# I wrote a clarinet concerto for my wife... - Added 3rd movement



## Dear Villain (Oct 22, 2019)

Hi all,

My wife, Rebecca, is a clarinetist, and while I've written many pieces for her over the years, I had never tackled a clarinet concerto. So, here it is: the second movement of "The Soul Awakens." It's one of my most tonal/accessible pieces, and hopefully you'll find some beauty in the lyrical theme. Writing this for her was more effective than giving her jewelry or flowers 

I've posted this once before when I first wrote it (2 years ago, I think?) but I'm just now completing the score, and in revisiting the piece I thought I'd share it for those that may enjoy it.



UPDATE: Added 3rd movement below:



Cheers!
Dave


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## ism (Oct 22, 2019)

Very beautiful piece. Really enjoyed it.


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## TGV (Oct 22, 2019)

Nice piece, a bit more ambitious than the tracks usually posted here, and I like that. I also very much liked the writing for the solo instrument. I don't really hear a relation with Copland and Finzi, though.


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## synergy543 (Oct 22, 2019)

Lovely piece. Very nice orchestral integration.


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## synkrotron (Oct 22, 2019)

Hi David 

Not something I would normally listen to but I listened anyway and found the piece quite enjoyable. 


cheers

andy


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## Dear Villain (Oct 22, 2019)

ism said:


> Very beautiful piece. Really enjoyed it.



Thank you, ism! I just read your insightful essay on the "neo-classical" thread, so I'm glad we were each able to appreciate each other's work today.

Cheers!
Dave


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## Dear Villain (Oct 22, 2019)

TGV said:


> Nice piece, a bit more ambitious than the tracks usually posted here, and I like that. I also very much liked the writing for the solo instrument. I don't really hear a relation with Copland and Finzi, though.



I'm glad you enjoyed it, TGV. The Copland and Finzi reference came from my wife's initial thoughts and who am I to argue with her? lol Between the 3 movements, I've heard Copland, Finzi, Stravinsky, Vaughan Williams. The irony here, is the only clarinet concerto I'm familiar with is Mozart's 

Dave


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## Bluemount Score (Oct 22, 2019)

Yes I like that a lot. Beautiful instrument! Well done, also the orchestration.


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## Dear Villain (Oct 22, 2019)

synkrotron said:


> Hi David
> 
> Not something I would normally listen to but I listened anyway and found the piece quite enjoyable.
> 
> ...



Hi Andy,

Much appreciated, then! I'm normally not one to seek out stuff outside of my own interest, so I applaud you for doing so 

Cheers!
Dave


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## ism (Oct 22, 2019)

Dear Villain said:


> Thank you, ism! I just read your insightful essay on the "neo-classical" thread, so I'm glad we were each able to appreciate each other's work today.
> 
> Cheers!
> Dave


I don't know if you're able to share the score, but I'd be really interested to have a look at it. This is the sort of thing I aspire to write ... aspirationaly ... someday ... (and probably with a kind of 'neo-classical' edge to it, whatever that means  )


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## rudi (Oct 22, 2019)

A beautiful piece - inventive, inspiring and brimful with ideas. Besides the geat playing and orchestration, I loved the way full use is made of the various clarinet registers. 
Thank you for writing it and sharing it with us!


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## synkrotron (Oct 22, 2019)

Dear Villain said:


> I'm normally not one to seek out stuff outside of my own interest



All part of my current learning process, Dave  And quite enjoyable


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## Dear Villain (Oct 23, 2019)

synergy543 said:


> Lovely piece. Very nice orchestral integration.



Thanks, Gregory! I appreciate you taking the time to listen and coment.

All the best,
Dave


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## Dear Villain (Oct 23, 2019)

Bluemount Score said:


> Yes I like that a lot. Beautiful instrument! Well done, also the orchestration.



Thank you Bluemount Score! The clarinet is the closest instrument to the human voice, so I really enjoy writing "vocal" lines for it.


