Ten+Important+Questions+for+Young+Composers

Back to APPLIED COMPOSITION
TEN IMPORTANT QUESTIONS FOR YOUNG COMPOSERS

1. __Where is this piece going?__ Have you thought through where there will be formal articulations? What is the overall form/structure/design of the piece and how does what you have written thus far fit into that scheme? How important is either small- or large-scale form to you when you write? Can you think of ways to link small-scale formal elements (sets, motives, progressions, phrase structure, etc.) with large scale formal elements?

2. __How does this piece reflect your growth as a composer?__ In what sorts of compositional activity have you engaged? For whom do you compose and why?

3. __How do you work when writing?__ Do you write at the piano? How do you think your process affects the music you write? What are some ways to break free from any constraints posed by your writing routine? How might you compose differently if you were required to produce a final draft before sharing your piece with anyone? How about if you were required to finish a piece (movement, etude, etc.) in one sitting?

4. Composition can be viewed as creative problem solving. __Can you point to a challenge or imposed limitation that you encountered in writing this music, as well as your solution?__

5. Often effective composition involves judicious use of repetition and contrast. __How and where are these ideas are at work in this music?__ Where might further use of repetition/contrast enhance your music?

6. __What role does silence, motivic development, counterpoint, etc. play in this music__?

7. __What is your approach to harmony and/or harmonic progression/succession?__ What, if any, is the connection between melodic and harmonic content?

8. __Is this piece more concerned with pitch and linear elements, or timbre and vertical figurations, or a combination or these extremes?__ Demonstrate what you mean.

9. Almost all new works owe a debt to earlier music. __What composers and/or specific pieces have influenced your writing?__ What scores have you been studying? Can you point to anything about this piece that is informed by your sonic experience?

10. __If I would study and/or listen to this piece and two others you’ve recently written, would I be able to identify that they are by the same composer?__ If yes, what are the fingerprints (characteristics) of your sound? If not, why do you think this is the case?