Klarinet Archive - Posting 000142.txt from 2009/11

From: retiredprof55 <retiredprof55@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] Supporting Composers
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:55:28 -0500

I believe that it was the late Dr. Neil Humfeld, former Trombone =20
Professor at the University of Texas at Commerce, who had a =20
requirement that all his students giving recitals needed to contribute =20=

in some way to expanding the repertoire of their instrument. They =20
needed to do an arrangement of something currently not available for =20
that instrumentation or have a composer write a new piece. He was =20
trying to instill in all his students the idea that performers have a =20=

responsibility to expand the repertoire for their instrument and to =20
support the contemporary creators of music. As a performer, conductor, =20=

educator and composer, I wholeheartedly agree with his philosophy and =20=

throughout my career have embraced this practice.

I was exposed to the value of commissioning projects during my =20
undergraduate years at Ithaca College where Kappa Gamma Psi, the music =20=

fraternity to which I belonged, annually commissioned a composer to =20
write a piece to be performed by some of the students at its spring =20
recital. It was a very exciting time for us, knowing that we were =20
contributing to the growth of the literature and working directly with =20=

the creator of the music.

When I began teaching public school in Bath, N.Y., I wanted to =20
experiment with the idea of commissioning as applied to elementary =20
band. In 1967, I decided to approach Elie Siegmeister, whom I met at =20
Ithaca College when he was commissioned by Kappa Gamma Psi and with =20
whom I later studied. When I first approached him with the idea of =20
writing for elementary band, he was intrigued, as he had never before =20=

been commissioned to write for young performers. We requested a five-=20
minute piece for which he would supply score and parts and attend a =20
rehearsal and the concert. This meant driving 500 miles round trip =20
plus the cost of motel rooms, all for a fee of $250! The resulting =20
piece, "Ballad for Band", was an excellent addition to the =20
intermediate level band repertoire. The students were inspired to =20
perform at an increased level of musicianship and developed a sense of =20=

understanding for a more modern musical language.

When I began my career as a university professor, I created a unique =20
project as part of my twentieth century music class. Each member of =20
the class contributed $10 to a fund used to commission a composer to =20
write a piece for the instrumentation of the class. The class was =20
involved in selecting the composer, contacting him or her, writing =20
grants for additional funds, writing a letter of agreement, and =20
rehearsing and performing the piece. My wife and I also commissioned =20
and premiered about a dozen works written for us to perform at the =20
close of our faculty recitals.

Today I am mostly involved from the composer and arranger end. How =20
many times as performers or conductors have we wished we could contact =20=

the composer and as him/her what they intended? We can=92t do that with =20=

composers who are no longer living, but we can do that with composers =20=

who are alive! The process of working closely with composers enables =20
us to understand the composer=92s intentions and grow in our ability to =20=

interpret music. In addition, having a composer attend a rehearsal and =20=

performance and talk to the performers and audience gives everyone =20
involved a further understanding of the cycle of music, from creator =20
to interpreter to listener.

Hopefully by now I have interested you in working closely with a =20
composer whether by commissioning a new piece, or by giving and =20
existing piece its premiere or additional performances. The next =20
question you may have is =93How to I go about finding a composer to work =
=20
with?=94 One of the places to start is with composer organizations such =20=

as:

American Composers Forum http://www.composersforum.org/
National Association of Composers, USA http://www.music-usa.org/nacusa/
Center for Promotion of Contemporary Composers =
http://www.under.org/cpcc/
American Music Center http://www.amc.net/
Society of Composers http://www.societyofcomposers.org/

These organizations have links to where you can sample the composer=92s =20=

works and find contact information.

Another way of having performers and composers come in contact with =20
each other is for news groups and list serves to fully embrace =20
composers as part of their membership. The orchestralist for example =20
has this as part of their description, =93ORCHESTRALIST is an =20
international forum for conductors, composers, players, and their =20
colleagues in the orchestra business. Discussion on Orchestralist =20
ranges over a variety of topics of interest to orchestra =20
professionals. Those encouraged to participate include: (1) conductors =20=

of professional, college or community orchestras that perform standard =20=

repertory (including choral-orchestral music and opera); (2) musicians =20=

who play in such orchestras; (3) composers who write music for such =20
orchestras. Also invited to participate are publishers, =20
administrators, board members, scholars, patrons, and artists-in-=20
training.=94 Too many lists have a policy of no commercial advertising =20=

or self-promotion. With the state of the publishing industry =20
concentrating only on items that sell well, many composers are making =20=

their music available via the internet. The prices they charge are =20
just trying to cover their expenses and they cannot afford commercial =20=

advertising rates. Often, news groups serve as the only means of =20
informing performers of the availability of their music. It would be =20
nice if all news groups welcomed composers in the manner that the =20
orchestralist does so that performers and composers can easily =20
communicate with each other.

Lastly, many performers are concerned about the finances of working =20
with composers and commissioning works. In an ideal world, all artists =20=

would be paid what they are worth. But in the real world, composers =20
are often more anxious to get a performance of their music than to =20
earn a lot of money. To help with linking performers with composers, =20
there are several grants available:

Meet The Composer Met Life Creative Connections Grants =
http://www.meetthecomposer.org/node/10
American Composer=92s Forum Encore Grants =
http://www.composersforum.org/programs_detail.cfm?oid=3D10956&section=3Dpe=
rformances
Co-op Press Fund Grants for Performers =
http://www.cooppress.hostrack.net/grants.html

I apologize for the length of this post, but I hope that I have =20
convinced the performer and conductor members of this group, no matter =20=

your level of accomplishment, to seek out and work with a composer of =20=

your choice. You will be creating an invaluable educational experience =20=

and adding to the repertoire. It is a win-win situation for all =20
involved.

Dr. Sy Brandon
Professor Emeritus
Millersville University of PA=

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