Shaping and scale of Tide
- Dominic McGonigal
- Dec 29, 2025
- 1 min read
Today, I have the job of tidying up the 4th movement, Tide. All fifteen minutes are written. Most of it is orchestrated as the sounds in my head were mostly specific combinations of instrument. I still have to orchestrate the opening section as I didn’t have time in the moment of composition to do the full scoring.
I’ve been reflecting on the shape and scale of this last movement. It's in three section, following the architecture of the tide, starting with the calm stillness of low tide, building into a surge at mid tide, and reaching a powerful climax at high tide.
The opening stillness is captured by this beautiful ancient Irish melody, which I invert, transpose and layer over a slowly moving pedal.
The big tune appears in the middle section, rising through the modes to this rendition by the full orchestra.
The final section has the full power of the big tune, augmented in the bass, with the ancient Irish melody dancing over the top.
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