Composer-Performer Collaboration Thread

[luderart]

In this thread I invite:

a) Any performer who wishes for a specific piece to be written for their instrument to describe the piece they are asking for so that the many composers in here may choose to take up the challenge and compose the piece they are looking for.

b) Any composer who is looking for a performer for a certain piece to provide the link to their composition and get in contact with performers of the instruments it calls for to arrange for possible performance.

I hope that in this way the right composer and the right performer can be helped to find each other and join together for a fruitful collaboration and perfect partnership. I believe a special thread made for this purpose (such as the present one) can immensely aid in the creation of such collaboration between composer and performer so that both can achieve their aims - the composer getting the pieces he/she composes performed and the performer getting the pieces they wish for composed.

The composer and the performer both need each other and cannot fully achieve their aims alone. So collaboration between them for the fullest realization and furtherance of both of their aims is of paramount importance. They need to communicate so that each can learn what the other expects from them and take it into consideration as they go about achieving their respective aims. These respective aims of theirs need not diverge from each other or be mutually exclusive. It is exactly this that such a collaboration between the two will help them realize in the long run.

I got this idea after I mentioned in another thread how we composers were at the mercy of performers and an oboe performer here offered to play and record it if I wrote a good piece for oboe. Thus was created the opportunity for collaboration between a composer and a performer. I composed the piece and he liked it. And now I am hoping to hear his performance of it. And so, encouraged by that positive experience, I hope that it can be made possible for many others via this thread inviting very such collaboration between composers and performers.

[Austenite]

Thanks for the initiative, Luderart...

Since it's easiest to have a solo work performed, I have the two piano pieces I've uploaded so far:

• The Nocturne in G minor, Op. 18 (I'm glad to say this one is already under study by fellow member DinaHeartX :thumbsup: )
  
• The Piano Sonata No. 3 in C, Op. 23 (perhaps some could perform a single movement or the full work).
  

Anyone deeming them performance-worthy can let me know :toothygrin: .

[luderart]

Would be glad and really grateful if a harpist will perform and record my short harp piece (soliloquy):

http://www.youngcomp...-for-harp-no-1/

Also, I am interested if there are any competent guitarists visiting these pages. I have 3 guitar pieces that I may choose to upload if anyone is interested in giving them a go in performance.

By the way, Austenite, did anybody take you up on the pieces you offered for performance?

[Austenite]

Well, yes... As stated above, the Nocturne is currently being practiced by DinaHeartX. So far she's been able to play the first section at a slower tempo ;) ... As for the Sonata, no one has dared yet...

Thanks for asking, though...

[luderart]

Provided there are pianist members in here, I would really appreciate a performance and serious interpretation of this piece of mine:

http://www.youngcomposers.com/music/2651/soliloquy-for-piano-no-4/

I will reward any good-to-tolerable performance by uploading it at the same address (of course if they agree)!

[LuisPato]

i would be happy to give a go at someone's classical guitar pieces!

;)

[luderart]

I would be happy if a viola player agrees to perform this viola soliloquy of mine. I consider it one of the best pieces for solo string that I have composed so far and believe that it will benefit a lot from a human interpretation and from the sound of a real viola:

http://www.youngcomposers.com/music/4150/soliloquy-for-viola-no-4/
 

 

Likes wise, I would be happy if a pianist will agree to perform (and of course record) these two short piano pieces which I consider to be my best so far. I think the second one in particular will benefit immensely from a human interpretation:

http://www.youngcomposers.com/music/3969/10-bar-piano-miniature-no-7/

http://www.youngcomposers.com/music/4218/soliloquy-for-piano-no-5/

You can either respond here or PM me.
 

[Cadenza91]

I think it's important to keep in mind that unless there is funding involved, performers are more often doing the young composer a favor (unless of course, the latter is approached with a request for a piece to be written for them). This said, it's beneficial to seek out performers from this perspective. People don't spend time looking for ways they can do favors for other people and it's easy to brush off a passive request. In short: if you know a player, contact them. Make a case for your music. They certainly won't be contacting you out of the blue (unless of course, you're someone who isn't a member of a young composer's forum ;).....or a top 10 Slovenian composer). 

