Key facts

Type	Weekly Classes
Location	Oxford
Address	Ewert House Ewert Place Summertown Oxford
Dates	Wed 16 Jan to Wed 20 Mar 2013 Day: Wednesday Time of meeting: 11.00-1.00pm Number of meetings: 10
Subject area(s)	Music
CATS points	10
Fees	From £165.00
Application status	Course ended
Course code	O12P900MSW
Course contact	If you have any questions about this course, please email ppweekly@conted.ox.ac.uk.

Overview

This is a practical course for those interested in composing music of any genre. It will cover the skills common to all composition but will concentrate upon vocal composition.

Description

This is a practical course for those interested in composing music of any genre, covering the skills common to all composition, but concentrating upon vocal writing. The classes will consist of a combination of structured teaching and workshops on students’ own work. Students can bring any musical ideas to the class - it might be just a short phrase or some interesting chords - and we will discuss their implications and ways in which they might be expanded and developed.

It is hoped that each student will finish the term with a completed piece of music, although this may vary in scope from a simple but well-crafted tune to a substantial work. The important thing is not the scale of the piece but the extent to which it has developed and been polished during the term. An alternative, but equally acceptable, outcome of the course would be for a student to produce a series of short structured exercises in compositional technique.

The course is designed to cater for students with some experience of composition as well as interested listeners.

Programme details

Week 1: Composition workshop.
Special topic - The human voice – resources and limitations
Week 2: Composition workshop.
Week 3: Composition workshop.
Special topic - Words and music - 1
Week 4: Composition workshop.
Week 5: Composition workshop.
Special topic - Words and music - 2
Week 6: Composition workshop.
Week 7: Composition workshop.
Special topic - Writing for chorus
Week 8: Composition workshop.
Week 9: Composition workshop.
Special topic - Writing for vocal soloists
Week 10: Composition workshop.


Background Reading:
Schoenberg, A. The Fundamentals of Musical Composition (London, 1967)
Sessions, R. The Musical Experience of Composer, Performer and Listener (Princeton University Press, 1974)
Rosen, C. The Classical Style (Faber)

Staff

Course aims

Course Aim:
To give students a greater understanding of the craft and techniques of composition and to apply this to their own compositions.

Course Objectives:
1. to increase the level of craftsmanship with which the students approach each compositional task.
2. to increase their understanding of the relationship between words and music in vocal writing.
3. to introduce the students to vocal works by other composers that illustrate the techniques that they are learning.

Assessment methods

Assessment will be based upon the music written by the students during the term. They may choose to write one substantial piece, several short pieces or even to undertake compositional exercises.

Teaching methods

A mixture of lecture and workshop but with the emphasis on workshop. During workshop sessions the students' work will be projected on to a big screen so that all the class members can see it.

In the special topics the tutor will illustrate his teaching with relevant extracts from the works of the great composers as well as with the use of specially written examples - projected on to the screen using Sibelius software.

Teaching outcomes

By the end of the course students will be expected to:
[1] be able to develop musical ideas into more extended passages of music
[2] be able to construct melodies
[3] be able to write practical music for voices

Fee options

Programme Fee

EU Fee: £165.00

Non-EU Fee: £165.00

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