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## Dear Villain (Oct 23, 2019)

ism said:


> I don't know if you're able to share the score, but I'd be really interested to have a look at it. This is the sort of thing I aspire to write ... aspirationaly ... someday ... (and probably with a kind of 'neo-classical' edge to it, whatever that means  )



Hi again, ism. Gosh, I'm truly honoured and flattered by your comment. I'm currently finishing the score and parts as part of a submission to an orchestra. Sadly, until that process is complete, I won't be able to share it publicly. I do have plenty of scores with playback files and sample pages which you can peruse here: David Carovillano - Sheet Music Plus 

Thanks again and I'm sure you'll write something wonderful...the first step is taking interest, then learning, then doing. You'll get there 

Cheers!
Dave


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## Dear Villain (Oct 23, 2019)

rudi said:


> A beautiful piece - inventive, inspiring and brimful with ideas. Besides the geat playing and orchestration, I loved the way full use is made of the various clarinet registers.
> Thank you for writing it and sharing it with us!



Thank you, rudi! I'm partial to the husky sound of the chalumeau register, but find that going between the 3 main ranges adds timbral interest, especially with slower, lyrical parts.

Cheers!
Dave


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## Bluemount Score (Oct 23, 2019)

Dear Villain said:


> Thank you Bluemount Score! The clarinet is the closest instrument to the human voice, so I really enjoy writing "vocal" lines for it.


It is? I sure heard somewhere that the oboe is the closest and therefore great for writing lyrical / vocal lines as well.


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## Dear Villain (Oct 23, 2019)

Bluemount Score said:


> It is? I sure heard somewhere that the oboe is the closest and therefore great for writing lyrical / vocal lines as well.



Haha, well Mozart considered it this way, and I'm certainly not going to argue with that  Of course, the oboe is equally suited to such lyrical passage work, and the bassoon...heck, let's add the French horn to that list too, as I love it's sound too. 

Cheers,
Dave


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## Rob (Oct 24, 2019)

really lovely... my kind of music actually. And clarinet is such a sweet instrument
Mix-wise I'd have kept the solo clar. slightly more upfront, but that's subjective... congratulations Dave


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## Dear Villain (Oct 24, 2019)

Rob said:


> really lovely... my kind of music actually. And clarinet is such a sweet instrument
> Mix-wise I'd have kept the solo clar. slightly more upfront, but that's subjective... congratulations Dave



Thanks Rob! One could absolutely argue the solo clarinet should be even more upfront. 

I didn't anticipate this level of positive response, as most of my music on VI usually doesn't attract much attention. I'm thinking of sharing the third movement next, which is decidedly more aggressive than this tranquil middle movement 

Cheers!
Dave


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## Rob (Oct 24, 2019)

please do


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## Dear Villain (Oct 25, 2019)

Here is the 3rd movement of The Soul Awakens Clarinet Concerto. A stark contrast to the second, the rondo moves along briskly in 5/4, with a quote of the theme from the first movement appearing just before the 3 minute mark. Hope you enjoy!



Cheers!
Dave


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## Rob (Oct 25, 2019)

very nice! My compliments to your wife... perfect intonation and those fast staccato lines aren't by no means easy


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## Thomas Kallweit (Oct 25, 2019)

Very nice!
And so effectively moodish in its shifting between the more up tempo passages and the lyrical ones.
Could be easily the score to some movie with feelings.
btw. Listened only to the first part yet.


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## Dear Villain (Oct 25, 2019)

Rob said:


> very nice! My compliments to your wife... perfect intonation and those fast staccato lines aren't by no means easy



Thanks again, Rob! Now you've made me realize my accompanying picture is deceptive  Rebecca didn't play this...it's VSL's clarinet. At the time I wrote the piece for her, she was pregnant and wasn't playing (we're actually an accordion and clarinet duo by "trade"). She did, however, "interpret" the piece, handling the clarinet midi. Now that we're starting to get ready for performances again, she's actually just picked up the concerto (and I've no doubt she'll do it justice). 

