AIM 2023 Judge Review
I'm really impressed by your entry this year. What stands out to me most is your attention to detail in drawing inspiration from the art inside and out. For such a painted landscape, I feel like the most obvious portrayal would be to incorporate ambient sound effects like wind blowing or crunching footsteps in the snow. I'm not saying these wouldn't have worked in a piece inspired by this art, but I think it should be commended that you managed to reflect this image using a large ensemble of orchestral instruments.
Not only did you draw inspiration from the image for the composition and instruments, but I love that the mix was factored into honing in on the right atmosphere to depict the art. Everything has this muted, sort of hushed quality that reminds me of the silence heard when standing out during a heavy snowfall. It works so well to convey the snowy mountaintops and serve as an effective backdrop to the character's journey, which still feels like the main driving force of the melodic ideas being explored.
I also really love the way the sections progress. At 1:14, the clarinet lead-in seems hopeful - as if the journey ahead is rough but it's going to be fine - and I like how that eventually culminates into a louder more definitive idea that, to me, feels completely desolate. The mountain continues to loom tall; the character continues trudging forward. Then the clarinet comes back in again and it almost seems like again, there is hope, but the final part with the strings shuts that hopefulness down - at least, that's how it came across to me, and I think that does seem to tie in with the description provided in the art.
Overall, I believe you used your strengths in orchestral composing and mixing to be so in-tune with the art, from the visuals to the description and the journey beyond. Although the experience only lasts about 3-and-a-half minutes, it felt like every second was perfectly attuned to this mountainous landscape.
