Music Composition Resource GuideThere are many tools available to the music composer on the internet. From composer organizations to virtual orchestras, websites exist to help a classical music composer find everything from where to submit a piece for a specific contest, to what a Chinese Opera Gong sounds like and how to write for one. This pathfinder will list some of the most useful websites available to the young American composer.
Composer OrganizationsComposer organizations exist for composers to commune with other composers, network with performers, and access information about competitions, grants, commissions, and performance opportunities. Here are a few of the major composer organizations in the United States.
The American Composers Forumhttp://composersforum.org/Originally the Minnesota Composers Forum (founded in 1973), the ACF is an organization which supports composer growth through grants, commissions, and performances. Membership in this organization includes benefits such as "newsletters, invitations to chapter events, and eligibility for grant, fellowship, and residency programs."
American Music Centerhttp://www.amc.net/Founded in 1939 by Marion Bauer, Aaron Copland, Howard Hanson, Harrison Kerr, Otto Luening, and Quincy Porter. Membership includes access to the web-magazine NewMusicBox; Counterstream Radio, an internet music station of American composers; the AMC Online Library, a searchable database of compositions by Americans; and grant/commission opportunities only available to members.
The International Alliance of Women in Musichttp://www.iawm.org/The IAWM began in 1994 as a combination of the following organizations: the International Congress on Women in Music, the American Women Composers, and the International League of Women Composers. Members include both male and female composers, theorists, performers, conductors, musicologists, educators, publishers, and librarians. Members receive the bi-annual IAWM magazine, and are eligible to participate in the organization's competitions.
The National Association of Composers/USAhttp://www.music-usa.org/nacusa/NACUSA is a nonprofit organization founded in 1933 by Henry Hadley. Made up of ten chapters, NACUSA presents regional and national concerts, sponsors several members-only contests, publishes a tri-annual magazine called ComposerUSA, and allows access to an online catalog of member works.
Society of Composers, Inc. http://www.societyofcomposers.org/Membership to SCI allows submission to the organization's regional and national conferences, and to the SCI CD Series and SCI Journal of Music Scores. Members also receive the SCI newsletter and a monthly opportunities update. The SCI webpage features Composerver, an archive of audio and video samples by members.
Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United Stateshttp://www.seamusonline.org/index.htmlSEAMUS was founded in 1994 to support those creating, teaching, and performing electronic music. SEAMUS publishes a journal and a newsletter, holds national meetings, and sponsors a national archive at the University of Texas. Members also receive the SEAMUS CD Series, which features music from the annual SEAMUS National Conference.
Publishing and RoyaltiesMany composers today self-publish their work, and all composers are due royalties for their public performances. Here are the two major performing rights organizations in the United States.
American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishershttp://www.ascap.com/"ASCAP is the only U.S. performing rights organization created and controlled by composers, songwriters and music publishers, with a Board of Directors elected by and from the membership." ASCAP distributes royalties to members for public performances of copyrighted works.
Broadcast Music, Inc. http://www.bmi.com/BMI collects licensing fees and distributes royalties to its members. As a performing rights organization, BMI represents over 6.5 million compositions. The BMI website includes a "Royalty Statement" tool for members to receive up-to-date statements of their annual royalties.
Online Compositional ToolsThanks to the internet, there are countless tools available for the composer to hear what a specific instrument sounds like, or to access free audio samples for remixing.
Composition: Todayhttp://www.compositiontoday.com/While full membership includes additional benefits, anyone can access Composition: Today's competition and jobs list, workshops, composer database, and concert listing. One of the best features of the site is the Sound Bank, which is attempting to build the web's most comprehensive list of orchestral sounds.
The Freesound Projecthttp://www.freesound.org/Freesound is a free database of Creative Commons licensed sounds created by collaboration from individuals and institutions. Sounds must be either non-copyrighted or self-generated and released under the Creative Commons Sampling Plus License. Users can then freely use audio samples as long as they are attributed to the sound's creator, and are not used in ads or commercials unless given permission by the creator.
The Philharmonia Orchestra: Sound Exhangehttp://www.philharmonia.co.uk/thesoundexchange/The "Make Music" section of the Philharmonia's website features free, downloadable sound samples from the orchestra's members, a free sample sequencer for remixing the site's audio samples, downloadable manuscript paper, and online ear-training quizzes.
Virtual Orchestrahttp://ngfl.northumberland.gov.uk/music/orchestra/contents.htmContains pictures and sound samples of orchestral instruments for learning what specific instruments sound like.
Composition FestivalsBy no means comprehensive, here are a few of the major new music festivals in the United States targeted at the young or emerging composer. Composers can expect to participate in lessons and to have their works performed at these festivals, as well as to network with other composers and performers.
The Aspen Music Festivalhttp://aspenmusicfestival.com/The Aspen Music Festival and School occurs every summer in Aspen, CO. The highly competitive school offers private lessons and master classes in a variety of instruments as well as in conducting and composition. Concerts are put on by students, faculty, and visiting guest artists.
The Bowdoin International Music Festivalhttp://www.summermusic.org/Held every summer at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, the BIMF allows students to enroll in either a three or six week session and attend master classes and individual lessons with composers-in-residence. Composition students' works are performed either in the Artists of Tomorrow concert series or the Gamper Festival of Contemporary Music.
The Brevard Music Centerhttp://www.brevardmusic.org/The music festival and institute at Brevard occurs every summer in Brevard, North Carolina. The institute is divided into a high school division and a college-age/older division. Composers participate in weekly lessons and daily seminars with world-renowned composers. The Brevard new music ensemble itch performs works written by the composers during the festival; the college division orchestra also reads new student works.
Norfolk Chamber Music Festivalhttp://www.yale.edu/norfolk/Also known as Yale's Summer School of Music, Norfolk is held in tiny Norfolk, CT every summer. Composers in the New Music Workshop receive scholarships to cover the cost of meals, room and board, and tuition for two weeks while they study with resident composers and have their works performed and recorded by resident performers.
Tanglewoodhttp://www.bso.org/bso/index.jsp?id=bcat5240070Every summer the Boston Symphony Orchestra retreats to Lenox and Stockbridge, MA for a series of concerts and workshops by both classical and pop musicians. The highly competitive TMC Composition Program features at least three performances of the composer fellow's works as well as classes and seminars with renowned faculty members.
This Pathfinder was created by Elizabeth Joan Kelly for Dr. Don Latham LIS 5603 at Florida State University on March 1st, 2009.