MP3

MP3 Downloads

**All MP3s are recorded using the Garritan Personal Orchestra that comes with Finale 2009 Professional Edition unless marked otherwise**

Feel free to redistribute these as you please!  File sharing means more people become exposed to my music.

Sketches, Samples, and New Works

Symphony No. 1 in F-"Family Tree"-IV. Vivace e molto scherzando

(November 2009)

This is a sketch of the fourth movement of my symphony that I'm dedicating to my family.  Each of the members of my family have their own movement, and the fourth is a scherzo dedicated to my brother.  My brother, the majority of the time, is very intense, to a point of being moody, which is why the piece moves in and out of major and minor at at a moment's notice.  I have the whole piece sketched out for two pianos, I'm just working on arranging it for full orchestra.  This is what I have so far of this movement.  Only six more minutes to go! 

 Concerto for Violin and Orchestra-I. Allegro con brio, un poco maestoso assai

(January 2010)

Let me stress this: it's a sketch.  Meaning it isn't finished.  At all.  But I'm posting this so you get a general idea.  I wanted to write something that was in the "happy" spectrum, with somewhat of a modern jazz influence.  I mean, I don't know the first thing about writing jazz music, but what better way to learn than to just dive right in, right?  Well, I'll let you be the judge.  My first concerto for a solo instrument: yay or nay?

Sonata for Flute in D-I. Giusto, ma poco moderato 

(December 2009)

I decided to write something for...well, for myself.  That is to say, a piece I would perform myself.  So I chose the flute for obvious reasons, and created something that really emulates my kind of flute playing: percussive, bold, and a little strange.  This movement is still being tweaked, but overall it's pretty much finished.  I'm thinking the ending is too abrupt, but other than that, I doubt I'll make many changes.  Let me know what you think so far!

Valse-Scherzo for Clarinet, Bassoon, and Piano 

(December 2009)

I was listening to way too much Chopin one day and thought, "Huh.  Why don't I write a fun waltz like that?"  Originally for solo piano, but after listening to it over and over again, I figured it could use some extra voicing.  Not at all a serious piece.  In fact, I believe that I wrote this to contrast all the serious work I had been doing.  A very classical and Chopin-like waltz, but then...well...Chopin gets angry.  Or something. 

Full Works

(arranged by date work was completed)

Op. 1-Symphonic Dance for Flute and Piano

(June 2007)

My first catalogued composition.  Written in the summer of 2007, this piece was originally a violin concerto, and the melodic middle section was supposed to be the driving force for the piece.  It was to be dedicated to someone I was seeing at the time, but, well, things happen and the music changed.  This is what I ended up with.  Full of bravura and technical passages for both instruments, my Symphonic Dance for Flute and Piano is a concert duet that I'm very proud of, especially for my first work ever. 

Op. 2-Sonata for Bassoon

(September 2007)

I'm a huge fan of all of the woodwinds...I guess I'm pretty biased seeing as I play all of them, but my favorite woodwind of all is the bassoon.  And it's a shame that there's little bassoon repertoire out there (at least in comparison to, say, clarinet repertoire).  So I decided that I was going to help the bassoonist's cause and write a sonata.  I started writing the piece about three months after my first opus.  The sonata is in three movements, the first at a quick pace with an ever-changing mood.  The third is in a driving mixed meter and really tests out the player's skill and the instruments agility.  The second movement is tricky because I'm thinking of writing two versions of it.  The original one that I wrote, and a revised version that's...well, better.  Anyway, as a whole, I enjoy this work, the third movement being one of my favorite movements of all of my pieces, even ones I'm working on now.

Op. 3-Preludes for Piano

(December 2007)

A set of small incidental pieces for piano, none of them exceeding four minutes.  Essentially just a dabble into writing for the instrument, with variating styles and moods.  This piece is the first five tracks on my first album, Untamed.  To reserve a copy of the CD for free, go to the projects page.

