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Contemporary Writing and Arranging 2013

The document discusses the contemporary writing and arranging major. It describes the skills students will develop in areas like composition, arranging, scoring, and applying these skills across a variety of musical groups and studio environments. Students will explore contemporary arranging and production techniques using MIDI and recording studios. They will gain experience working with performers and developing interpersonal skills. The major also covers analyzing and evaluating musical concepts in genres like jazz, pop, and rock. Students will complete a portfolio demonstrating understanding of traditional and contemporary styles. The goal is for students to be able to work as professional writers, arrangers, and producers in different music industry settings.

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241 views

Contemporary Writing and Arranging 2013

The document discusses the contemporary writing and arranging major. It describes the skills students will develop in areas like composition, arranging, scoring, and applying these skills across a variety of musical groups and studio environments. Students will explore contemporary arranging and production techniques using MIDI and recording studios. They will gain experience working with performers and developing interpersonal skills. The major also covers analyzing and evaluating musical concepts in genres like jazz, pop, and rock. Students will complete a portfolio demonstrating understanding of traditional and contemporary styles. The goal is for students to be able to work as professional writers, arrangers, and producers in different music industry settings.

Uploaded by

madcedmadced
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Contemporary Writing –Arranging :

The student majoring in contemporary writing, and arranging will study composition,
arranging, scoring, and approaches—and will learn to apply these skills and concepts by
writing for and overseeing the production of a wide variety of instrumental, vocal,
acoustic, and electronic combinations, ranging from small workshop groups to a studio
orchestra in live performance situations and recording studio environments. The
student will explore contemporary concepts and techniques of arranging and sound
production in both the analog and digital domains and will gain valuable experience by
being able to create, arrange, and produce projects using MIDI workstations and the
Berklee recording studios. Interpersonal and other situational skills will be developed as
the student works with performers, "clients" (i.e., instructors and other students), and
studio personnel in a variety of creative settings as music writer, conductor, and/or
producer.

The student will be presented with many opportunities to develop the ability to
recognize, analyze, and evaluate musical concepts of jazz, pop, rock, and other
contemporary music idioms and styles through the study of quality compositions and
arrangements. Interacting with faculty who are also professional writers, arrangers,
producers, and conductors, the student will develop techniques and skills that will
enhance the creative adaptation of his/her musical projects. Applying the writing and
production concepts and techniques learned, the student will complete a graduation
portfolio of at least four pieces, which will demonstrate understanding of traditional and
contemporary writing and production styles.

The contemporary writing and production major will develop the skills and knowledge
to function as a professional writer, arranger, and producer under a wide variety of
conditions and music industry environments.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of a major in contemporary writing and production, a student will:

• Analyze and transcribe music in a variety of contemporary styles.


• Arrange music in a variety of contemporary styles for ensembles of varying size and
instrumentation.
• Synthesize and apply knowledge of contemporary styles to the composition of original
music.
• Record performances using both analog and digital tools.
• Produce a professional quality recording on a digital audio workstation (DAW).
• Coordinate and supervise a studio recording session.
1) Contemporary techniques in composition & Jazz composition
The student majoring in jazz composition will develop the creative application of the
basic musical elements of melody, harmony, and rhythm in the contexts and practices
associated with jazz music. Theoretical and compositional study will emphasize the
development of contrapuntal skills, melodic and formal development, and techniques of
instrumentation and orchestration. The student will demonstrate understanding of
these skills and concepts with the completion of a portfolio of jazz compositions for
ensembles of varying sizes and types, together with recordings that include public
performances of selected pieces.

Through the study of acknowledged masters of jazz composition, as well as by


attendance at clinics and concerts, the student will develop aesthetic vision and the
critical ability to recognize and discuss quality elements in jazz composition.
Interpersonal and situational skills will be developed as the student works with
musicians and fellow composers, rehearsing and conducting public performances, and
also through work with other students on their projects and concerts.

The jazz composition major will develop sufficient skills to pursue a professional career
as a jazz writer, working among colleagues in one of the many cooperative groups
dedicated to the production and performance of new music, contributing to the
repertoire of established jazz artists as composer and/or arranger, or to gain entry to
graduate programs in jazz studies in preparation for a career as an instructor and
scholar in the field of jazz theory, composition, and improvisation.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of a jazz composition major, students will:

• Transcribe and analyze historic and contemporary jazz recordings


• Synthesize and apply knowledge of jazz harmony and styles in improvisation
• Synthesize and apply knowledge of jazz harmony and styles in the creation of original
compositions
• Write music for ensembles of varying size and instrumentation
• Create musical scores using a variety of musical notation (e.g. lead sheets)
• Conduct and collaborate with other musicians using historic, contemporary, and
original jazz compositions

Courses :
Review of scales, modes, tensions
Melodic considerations (melodic rhythm, scales resources, intervallic patterns,
antecedent/consequent, pitch contour, motivic devices, etc.)
Harmonic considerations (tonal harmony, modal harmony, chromatic harmony,
modulations, reharmonizations, etc.)
Blues, Rythm'n'changes and song forms
Arranging considerations
Metric considerations
Motivic composition
2) CONTEMPORARY ARRANGING/REHARMONIZATION

Techniques d’arrangement qui utilisent la réharmonisation rythmique ainsi que la


modification de la forme, le contraste, textures/timbre/orchestration, la spatialisation -
dans le but d’arranger n’importe quel morceau à partir d’une mélodie ou d’une grille
d’accords ou d’un hook donné.

Reharmonization techniques:
Diatonic approaches, tritone substitutions, extended II-V patterns, displacement, modal
interchange, using bass lines, turnarounds, modulatory interludes, piano voicing
techniques, line clichés, diminished chords, modal reharmonisation, hybrid chord
voicings, constant structure patterns, combinations, etc.)

Arranging for large ensemble:


Transpositions of instruments, instruments ranges and sound characteristics, low-
interval limits, special effects, reharmonizing approaches notes, chord scales, preparing
a score, overview of an arrangement, unison and octave writing, mechanical voicings
4&4, spread voicings 4&4/5&5, voicings in fourths, upper structure triad voicings,
voicings in clusters, line writing, woodwind doubling, soli writing, background writing,
shout choruses, styles, analysis of a complete arrangement)

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