[luderart]

I think it's important to keep in mind that unless there is funding involved, performers are more often doing the young composer a favor (unless of course, the latter is approached with a request for a piece to be written for them). This said, it's beneficial to seek out performers from this perspective. People don't spend time looking for ways they can do favors for other people and it's easy to brush off a passive request. In short: if you know a player, contact them. Make a case for your music. They certainly won't be contacting you out of the blue (unless of course, you're someone who isn't a member of a young composer's forum ;).....or a top 10 Slovenian composer). 

 

Interesting perspective. I agree it might not give the performer any benefit to perform pieces from a young composer's site. But still, adventurous performers might be willing to give new, unknown, or aspiring composers a chance.

 

How do you mean "make a case for your music". I find this a bit redundant or oxymoronic. Isn't a piece of music supposed to make its own case for itself? Do you need words to make a case for a piece of music? Does a piece of music need its existence to be justified (through reasoning or arguments in support of it)? Doesn't the very act of performing constitute the very justification for a piece's existence? In other words, someone must be willing to invest their time and energy and take the risk of choosing to get involved with the piece by performing it, of valuing a piece enough in order to bless it with a performance. In any case, I would be interested to hear your ideas of how one can "make a case for one's music"!

 

As far as taking the initiative and contacting a player you know is concerned, they might not be interested (and being rejected in one's initiative would not be fun). Even worse, they might pretend they are interested while deep down they have a different opinion of your music. This possibility is actually worse than outright rejection! So a "passive" request might after all be better than a bold initiative that might end in disappointment!

 

"People don't spend time looking for ways they can do favors for other people."

 

I suppose that is true, especially in the selfish world in which we currently live. But still, I think there is some satisfaction to be gained in doing favors for other people. And in this case in particular, playing a piece for the first time might have some unrecognized rewards. The performer gets to influence the composer's future writing. They might influence the way the piece is performed in the future, and the way the composer intends to have it interpreted. In other words, there might be immaterial rewards. Not everything is supposed to be about money.

 

By the way I got a response to one of the pieces I offered for performance, and heard and greatly enjoyed the performance.

[Cadenza91]

How do you mean "make a case for your music".

What I mean by this is that you need to convince performers that it will be worthwhile for them to perform your music. 'Music speaks for itself' is a delightful notion but the reality is that people have different tastes. As well as this, even if a performer(s), conductor, artistic director, etc. might find your piece to be 'good', that doesn't mean it is the right piece for them at that time.

 

 

So a "passive" request might after all be better than a bold initiative that might end in disappointment!

 

It might be better if you don't deal well with rejection and failure, but in the long run: you have to be willing to take risks.

 

I suppose that is true, especially in the selfish world in which we currently live. But still, I think there is some satisfaction to be gained in doing favors for other people. And in this case in particular, playing a piece for the first time might have some unrecognized rewards. The performer gets to influence the composer's future writing. They might influence the way the piece is performed in the future, and the way the composer intends to have it interpreted. In other words, there might be immaterial rewards. Not everything is supposed to be about money.

 

There is nothing selfish about being savvy with your time. You make a lot of suppositions but when it comes down to it, you need to be able to provide something many people actually want or need. Very few people are going to care whether or not they influence some young nobody's future writing. What people care about is how they're going to pay off loans and make rent, or at the very least, playing music that they enjoy or feel is a worthwhile addition to their repertoire or program. 

 

By the way I got a response to one of the pieces I offered for performance, and heard and greatly enjoyed the performance.

 

Congrats, I hope you're not getting the impression that I'm telling you 'not' to look for performers online like you are doing here. I am just trying to encourage you to avoid becoming complacent with 'passively' searching. 

[Sojar Voglar]

I would be happy if a viola player agrees to perform this viola soliloquy of mine. I consider it one of the best pieces for solo string that I have composed so far and believe that it will benefit a lot from a human interpretation and from the sound of a real viola:

http://www.youngcomposers.com/music/4150/soliloquy-for-viola-no-4/

 

 

Likes wise, I would be happy if a pianist will agree to perform (and of course record) these two short piano pieces which I consider to be my best so far. I think the second one in particular will benefit immensely from a human interpretation:

http://www.youngcomposers.com/music/3969/10-bar-piano-miniature-no-7/

http://www.youngcomposers.com/music/4218/soliloquy-for-piano-no-5/

You can either respond here or PM me.

 

I think you can play these pieces by yourself, they are not difficult at all.