Listen to Brian’s composition performed by the Queensland Youth Orchestras conducted by Paul Dean.
Listen to Brian’s original composition submitted with his entry.
Brian Walsh (Age 14, Qld)
FANFARE: Calling
My name is Brian Walsh, and I am 14 years old. I was born in Ireland and have lived on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland for 9 years. I play the piano and love creating things. Photography and cinematography are some other hobbies of mine.
I started playing piano when I was nine as an extracurricular school activity, but only played for a year because I wanted to do something more creative. I didn’t play for another two years when my passion was reignited by a new teacher: Daniel Khoury. More recently, during the pandemic, I had online lessons with Michael Larkin and was introduced to composing. I then started lessons at high school and composed and performed for the first time. The first time I composed for an orchestra was the 2022 Artology Fanfare competition.
For me, music is combining sounds to create a piece that sounds pleasant. I find great enjoyment in creating my own music that ‘just works’. The challenge of finding new ideas and sounds is something that I enjoy when I am composing.
I really like film scores, as they can range from recognisable melodies to influential atmospheric pieces. What excites me about music is that it can be so played and written in so many ways. For example, how John Williams writes incredible traditional melodic themes for films while Hans Zimmer writes impressive atmospheric scores that heavily affect the perception of a scene.
Composition Inspiration:
The inspiration for my composition ‘Calling’, was the works of Ludwig Göransson, particularly his scores for the Black Panther soundtrack. This is because he skilfully uses dramatic swells which create excitement that then leads into the rest of the piece. My composition uses a similar structure, quieter sections of anticipation follow the swells. This keeps the audience engaged and wondering what will happen next. I have also used small brass accents to add to the build-up in my piece. The prospect of my piece being played by a live orchestra also excited me. My interest in music has been a great experience so far and I look forward to more composing and learning from others as I continue my journey.