 Op. 4-Valse Horrible

(January 2008)

After listening to Bartok's "The Miraculous Mandarin" over and over again for a good week and a half (I had just bought my first recording of it), I was totally inspired.  But I was too afraid to write something for large orchestra, so instead I opted for a concertpiece for piano.  Jarring chords, grotesque melodies, and a haunting intermezzo...definitely a piece with strong character and requires a player with the same thing.  Not to mention...lots of stamina! This piece is the sixth track on my first album, Untamed.  To reserve a copy of the CD for free, go to the projects page.

 Op. 5-Sonata for Oboe

(March 2008)

The last piece I wrote before I discovered the wonderful Garritan Personal Orchestra.  The piece begun as a violin sonata, and the first movement was initially a joke piece, something that I never really considered until I listened to it a few more times.  The first movement is done in a sort of tableau style rather than typical sonata form.  When I was writing the second movement, for whatever reason I was thinking of some sort of slow moving space object.  The last movement is lots of fun and really tests the players ability to use the instrument to its full potential.  Conceptually, there's a bit of disconnect between the movements, but nonetheless I think it's a challenging and fun addition to the oboe repertoire.

Op. 6-Three Pieces for Clarinet and Cello

(August 2008)

This piece was born because of two things.  One, my love (obsession) with the music of Bela Bartok was reaching it's peakm and two, it was a test piece to see what I could do with the, at the time, new Finale 2009.  The pieces are small, quick, and relatively simple in comparison to some of my other works.  Both instruments are showcased with bartok pizzicato, glissandi, and more.  Even though this opus is a small one for me, I consider it to be the piece that transitioned me from being a hobbyist to an actual serious composer.  Because the piece is three miniatures, the MP3 is all three movements in one file.

Op. 7-"Das Gerechte Madchen" (The Fair Maiden)-Fantasy Overture for String Orchestra

(December 2008)

I was nervous when I first started this piece.  I had never written anything for a group of strings before, and I had never written anything so large, not only in length but in concept.

The piece was born out of an idea that I had when my sister had called me about an issue she was having with someone she was seeing.  Of course, I ended up taking it to the extreme and adding romantic flair.  Throw in a few weeks of studying Mahler, and this is what I came up with.

The story is about a young girl who loses her mother to an unfortunate accident.  As her mother is passing, she hands her daughter a vial of poison and tells her that if she ever feels like there is no hope for love in the world, that she can take this to be reunited with her mother.  The maiden's father, shortly after the mother's death, intends to sell his daughter off in exchange for marriage to become wealthy.  For this, he holds a ball where he will choose his daughter's rightful suitor and eventual husband.

The first man dances with maiden, but there is something slightly off about him.  When he dances himself into a complete whirlwind and has to be carried out, it becomes rather obvious that he is drunk.  He is escorted out of the ball while trying to make lewd passes at the maiden.

The second man is charming and stunningly handsome, which immediately enraptures the maiden, and they dance a very passionate and strong bolero.  However, when the man sees another girl across the room, his countenance changes.  He manages to wriggle away from the poor maiden and finishes the dance with the other woman, and eventually leaves with her.

The final man is a meek and slightly awkward tailor, but to the maiden there is something oddly familiar about him.  They dance, and they both feel an immediate connection.  The man asks the maiden to come away with him.  She says yes and runs to her room to grab her things.  As she is up there, the father pulls the man aside and attempts to kill him.  The maiden comes running down the stairs and sees this.  She begs her father to stop, and for a second he almost decides to, looking into his daughters pain-stricken eyes.  But he kills the man, and maiden runs to her room, overcome with grief.  She takes the vial of poison, and shortly after, dies.

The solo viola "plays" the maiden.

The solo cello "plays" the third man.

The solo bass "plays" the father.

