SYS65

Thank you for your comments, I know a degree won't automatically open doors just like that, and I do know the issues you mention in the film industry and how they "teach" composition in these days, that is why I said I wasn't interested in the course itself, anyway, I found the advertisement I was talking about and it mentions the "University of West London", (https://www.uwl.ac.uk/) in case someone wants to make some research too, I will contact them and check if all this issue is actually true or not. of course I will continue to write music always, but in my case that degree would help for sure, perhaps not as a composer itself but maybe to get other kind of music related jobs, like teacher or something else. Thanks.

Hello, long time I don't get involved with this community, but I would like to ask you all, since you are in different places of this planet, you might help me to clear this out. As you may already know, I'm self-taugh in musical composition, I have been writing music for long time, about 30 years, I like to write for orchestra a lot, and after all these years I have achieved some level at it, not too long ago I saw in facebook an advertising about some sort of crash-course in composition, it didn't sound very interesting to me BUT they said the course was in order to make you write a solid portafolio of works that you may later present into a University, and some people in that university would examinate the works and eventualy decide if they grant you a Bachelor degree in composition, or whatever you call it in your place, (we call it "Licenciatura" in my place) anyway, the attractive aspect of that advertising wasn't that they would suppose to "teach you" composition in a short period of time, (which is not possible if you know nothing) but they were suppose to "warante you" you were gonna surely get that Bachelor degree... as this "crash course" may sound just a hoax or not the important thing I would like to know, is not about courses, but about the fact that a serious University, Conservatory or a similar institution, actually do offer an option for people have developed a decent level in composition and they don't own a single piece of paper that can prove it to other people, all this in order to get a job, or something can actually help you in making a way of living, I mean get money somehow. If someone knows, somewhere, of an option, a real option for people like me, that we didn't have the oportunity to study in a fancy music school, we didn't born in a "super artistic" place in this planet, but we have spent decades learning from the works of the very best masters in composition have ever existed and noone is willing to give us a chance to prove it unless we have a paper saying it, I would really appreciate any information, advise, link, or anything else, no matter the language, country or anything else. Thank you very much.

Thank you all for your comments. I must say all this is obviously a social critic almost comical critic of certain aspects of society, specially "my society", I mean, related to the place I live, I don't know if it might be different in other places, so it's better to imagine this in a cartoonish way rather than any other serious music analytics. The No.6 perhaps wasn't completly understood, it's about sadness more than any other thing, like someone in the last days of his life, thinking and moving very slowly, happy memories mixed with sad ones, things you always dreamt but never actually did, places you didn't travel to, perhaps something like "I always wanted to be an orchestra conductor, but I ended being a lawyer all my life, that wasn't even my idea, was my father's"... all that sort of things that takes you to a bittersweet ending, not tragical, not triumphant either, just, let's move on, I don't wanna be here anymore. About making more miniatures, yes, that sounds a good idea, maybe I could later write something like "Suite No.2", and with time, creating a much monger and interesting opus of piano pieces that could even work as student pieces, with different technical aspects to work with.

Something I wrote while being bored, nothing special, no particular reason, just a few ideas came to my mind while seeing people's behavior. I give you a short description of the idea of each miniature, I'm sure you can easily understand the music by reading the description. THE PEOPLE 1.- Their Reasonings Ridiculous chaining of wrong premises with quick and apparent conclusion. 2.- Their Schedules Complex designs that obstruct each other, taking it into madness. 3.- Thier Cars Reason of empowerment and pride that provides the sense of themselves control. 4.- Thier Debts Constant worry apparently low but hard to ignore. 5.- Their Salaries Small amounts almost as jokes that dissapear at its first usage leaving behind doubt if was it really all ? 6.- Their Dreams Nobody yearn bad things for themselves, it's always beautiful things, just you cannot have them, maybe something similar, but never as beautiful as in your dreams.

I guess something with more "advanced" writing, a score "looks" avant-garde, I still use notes, and chords, my music still sounds... some people take that as an "outdated" aspect, which of course is not, but go tell them 🙄 Thank you for your comment.

Thank you for your comment, yes I will surely compose more pieces like this, I often write themes like this, but I only write melody with chords, like a jazz theme you know, there is never "a score" per se, but this one I decided to orchestrate it, I can do it again with other theme.

I have had a sort of absolute pitch, and lost it several times, but it was nothing but a reference in my mind, let's say I used to play in my head the beginning of Carmina Burana and always get a perfect D, using that D I could know what note I was hearing, years later I lost that reference, then I got a new one, playing in my head the beginning of Alpensinfonie and always get a perfect Bb, again, after the years I lost it. What I've always had is the relative pitch, that works very fine for me. Maybe if you wake up always with the same ringtone, you'll write that tone in your head 🙂

Tonality is a galaxy, atonality is another galaxy, polytonality is the ship going from tonality to atonality, but the one travels in the ship is tonal, the real atonal is the alien waiting for the traveler, in other words, polytonality is the way tonality becomes more and more advanced until it could eventually leave entirely all tonal traces, but it's in that direction, not in the other direction.* Serialism is a black hole takes you straight to the atonality galaxy. *There is always an exception, like Berg.

I don't use keys anymore, keys are like borders in the map, I now live in the space.

Thanks for your comment, strange comparison though.

Hey, Well, I've been working for 2 years in a very heavy project for Choir and Orchestra, but is not ready yet 😋 so, I've been locked in my house due to the quarantine, just walking and sitting, and walk again and sit again, I haven't had much luck in my other work these past days, so yesterday just open an new file, and wrote a theme I found in piano that morning. This is the smallest orchestra I've used, also the shortest orchestral piece I own, it was only to kill the time you know... I must say is relaxing to write "normal music" from time to time, you don't have to be struggling with "thing nobody has written before".

Hello, Do you think would be possible to contact Arvo Pärt ? do you have an idea how would I be able to send him a package to a physical address, or somehow be sure he will recieve it ? What for ?, is not important for you, but I assure you, I won't send him a bomb, he's such a respected wonderful composer, a living treasure.

perhaps you mean near the ending ? I did struggle a bit pasting the piece with the ending I was already written before. Thanks for your comment.

They are all to be treated as chords, large chords like in jazz, classical pianists don't usually do this but in jazz is very common to press two keys with one finger, specially the thumb, so they are actually very ergonomic if you're used to play like that. I wrote with small notes the notes can be omited in case pianist doesn't feel comfortable with that, but is intended to sound exactly how is written. I'm glad you find it good, thanks for your comment.

Hey, Long time since my last activity, I guess I'll look new here, but I'm not. This is a little piece I wrote for a half joke half serious commission made to me by a percussion student in the conservatory I used to work, he just told me once "hey when you write something for marimba ?" i just said "yeah someday". This is it, is not very hard to play, he plays with two sticks only, hasn't been performed yet anyway. After finishing, while listening to it, it came to my mind a sort of Tom & Jerry behavior between the marimba and the piano, hence the title. Greetings to my old friends still around.