This work was inspired by Schoenberg’s Op.31 Variations for Orchestra. Despite this, it shares almost no stylistic similarities with that piece, being more an amalgam of Mathias, Britten and Shostakovich (especially Symphony No.4). Written for a large orchestra and performed at the University of Surrey, it was a piece notable for its utter failure. It was, however, a failure that taught me a great deal: 1. a compact well-written piece is much better than an overblown long piece, no matter how impressive it may look on the page; 2. it’s okay to be inspired by other composers, but if you don’t integrate your inspirations you are left with an unconvincing hodgepodge; 3. a massive orchestra in a small performing space is unpleasant, even painful, to listen to; 4. stacked harmonies and parallel movement have their limitations.
I tried to do better after this…