A piece I wrote for the BBC Proms Inspire competition in 2013. It was awarded a 'runner-up' prize. Piece was originally 10 minutes but was cut down to 4 minutes to make it applicable for the competition. An old piece but simple and (I hope) effective.

Circling Ascendance

Written for the New Music Ensemble at the JRNCM in 2013. The piece inspired from Stockhausen's idea of strong and weak identity demonstrated in his piece 'Stimmung'. I applied these features to different forces to create an exciting, driving piece. Not a perfect piece by far. There are many problems with it but I'm still fond of it as the piece was a sort of turning point for me.

Reaching Identity

First piece written whilst studying with Philip Cashian at the Royal Academy of Music. Here is an extract of a workshop in October of 2014. Unfortunately I was unable to get a full recording of the piece as the recorder ran out of space on the hard drive. This is the 1st years at RAM doing a pretty good job of a hard piece at short notice.

Submerge (Extract)

First performed at The Forge in Camden on 11/03/15 by clarinettist Sam Gillespie as part of the Royal Academy of Music's Composers' Platform Concerts.
A conceptually simple piece which uses the notes  D and F to act as a 'binary code' which is disrupted and corrupted throughout the piece.

ESyRRstem OverloadR

This is an edited recording of a workshop for my first piece of my third year at the Royal Academy of Music. It is a Brass Dectet of 4 Trumpets, Horn, 4 Trombones and Tuba with some doublings. Very pleased with the result especially considering the amount of time there was to rehearse it etc. Thanks to all the brass players who took part. You did an excellent job!

In Transit

False Greatness is a piece written for the Royal Academy of Music Symphony Orchestra Workshop. The recording is an edit of various runs of the piece. Considering this was a very short workshop (45 mins), the Symphony Orchestra did an amazing job so thanks to all involved. The workshop was run and conducted by Christopher Austin.

'False Greatness' by Issac Watts

Mylo, forbear to call him bless'd 
That only boasts a large estate, 
Should all the treasures of the west 
Meet, and conspire to make him great:
I know thy better thoughts, I know 
Thy reason can't descend so low: 
Let a broad stream, with golden sands, 
   Through all his meadows roll, 
He's but a wretch, with all his lands, 
   That wears a narrow soul. 

He swells amidst his wealthy store, 
And proudly poizing what he weighs, 
In his own scale he fondly lays 
   Huge heaps of shining ore: 
He spreads the balance wide, to hold 
   His manors and his farms,
And cheat the beams with loads of gold 
   He hugs between his arms. 
So might the pough-boy climb a tree, 
   When Croesus mounts his throne, 
And both stand up, and smile to see 
   How long their shadow's grown: 
Alas! how vain their fancies be,
   To think that shape their own! 

Thus mingled still with wealth and state, 
Croesus himself can never know; 
His true dimensions and his weight 
Are far inferior to their show. 
Were I so tall to reach the pole, 
Or grasp the ocean with my span, 
I must be measured by my soul: 
The mind's the standard of the man.

False Greatness

Composer and countertenor studying at the Royal Academy of Music. Studies composition with Philip Cashian and singing with Alex Ashworth.

Chris Mitchell