Cheers!
Dave


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## Dear Villain (Oct 25, 2019)

Thomas Kallweit said:


> Very nice!
> And so effectively moodish in its shifting between the more up tempo passages and the lyrical ones.
> Could be easily the score to some movie with feelings.
> btw. Listened only to the first part yet.



Thanks, Thomas! It's funny, because so many often separate concert/classical music from film music, based on stereotypical expectations. There are, however, many film composers whose training and/or classical background lets them serve the film's needs while still delivering meaningful music filled with emotional depth and technical brilliance. 

Always appreciate you listening and commenting!

Dave


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## Thomas Kallweit (Oct 25, 2019)

I still have problems with the "genericness" / stereotypy of some scores to modern movies (the argument "there is no time / time is money" doesn't count me in as a watcher / recipient - no doubt about the technical brillicance of the composers at all and not that I'm not fascinated by the sounddesigns though..)
So therefore I'm lucky when I have the opportunity to listen to something really colorful like here : ) 

But I guess it still has something to do with luck having the right storyboard, director and stuff there who/which can value the composer's work.


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## Dear Villain (Oct 27, 2019)

Thomas Kallweit said:


> I still have problems with the "genericness" / stereotypy of some scores to modern movies (the argument "there is no time / time is money" doesn't count me in as a watcher / recipient - no doubt about the technical brillicance of the composers at all and not that I'm not fascinated by the sounddesigns though..)
> So therefore I'm lucky when I have the opportunity to listen to something really colorful like here : )
> 
> But I guess it still has something to do with luck having the right storyboard, director and stuff there who/which can value the composer's work.



I can only speak for myself when I say, that even though I'd be seduced by the prospect of making a good living writing for film, at the end of the day, I prefer the freedom to create as I wish without having to please my masters, so to speak. I realized this one day, when I submitted a few tracks to a library, some of which were my "serious classical music" and one that was pure ridiculous cheesy silliness. And of course, that was the track that became popular, was purchased, and actually generated income. It left me so hollow that I realized then and there that writing music that has meaning to me is far more important to my own happiness and success than earning money (of course, I'm doing ok financially, so it's easier to say this than if I was homeless on the street!)

Cheers,
Dave


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## giwro (Nov 2, 2019)

Now this would be something ilisten to again and again...

It’s a modern piece, but not all ugly and formless like so much modern classical music. I love the themes and your development (gotta track down the 1st movement now - heck, maybe I’ll just go buy the 3 tracks 🤔)

I think if more classical composers wrote like this, people might be more inclined to enjoy the music.

It also points out to me one of the stark differences between concert music and the more filmic stuff... you have development, modulation recognizable themes. I think I may run from the room if I hear one more stereotypical exaggerated-marcato strings “Hollywood Blockbuster Action Scene” complete with overdone brass fanfares and taiko drums... 😱😱😱

Keep up the good work!


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## Dear Villain (Nov 3, 2019)

giwro said:


> Now this would be something ilisten to again and again...
> 
> It’s a modern piece, but not all ugly and formless like so much modern classical music. I love the themes and your development (gotta track down the 1st movement now - heck, maybe I’ll just go buy the 3 tracks 🤔)
> 
> ...



Wow, thank you so much, Jonathan! I'm grateful you've taken a liking to some of my music the past few days. As for the clarinet concerto, feel free to listen to the first movement here: The Soul Awakens - Clarinet Concerto by David Carovillano (you don't need to purchase it, just click the play triangle)

All the best,
Dave


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## Patrick.K (Nov 3, 2019)

Beautiful work Dave , Your wife must be very happy.
It's so difficult to write for one instrument.
That requires a very good level for a good performance.
Very impressive.


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## Dear Villain (Nov 3, 2019)

Patrick9152 said:


> Beautiful work Dave , Your wife must be very happy.
> It's so difficult to write for one instrument.
> That requires a very good level for a good performance.
> Very impressive.



