think that only the loud, fast playing was impressive, because there were subtler moments of elegance and beauty too. Take, for instance, the short chorale section in the middle of the second movement of the Concerto for Orchestra, which was played by the brass with gorgeously rich homogeneity. There was also the beginning of the first movement, where the quiet tremolandi in the violins conjured up just the right atmosphere of tension and suspense. The third movement was similarly atmospheric, with the delicate wind and string writing being perfectly balanced throughout.
The whole concert was a triumph in my view, and confirmed my belief that Salonen and the Philharmonia are one of the most exciting partnerships between conductor and orchestra in London at the moment. Not that the competition is weak - you only have to look to Vladimir Jurowski at the LPO and Valery Gergiev at the LSO to realise that British orchestras are very strong at the moment. I do find it interesting that many of our orchestras and opera houses in the UK are under the direction of foreign conductors. I don't mean to suggest that the Brits can't do baton waving - that would be completely wrong - but why do orchestras seem to have more of an affinity with leaders from abroad? Maybe there's no answer to that.
Anyway, I'll leave you with a sample of my favourite maestro, Esa-Pekka Salonen. The clip below shows him at his best in my view - it's a segment from a brilliant rendition of Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring a few years back.
See you soon
L x
The fast dance movements in the Kodaly and the thrilling finale to the Concerto for Orchestra were played at tempi that were nothing short of ferociously fast, but remarkably not a single important detail in the orchestration was lost. Salonen and his band manage to balance sheer panache and swagger with a careful attention to clarity in their playing - the perfect combination in my view. And don't be led to think that only the loud, fast playing was impressive, because there were subtler moments of elegance and beauty too. Take, for instance, the short chorale section in the middle of the second movement of the Concerto for Orchestra, which was played by the brass with gorgeously rich homogeneity. There was also the beginning of the first movement, where the quiet tremolandi in the violins conjured up just the right atmosphere of tension and suspense. The third movement was similarly atmospheric, with the delicate wind and string writing being perfectly balanced throughout.
The whole concert was a triumph in my view, and confirmed my belief that Salonen and the Philharmonia are one of the most exciting partnerships between conductor and orchestra in London at the moment. Not that the competition is weak - you only have to look to Vladimir Jurowski at the LPO and Valery Gergiev at the LSO to realise that British orchestras are very strong at the moment. I do find it interesting that many of our orchestras and opera houses in the UK are under the direction of foreign conductors. I don't mean to suggest that the Brits can't do baton waving - that would be completely wrong - but why do orchestras seem to have more of an affinity with leaders from abroad? Maybe there's no answer to that.
Anyway, I'll leave you with a sample of my favourite maestro, Esa-Pekka Salonen. The clip below shows him at his best in my view - it's a segment from a brilliant rendition of Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring a few years back.
See you soon
L x
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