April 6th, 2009 "Goldberg Variations: Aria", an Orchestration.

I arranged the Aria from J.S. Bach’s Goldberg Variations for my conducting and orchestration class during my senior year in college. The instrumentation is for a typical small chamber orchestra: Flute, Oboe, Clarinet in A, Horn, Trumpet, Trombone, Tuba, Timpani, and a 5-part string section.

The orchestration of the A section is modeled after Webern’s Klangfarbenmelodie philosophy, with the woodwinds dove-tailing the melody. Of course, Webern’s orchestration of J.S. Bach’s Musical Offering was the main inspiration for this arrangement. The B section is modeled after a typical romantic orchestra sound, with thick lush strings and triumphant horns and percussion. Overall, I believe that the orchestration has helped in heightening the drama of this aria.

I had the opportunity to conduct an orchestra for a read-through of this work, but unfortunately a recording was not made. Thus, the recording is a MIDI performance. The timpani part was not correctly transcribed, so please refer to the score for more precise information.

I am currently working on orchestrating all of the Goldberg Variations.