Score Reading and Orchestration 2
Maestro Thomas Goss shares generously his experience of score reading and orchestration. This is not commonly available material online or otherwise, and I express my thanks to Mr. Goss for his obvious genius.
Intro to Orchestration Part 1: The Importance of Craft The introduction to my series, a course on the practical craft of orchestration from the perspective of a professional orchestrator.
Intro to Orchestration Part 2: Elements of Craft Introduction Part 2: Specific elements necessary in order to be an effective professional orchestrator.
Intro to Orchestration Part 3: Personal Resources Introduction Part 3: skills, equipment, and media that are essential to a working orchestrator.
Link to IMSLP, a free library of downloadable public domain scores: IMSLP stands for "Internation Music Score Library Project"
http://imslp.org/wiki/Main_Page
Links to my talks on orchestration manuals:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_ztT5...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWfJ5R...
Link to IMSLP, a free library of downloadable public domain scores: IMSLP stands for "Internation Music Score Library Project"
http://imslp.org/wiki/Main_Page
Links to my talks on orchestration manuals:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_ztT5...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWfJ5R...
Intro to Orchestration Part 4: Texture, Balance, & Function Intro Part 4: Tutorial on the three fundamental elements of orchestration: texture, balance, & function. Chapter titles 1-3 illustrate each element with diagrams relevant to musical examples in "Jupiter" taken from Gustav Holst's "The Planets." Here's how to find them in your score:
1. Texture - 9 bars after mark "VI" - pp. 87-88
2. Balance - 8 bars before "V" - bottom of page 82, 2nd bar
3. Function - 8 bars before "VI" - p. 84, 6th bar through p. 85
Page numbers correspond to IMSLP version & Dover reprint. You may download the score for free from IMSLP:
http://imslp.org/wiki/Main_Page
1. Texture - 9 bars after mark "VI" - pp. 87-88
2. Balance - 8 bars before "V" - bottom of page 82, 2nd bar
3. Function - 8 bars before "VI" - p. 84, 6th bar through p. 85
Page numbers correspond to IMSLP version & Dover reprint. You may download the score for free from IMSLP:
http://imslp.org/wiki/Main_Page
Intro to Orchestration Part 5: The Orchestrator At Work The practical process of scoring an educational concert, with the professional outlook on contracts, commissions, and procedures. Please note that in-depth analysis about arranging is not possible in this segment, but will be covered in future segments.
Intro to Orchestration Part 6: Biggest Mistakes A constructive guide to identifying and dealing with common mistakes in orchestration, including unconscious borrowing, unbalanced scoring, uninteresting textures, unnecessary efforts, lack of emotional or intellectual depth, hysteria or over-intellectualism, clichéd or derivative scoring, uninformed instrumentation, and synthetic-sounding scoring.
Intro to Orchestration Part 7: Career Advice A discussion for young orchestral composers of some of the broader issues involved with a career in the arts. This segment is intended as a prelude to the next chapter in the Intro to Orchestration series, "Developing Your Skill Set."
My piece for solo violin and orchestra, "Variations on a Young Violinist," is used as background music at 2:14, 6:37, and 8:22. The entire work may be viewed on my channel:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcIXTv...
My piece for solo violin and orchestra, "Variations on a Young Violinist," is used as background music at 2:14, 6:37, and 8:22. The entire work may be viewed on my channel:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcIXTv...
Intro to Orchestration Part 8: Developing Your Skill Set Guidance on developing your skill set for the career path of professional orchestration.
Orchestration Lesson: Lili Boulanger, Part 1 A brief intro to composer Lili Boulanger and orchestral analysis of her choral work "Vieille Prière Bouddhique" (Old Buddhist Prayer). For a full biography of Lili with many musical samples, please download my Radio New Zealand Concert programme, August 19 2012 Composer of the Week:
http://www.radionz.co.nz/concert/prog...
Here is a link to the IMSLP.org score. Careful - clicking this link will send you directly to the download:
http://petrucci.mus.auth.gr/imglnks/u...
Here are two separate versions of Vieille Prière Bouddhique. The first is slower, the second faster. It might be interesting to contrast the two, as there really is no wrong way to play this between those two speeds - faster has more energy, slower has more grandeur. The first version is a better recording, however, with better balance, a larger ensemble, and a nice open acoustic space.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xF9Slt...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eddN4J...
http://www.radionz.co.nz/concert/prog...
Here is a link to the IMSLP.org score. Careful - clicking this link will send you directly to the download:
http://petrucci.mus.auth.gr/imglnks/u...
Here are two separate versions of Vieille Prière Bouddhique. The first is slower, the second faster. It might be interesting to contrast the two, as there really is no wrong way to play this between those two speeds - faster has more energy, slower has more grandeur. The first version is a better recording, however, with better balance, a larger ensemble, and a nice open acoustic space.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xF9Slt...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eddN4J...
Orchestration Lesson: Lili Boulanger,# 2 Part 2 of orchestral analysis of Lili Boulanger's choral work "Vieille Prière Bouddhique" (Old Buddhist Prayer).
Classic Orchestration Manuals Online A look at classic orchestration manuals by Berlioz, Widor, Rimsky-Korsakov, and Forsyth, now available for free on IMSLP and Google Books.
The Technique of the Modern Orchestra - Charles-Marie Widor
http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Widor,...
Refer under "T"
Principles of Orchestration - Rimsky-Korsakov
http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Rimsky...
Refer under "P"
Grand Treatise on Instrumentation and Modern Orchestration - Hector Berlioz/Richard Strauss
http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Berlio...
Refer under "G"
Orchestration - Cecil Forsyth
This book is now available in its entirety on Open Library:
http://www.archive.org/stream/cu31924...
It has also been uploaded to IMSLP:
http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Forsyt...
Refer under "O"
Choral Orchestration - Cecil Forsyth
http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Forsyt...
Refer under "C"
The Technique of the Modern Orchestra - Charles-Marie Widor
http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Widor,...
Refer under "T"
Principles of Orchestration - Rimsky-Korsakov
http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Rimsky...
Refer under "P"
Grand Treatise on Instrumentation and Modern Orchestration - Hector Berlioz/Richard Strauss
http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Berlio...
Refer under "G"
Orchestration - Cecil Forsyth
This book is now available in its entirety on Open Library:
http://www.archive.org/stream/cu31924...
It has also been uploaded to IMSLP:
http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Forsyt...
Refer under "O"
Choral Orchestration - Cecil Forsyth
http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Forsyt...
Refer under "C"
Thomas's Mailbag April 2010 Answers to questions about composers, resources, career goals, and procedures for the online orchestrator.