I've been deceiving myself this entire process. I was sure that the new challenge I was facing while composing this piece was incorporating the various improvisatory elements. But as I get more and more into the piece, I realize that the biggest challenge I'm having is determining the correct proportions and overall shape of the piece. Many of my single-movement pieces have a pretty similar shape to them, with a gradual development climaxing near the end of the work. For this piece, I made the early decision to begin the piece amidst the climax, allowing the piece to "devolve" from there. In a way, I have chosen to compose in mirror image to my normal tendencies. This puts me at a serious disadvantage, as I can't refer to my usual bag of tricks to progress the piece forward...to push the music over the finish line. Measure 1 WAS the finish line!
Despite my hand-wringing over the improvisatory nature of the piece, this dilemma of shape may be the factor which has most retarded the composition process, whether consciously or not.
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