Inspiration

For my first ever composition assignment, i was asked to write a solo piece for an unfamiliar instrument. I choose the violin because it's a particularly useful and beautiful instrument. One of my inspirations from a more recent time is Alan Silvestri, a modern film composer. Silvestri dreamed of becoming a bebop guitarist at fifteen, but found himself a film composer after he graduated Berklee College of music in Boston. A record deal lead him to LA, but the deal was actually fake, and left Silvestri with very little money, and forced him to live in LA where his real career began. What i got from listening to his work is not very obvious. Silvestri happens to be one of many composers who inspired my piece - it was mainly the idea of sharp, staccato notes on violin that inspired me, and that can be found in lots of music, particularly film scores. I used this edgy rhythmic feel in my piece as a contrast to the smooth, slower intro section. In the piece that I have linked (at the bottom), the string section hits a loud, sharp note on the beginning of each measure joined with heavy percussion, a sound that I really like personally. It also features very nice use of syncopation in 5/4 time, which adds some rhythmic complexity while not sounding awkward (i didn't even realize it had irregular time when i first heard it). Overall, analysis aside, it is music that gets your blood pumping, and that's something that i strive for in my work.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0i-sfmIaTqc