Op. 8-String Quartet No. 1

(January 2009)

Well, I had so much fun writing for strings, I decided to do it again!  I wrote the first movement after listening to a Darius Milhaud piece for the first time, and it had a very big influence on the piece.  My second movement has a story about a young boy who has alcoholic parents who escapes into his mind to keep his realities at bay, but he ends up realizing that you can only do that for so long.  The third movement is a humoresque done with all pizzicato.  The final movement is full of broad musical strokes and constant movement.  I wanted to create something that had a lot space for the audience and the players to crawl into while they were listening. 

 Op. 9-Sonate Vert

(February 2009)

The name means "Green Sonata in French," and the name might be pretty generic, but the piece is far from it.  My first real attempt at something I'd title "modern impressionism."  Something fragrant, slightly odd, and captivating...that's what I was going for.  The musical interpretation of different brushstrokes of green.  Regardless of whether or not I was successful, it was a lot of fun to write! This piece is the seventh track on my first album, Untamed.  To reserve a copy of the CD for free, go to the projects page.

 Op. 10-Symphony No. 1 in F-"Family Tree"

(April 2009)

For my tenth opus, I wanted to go big.  I knew I wanted to do a symphony, but it wasn't until I was actually sketching the piece that I decided to write and dedicate the piece to each of my family members.  The first movement is for my dad, the second for my mother, the third for my sister, the fourth for my brother, and the fifth for my grandmother.  The piece is supposed to be a sort of musical window into their personalities, both the good and the bad qualities, and what I find most endearing about them.  As of right now, only the first movement is complete, although the second is being sketched, and the last three are being orchestrated.

(This piece is not yet completed and not available for download) 

Op. 11-Quintet for Woodwinds 

(November 2008)

Anyone who knows me knows that I love woodwinds.  So I started working on a woodwind quintet that is, much like my opu ten, very personal.  It's about something...well, why don't you just listen?  Maybe you can figure it out. 

(This piece is not available at this time) 

Op. 12-Piano Sonata in E

(July 2009)

After working on two very special and heavy pieces, I decided I wanted to write some music for music's sake.  A lot of Mozart influence went into the piece, as well as Alkan and Scriabin.  A dynamic piece that ends in a flurry of excitement.  Probably because I was so excited to finish it!  This piece is the eighth, ninth, tenth, and eleventh tracks on my first album, Untamed.  To reserve a copy of the CD for free, go to the projects page.

(This piece is not available at this time)  

Op. 13-Divertimento for String Quintet and Piano

(September 2009)

I was kind of sick of "playing it safe" with the majority of my pieces, so I decided to do something a little different.  I toyed around with sketches for a few months, and eventually came up with this wonderfully modern piece that still manages to have a strong structure and a clear direction.  It really plays with the instruments and emotions, moving in and out of the thoughts I was having: complacency, depression, anger, mania, loneliness.  The piece was three months into my seven month unemployment streak, and it was a wonderful and cathartic experience to write.  Has been described as "Schoenbergian." 

Op. 14-"Der Man Ferder Over" for Two Pianos

(October 2009) 

Alright.  This piece requires a long explanation.  I have to say, this piece is the feather in my music composition cap.  I wrote this piece for Plathner's Eleven of Hanover Internation Composition Competition.  Unbelievably, the piece actually won the third grand prize!  For the competition, we had options as far as inspiration went, and I chose to write about fjords.  Initally I really just wanted a challenge, but as the weeks went on, I realized the challenge was much more than I bargained for.  Eventually, I came up with the concept of morning, afternoon, and evening on a viking ship that passes through the fjord.  I use multiple different influences to create something very visual, something that gives you a vivid picture while you listen.  The piece will be recorded and distributed ONLY at cjdarnieder.com beginning in December 2010.

(This piece is not available for download) 

Op. 16-The Christmas Scherzo in G Minor

(December 2009)

This is a piece I just wrote, fresh off Finale, for my best friend Jesi, who is also a very talented piano student.  When we were talking about a possible piece, she mentioned a few words to me..."fast," "minor," and "dramatic."  I think I captured all of those while still keeping my own voice.  So far it's been described as both "manic" and "insane."  They could be right.  Take a listen.