This is a duet I composed for violin and viola. Both parts were performed wonderfully by gabrielecroci: https://www.fiverr.com/gabrielecroci

Violin/Viola Duet No. 6

This is a simple piece meant to kick start myself back into writing. It's been several months since my last piece, and I'm a bit rusty.

Short Piece For Strings In A Major

This piece is a realization of a partimento by the composer Francesco Durante. It uses the Romanesca bass, a.k.a. the Pachelbel bass. 

The partimento can be found at the Monuments of Partimenti website created and edited by Robert O. Gjerdingen:

http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/music/gjerdingen/Partimenti/collections/Durante/diminuiti/007DurDim/007DurDim.htm

For more information about Partimenti, go here:

http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/music/gjerdingen/partimenti/aboutParti/histOverview.htm

Partimento - Durnate - No - 7 (Partimenti diminuiti)

A Rock piece I wrote in 2005. The Drums and bass are programmed, but the guitar part was performed with a Gibson Les Paul.

Dragon Breath

This is a Rock piece I wrote in 2004. I used Drop-D tuning hence the name "Drop Down."

Drop Down

Mean Spirit

From 1998 this was the first of several "Jazz Fusion" pieces.

Jabber Dabber

From 1998, my second, I believe, Jazz Fusion piece.

Cyber Funk

This follow up piece to "Abduction in Morrocco" continued the mix of Jazz Fusion with a far eastern sound.

Harem Heat

Inspired by a piece in an odd time signature. From 2000.

Mediterranean Memories

This piece is a realization of a partimento by the composer Fedele Fenaroli.

The partimento can be found at the Monuments of Partimenti website created and edited by Robert O. Gjerdingen:

http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/music/gjerdingen/Partimenti/collections/Fenaroli/Book1/15FenBk1/15FenBk1.htm

For more information about Partimenti, go here:

http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/music/gjerdingen/partimenti/aboutParti/histOverview.htm

Partimento - Fenaroli - Book - 01 - No - 15

This is an adaptation for strings of the second movement from the fourth cello sonata by Benedetto Marcello. I took the cello part, raised it an octave, and gave it to the first violins. I then wrote accompanying parts for the second violins, violas, cellos, and basses.

Adaptation: Marcello Cello Sonata No. 4, Mvt. 2

An original composition inspired by the string sinfonias of Tomaso Albinoni and the cello sonatas of Benedetto Marcello.

Realized with VSL's Solo Strings I

Short Piece for Strings in G Major

This is another Baroque inspired piece. 

Realized with VSL's Solo Strings - Full

Short Piece for Strings in C Major

This is the first movement of my first string concerto.

Realized with VSL's Chamber Strings I Full.

String Concerto No. 1 Movement 1

This piece is a realization of a partimento by the composer Fedele Fenaroli.

The partimento can be found at the Monuments of Partimenti website created and edited by Robert O. Gjerdingen:

http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/music/gjerdingen/partimenti/collections/Fenaroli/Book1/06FenBk1/06FenBk1.htm

For more information about Partimenti, go here:

http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/music/gjerdingen/partimenti/aboutParti/histOverview.htm

Realized with Vienna Symphonic Library's Chamber Strings.

Partimento - Fenaroli - Book - 01 - No 6

This is the first movement from Pietro Locatelli's Opus 4, No. 7.

Realized with VSL's following libraries:

Solo Strings I Full
Chamber Strings Full
Solo Violin 2

Locatelli: Opus 4, No 7 Movement 1

This is a realization of Tomaso Albinoni's Sinfonia No. 8, Movement 1. I attempted to make use of VSL's Chamber Strings short detaché articulation for the fast sixteenth note passages in the first and second violin parts.

Albinoni: Sinfonia No. 8, Movement 1

This piece is a realization of a partimento by the composer Giacomo Insanguine.

The partimento can be found at the Monuments of Partimenti website created and edited by Robert O. Gjerdingen:

http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/music/gjerdingen/partimenti/collections/Insanguine/InsEasyPartNo1.htm

For more information about Partimenti, go here:

http://faculty-web.at.northwestern.edu/music/gjerdingen/partimenti/aboutParti/histOverview.htm

Realized with Vienna Symphonic Library's Chamber Strings.

Partimento - Insanquine - Easy - No - 1

This is an attempt to use a bass from one of Vivaldi's string concertos as a partimento. I took the bass part from the first movement of Vivaldi's string concerto RV 113. I then wrote the violas, second violins and first violins parts to go with it.

The goal was for this to be an exercise in composition using a Vivaldi bass as the basis for a piece. I did make a few minor alterations to the bass part, but it was mostly untouched.

