Hi Fred,

Glad you enjoyed it. The other three movements were fun, but this one got to be very frustrating. It's not done, but I'm going make some changes to the other movements, that I've had in mind, try to get a decent recording made of the whole thing, print a hard copy, and move on to trumpet and violin concertos, already started but idle for months.

I disagree that you can't "even consider" an extended work. I've heard enough of your compositions to be pretty sure of the opposite. I would have said the same thing four years ago. Though I have listened for over a half century and even wrote some fairly short and not very complex things, I never imagined when I discovered that computer programs could help me produce music that I wouldn't have to re-copy (and re-re-re-re-re-copy), that I would attempt anything for more than at most four instruments. Then one night I thought it might be kind of fun to just see what a ragtime piano piece might sound like if I used orchestral instruments. That turned ,after about three months, into the 3rd movement of this symphony. It took three months to get a draft because I had to learn a lot of things. For example, although I've followed scores while listening, many times, I never even took note of what the standard order of parts in a score is. So I think the important consideration is wanting to write something, rather when you start it.

While I'm thinking about it, I didn't envision the 3rd movement as the scherzo of a symphony until I had finished the draft. I was just thinking I was writing a raggish piece for orchestra, which might have been called 'Raggish Overture,' or something. It's only about six minutes long. Put a couple of your pieces together and you've got that much.

all best,
mgj