History of Notation
Modern Composition Proposal
Step 2
Describe each of the following aspects of your proposed composition
1. Instrumentation/ Performing Forces- Oboe, Clarinet, and Viola
2. Meter 12/8
3. Key Signature F# Minor (3 Sharp)
4. Tempo- Dotted Quarter Note = 80
5. Dynamics Loudest {Oboe, Viola, Clarinet} Softest
6. Chord progression- "chorus" following i VI III VII progression
7. Cadences- Perfect Authentic
8. Texture (s) - Polyphonic
9. Title- The Phoenix
4. How will you sequence this process? What do you do first, second, third, etc.?
Chord progression and mostly focus on primary melodies and build the rest around it. Since it's polyphonic melodies that compliment each other and fit into the chord progression. That might mean some melodies wants to be simpler than others (half notes, etc.) and that instruments will trade leading lines. I want to try to be creative and follow my instincts for melodies.
Step 3
Answer the following questions regarding your compositional proposal
1. What is it you hope to accomplish?
In my proposed composition, I hope to create a dramatic composition that uses instrumentation and dynamics to invoke some sense of emotion and further understand understanding of theory concepts. I want to make a good effort at achieving these goals.
2. Does this project relate to any of your benchmark goals?
One of my Benchmark Goals What I Want to Do? I want to meet one of my benchmark goals. Another goal I could meet that goal.
3. What concepts will need additional research or review?
Chord progression evoke what emotions. I am using because I do not want to write parts that would not be playable for each of the instruments' ranges.
5. How do you know it is a success?
I am and always have been my own worst critic so if I like what I've done then I think I can call my composition a success. If it lives up to its title of The Phoenix and it shows the understanding of a full semester of music theory it will be a success.
Composition Presentation and Reflection
1. Describe the skills/knowledge you needed to complete this assignment that you learned/refined as a result of taking this class.
I really needed to understand how chords work to be able to write this composition, specifically how to fit parts into the chord to write a polyphonic sound and create interesting chord progressions. I also needed to know about non-harmonic tones, to make a composition that was interesting rhythmically but not dissonant.
2. Describe the resource/information that was most helpful to completing this composition.
The information about major and minor keys from a past unit was most helpful so that I could figure out how to create chords around the minor key and not its major equivalent. Understanding minor keys and how they work was necessary for my composition.
3. How close was your final product in relation to your initial proposal? If things changed, why/how?
I met all things in my proposed composition except I wasn't able to fit a perfect cadences. Because I didn't have very clear sections and I wanted things to flow into each other, I didn't have clear cadences. Also because my composition kind of ended up being a mix of F# minor and A major, the chord progression wasn't as clearly defined as I would want. It floated in between the keys because it was mostly major but it started and ended on a minor chord.
4. Comment on your time management for this project.
Considering that I am finishing this unit late, I would say that my time management hasn't been the best. However that was mostly because I spent most of the time working on the actual composition and not the written pieces around it. When I wanted a break on things I would open up the software and continuing working on it but I kept going back and forth with choices I made, meaning one day I would change a note and the next I would change it back. Because I wanted it to be perfect, my time management didn't end up being the best it could have been.
5. What was the greatest benefit of your learning experience for this composition?
The greatest benefit of the experience of this composition was having a vision for the skeleton of this project and then slowly filling in the gaps. For this project I got to be creative but I had to be very specific with what I wanted. Using prior learning, in this case music theory learning, combined with setting out to meet a goal was beneficial for me as a learner.
6. What was the greatest challenge of your learning experience for this composition?
My greatest challenge was trying to keep coming up with new melodies that didn't compromise the rest of the composition. Bridging the gap between two sections was very difficult for me because I wanted there to be something else happening but there was still a main line I wanted to come through, and everything I wrote in that section ended up ruining the main line, so I settled with long notes.
7. Were there any aspects of your outcome that were surprising or unexpected?
The major/minor key dilemma was something that surprised me because I had set out to write a song in a minor key but I quickly found that my instincts and my ear were compelling me to write with major chords, especially to achieve the inspirational feeling I wanted.
8. How would you approach the compositional process differently if you had another opportunity to learn in this manner?
If I had to, I would plan out the chord progressions first and then write melodies around that. For this composition, I really focused on melodies and where my ear wanted the melodies to go and built the chords around that which means that some of it feels like it's wandering. I would also try to make it more structured because I really wanted to be flexible and follow my creativity but I'm not satisfied with the structure of the composition in terms of an ABA format.
9. Describe the kind of composition you would pursue if given another opportunity to do so.
If I had another opportunity to write a composition, I think that I would try to write something more light with different instrumentation. I would write something that centered around a major key that was faster and maybe a little celebratory. For that I might use a marimba or maybe experiment with other forms of percussion, which I know nothing about.