This was realized using Session Strings Pro.

A Vivaldi Partimento

The beginning of Vivaldi's Four Seasons - Summer - 3rd movement. Realized with Session Strings Pro.

Vivaldi: Four Seasons - Summer Mvt. 3 - Session Strings Pro

This is an attempt at writing a simple Allemande inspired by the pro tutorial #10 at Improv Planet on Patreon. I'm not much of a keyboardist, but I was determined to improvise as much as possible at the keyboard before transcribing it into Finale. This turned more into "composing at the keyboard" than a true improv session; it came in bits and pieces with a few measures in the right hand followed by adding an accompaniment for the left hand.

Following the example in amateur tutorial #11 at Improv Planet, I used a metronome to help me keep my phrasing in line. My metronome provides an accent at the beginning of the measure. Those serve as lamp posts to guide me along and let me know where I am.

There’re some simple renditions of patterns that have been covered in the tutorials such as 5-6 ascending and 7-6 decending. The piece is in (rounded?) binary form, but so I didn’t risk it becoming too mundane, I removed the repeats.

Even though this is a simple piece, I relied on a MIDI file to record it. I knew that if I tried to perform it, I’d get frustrated fast trying to get a decent take. I really want to get better at the keyboard; it’s as though my knowledge of composition and theory exceeds what my hands can do. I guess you could say a New Year’s resolution is to practice more and be able to post a true improv session someday.

Allemande in C

This is a realization of Georg Philipp Telemann's Canonic Sonata No. 1 using Solo Violin 1 & 2 from Vienna Symphonic Library.

Telemann: Canonic Sonata No. 1

This is a piece I wrote in the Baroque style (more or less). It was inspired by Vivaldi and Corelli.

I recorded it using Reaper with the Session Strings Pro sample library.

Short Piece for Strings in D minor

A duet for violin and viola.

Realized using the violin and viola from Vienna Symphonic Library.

Violin/Viola Duet No. 2

This is a duet for violins.

Realized with Vienna Symphonic Library's violin from Solo Strings 1.

Violin Duet No. 1

I found an interesting paper on keyboard improvisation:

"Techniques of Keyboard Improvisation in the German Baroque and 
Their Implications for Today’s Pedagogy," by Michael Richard Callahan. 

http://hdl.handle.net/1802/14278

He described improvisation as occurring on three levels:

- Dispositio
- Elaboratio
- Decoratio

Dispositio is the large-scale structure of the piece. Think of a binary composition in which there are goals to reach every few measures, e.g. half cadence at fourth measure, modulate to dominant in measures 5 and 6, etc.

Elaboratio is the schema by which the goals are met. For example, using a circle of fifths to modulate to a target key.

Decoratio is broadly speaking diminution where the Elaboratio is fleshed out.

On page 265 of the paper, a Dispositio for a minuet is laid out.

On page 268 various Elaboratio and their functions are described.

I took the minuet layout and copied n' pasted the Elaboratio patterns into it, matching the function of each Elaboratio to that required by the Dispositio. I was on my own for the Decoratio realization.

Erm, it's not the most exciting piece, but I do like how I had a readymade framework to place my composition on. I may try this again in the future.

The first part of the piece is the plain Elaboratio. It's followed by the Decoratio version

Minuet Exercise

This is a realization of Giovanni Furno's partimento No. 2.

The piano is "The Grandeur," by Native Instruments.

Giovanni Furno: Partimento No. 2

This is a simple realization of Giacomo Insanguine's partimento number 1, easy.

Partimento: Giacomo Insanguine No. 1 Easy

This is a realization of Giacomo Insanguine's partimento No. 2, easy.

Partimento: Giacomo Insanguine No. 2 (Easy)

This is another attempt at composing a piece in the Baroque style for strings. 

My hope is to include this piece with the previous piece I've written in D minor in a four or five movement strings concerto.

Short Piece for Strings in D minor - 02

This is a realization of Tomaso Albinoni's Concerto a Cinque, Op. 7 No. 1, Movement 3.

Realized with Session Strings Pro.

Concerto a Cinque: Op. 7 No. 1 - Movement 3: Albinoni

The third movement from Vivaldi's Sinfonia RV 112.

Realized with Session Strings Pro

Vivaldi: RV 112 - Movement 3

The third movement from Vivaldi's String Concerto: RV 146.

Realized with Session Strings Pro 2

Vivaldi: RV 149 - Movement 3

This is a duet I wrote for violin and viola. I used the solo violin and viola from Chris Hein's Kontakt sample library.

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