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Hello, I am new to composition. Can anyone make a list of steps or concepts to learn orchestration? If this is a dumb question, I would appreciate any advice anyone has for learning orchestration. I am specifically looking to write orchestral music. Also if there are any resources or books that helped you learn orchestration, can you list some of them here?

Hello everyone, I'm back, at least for the moment. I wanted to share one of my in-progress arranging projects and humbly ask for your criticism. I decided to write a string quartet version of a Caroline Polachek song I love (linked at the bottom.) A PDF, Finale file, and audio file are linked below: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/ljosc9l0xfy0k6fc6r69d/h?rlkey=aml3pst90rdspugzuyiyjllb2&dl=0 If you use Finale, please open the Finale file. (You should have no issue if you hit download after the "Can't load this file type" prompt.) In my mp3 the violin 1 part is absent; I'm not sure why. This is apparently a glitch with the software. My apologies! I am working on transferring the audio to my DAW, but until then, I hope this audio is still helpful in some way to those who don't have Finale. Backstory and questions In my notation and score prep class at music school, we were given an extra credit challenge to post a composition or arrangement online and make it buyable over the next month -- I am aiming for mid-April 2024. At the moment I'm thinking I will sell my score on ArrangeMe. https://www.arrangeme.com/ My works mostly fall under the classical umbrella, but during my past year at college and especially in this current class I've notated very short excerpts and arrangements of pop and rock songs. This "Butterfly Net" arrangement is more extensive, though, and I'm having some doubts about it in terms of texture, rhythm, and narrative pace. I really want to do this beautiful song at least some justice and I would greatly appreciate your advice. (My class focuses on notation itself and not at all on composition, but I would like whatever I publish online to be compositionally solid.) I know that arrangements fall on a scale of very faithful to more transformative. For example, Josh Cohen's piano arrangement of "Paranoid Android" by Radiohead is closer to the latter, because Cohen created a spacious intro with a completely different mood than the original, and he extends and reworks later sections within the song. I would like to be faithful to Polachek's formal structure and honor her precise harmonies and melodic lines (I simplified some rhythms) -- because I don't have much time. A string quartet obviously has many limits and I have some specific questions: - I have the pizz. cello emulate the guitar in the beginning, and in the chorus the viola plays pizz. to add rhythmic interest where the percussion was. Is this effective, or distracting? - Am I changing textures too quickly throughout the piece so far? I would like to slowly build the energy and drama. - In bar 19 I considered having the viola continue playing a rhythmic part, but I recognize that it's basic practice not to have all four instruments playing together for the entire piece. Without the viola, bar 19 onwards sounds silly and anemic to me. How could I add some lushness that the original has without exhausting my ensemble? Thank you so much for reading and for listening! Please hear the original "Butterfly Net" below, and an audio file of my arrangement:

I composed a head and made a basic arrangement for the first play-through of the head. Here I did put in some written parts for piano and bass, though that was primarily so that I could hear what the trumpet and saxes were doing in something resembling the context in which it would be played. I'm mainly wondering how difficult this is for the saxes (are all those off-beat, short notes doable) and whether this is doable for a high school jazz ensemble. Additionally, I was wondering what you think of my harmonization and the melody and what others might have done differently. I have three attachments. #104.pdf is the chart, #104.mp3 is the audio with the rhythm section, and #104_2.mp3 is the audio without the rhythm section.

I thought you guys might be interested in my new series! I'm creating 2-3 minute videos about writing for every member of the woodwind family. I also am more than happy to answer any questions that are posted on the video. If you're interested, here's the playlist:

Hey Everyone:) TheBandGeek here. Two quick things. First off, I just released my first composition here (http://www.youngcomposers.com/music/listen/7662/dont-stop-believin-saxophone-quartet/). Second of all, I need all your amazing talents and brains to help me out. As a composer, I find it hard to arrange, although arranging contains a lot of the same elements as composition. See, I've got this school talent show coming up, and my friends and I were thinking of performing. Of course, they come to me to get the music:) So, I would basically need a pop medley of sorts. Comment below if you're available to help me out, and I'll give you more info, such as what songs to use and how it should be structured. Thank you so much guys. This is a lot to ask for, but it would be amazing if one of you amazing peeps could help me. Thanks!(For like the millionth time:P) -TheBandGeek P.S. Yes. I'm just that desperate that I went all the way up to the fonts bar and bolded this:P

Call For Scores • KCO COMPOSITION Competition 2016 Open to composers and arrangers ages 30 and under 3 to 6 finalists will be selected; finalists will receive: $500, performance of work, and live recording Deadline: November 2, 2015 FOR GUIDELINES, APPLICATION, and SHEET MUSIC Visit www.klezmercompany.com/education. Forward questions to KCO music director Aaron Kula (akula@fau.edu).

I'm not sure this is exactly the correct category for this, but it felt close enough. I, or rather, my band, is looking to arrange and play a public domain piece for our show next year, specifically Petrushka by Stravinsky. I know that to arrange a copyright piece you have to file a request and possibly pay a fee depending on the piece. I haven't been able to find any information regarding public domain pieces, but I assume we wouldn't have to go through the same channels as with a copyright piece. If anyone could provide any information and/or links regarding doing this it would be greatly appreciated.

Hello, I'd like to start learning the various coloristic effects available from instruments other than piano - I've been reading about orchestration/arranging, but I'd like to do some hands-on practice and taking works from established composers and arranging them, from piano solo to ensemble, or ensemble to piano solo. I think this will help me loads in exploring instrumental technique. Problem is, I haven't got much time to go looking for scores to do this with - I work full time and try to get in a couple of hours of practice a day, leaving me only another couple of hours to eat/do chores/etc. So what I ask of you, YC, is this: Can anyone with similar experience help find me a good, relatively simple score to start out with? Whether it's ensemble to piano solo or piano solo to ensemble doesn't matter much; I'd just like to practice arranging and orchestration. If someone else has had experience doing this, any advice would be appreciated. Thanks a lot!