Thank you, Patrick. Yes, the concerto made her happier than a bouquet of flowers would have, which of course made me happy 

Cheers!
Dave


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## Maxtrixbass (Nov 18, 2019)

Dave,

Nice piece of music which I enjoyed very much. So often postings here are short "demos" or quick "cues" that it is especially appreciated to hear something a bit more developed and completed. I really liked the contrast between the two posted movements as well as the lighter orchestrations. I'm with giwro in that sometimes the "epic brass filmic war cue" is a bit overdone. Nothing wrong with it, but it is nice to hear something different. 

My wife's a drummer. Harder to write that "romantic boquet of flowers" with that instrument.


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## Dear Villain (Nov 18, 2019)

Maxtrixbass said:


> Dave,
> 
> Nice piece of music which I enjoyed very much. So often postings here are short "demos" or quick "cues" that it is especially appreciated to hear something a bit more developed and completed. I really liked the contrast between the two posted movements as well as the lighter orchestrations. I'm with giwro in that sometimes the "epic brass filmic war cue" is a bit overdone. Nothing wrong with it, but it is nice to hear something different.
> 
> My wife's a drummer. Harder to write that "romantic boquet of flowers" with that instrument.



Thanks so much for your kind words, Maxtrixbass. Yeah, the proliferation of "epic" comes from the fact that it's like multiplying bacteria...good luck containing it  I think everybody that gets influenced by that larger than life sound eventually wants to try to create it themselves. I can imagine the first time a young composer loads up some v.i. libraries, presses a key on their keyboard and hears a giant brass section come to life, that it immediately gives them the itch to pump out some ground-shaking, dramatic music...even if it all starts to sound like every other epic piece out there.

Anyway, you'll have to be a little creative writing your drum concerto, but I'm sure your wife will appreciate the effort  

Cheers!
Dave


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## Maxtrixbass (Nov 18, 2019)

Dear Villain said:


> Thanks so much for your kind words, Maxtrixbass. Yeah, the proliferation of "epic" comes from the fact that it's like multiplying bacteria...good luck containing it  I think everybody that gets influenced by that larger than life sound eventually wants to try to create it themselves. I can imagine the first time a young composer loads up some v.i. libraries, presses a key on their keyboard and hears a giant brass section come to life, that it immediately gives them the itch to pump out some ground-shaking, dramatic music...even if it all starts to sound like every other epic piece out there.
> 
> Anyway, you'll have to be a little creative writing your drum concerto, but I'm sure your wife will appreciate the effort
> 
> ...



I'm old enough to remember the first generation of synths.. I'm talking early Moog and Arp stuff. There was a sense that "anything you played" sounded great (enter New Age..). Maybe sampling will get past that as well. 

It seems every generation wants to be unique, but they end up being unique in the same way..

I also wanted to compliment you on compositions featuring one instrument. That is the way to go with live groups (one strong player can subsidize the whole group) , but "virtual"-wise that is REALLY hard to do. Bravo.


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## Dear Villain (Nov 18, 2019)

Maxtrixbass said:


> I'm old enough to remember the first generation of synths.. I'm talking early Moog and Arp stuff. There was a sense that "anything you played" sounded great (enter New Age..). Maybe sampling will get past that as well.
> 
> It seems every generation wants to be unique, but they end up being unique in the same way..
> 
> I also wanted to compliment you on compositions featuring one instrument. That is the way to go with live groups (one strong player can subsidize the whole group) , but "virtual"-wise that is REALLY hard to do. Bravo.



Really appreciate your nice comments! I only started working with midi about 5 years ago, but had a Roland JV-1010 back in the 90s that I never used a single time until many years after it was an extinct relic. When I finally tried it out, it sounded pretty good to my uninitiated ears! 

As for being "unique", to quote a song by the Barenaked Ladies: "it's all been done before." 

Cheers!
Dave


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