This document provides information about your final project assignment.

Your final project is a short composition which will be performed by a group of your classmates for the rest of the class. Follow these guidelines to successfully complete your project:

• Make your composition not less than 16 measures long, with a duration of approximately 1 minute. (Obviously, performance tempo will be a factor in how many bars you write.)
  
  
• Your piece must be in 4-part texture (SATB), in the style of the "tonal period" (i.e., in the style of the music we’ve been studying all semester), suitable for performance by some appropriate combination of instruments and/or voices.
  
  
• If you choose to utilize voice(s), you may either use an existing or original text, or you may use the voice(s) as a vocalise (i.e., done completely on an "ah" or other neutral syllable). If you use percussion, you are limited to pitched instrument(s); consult with the instructor regarding other limitations and requirements with regard to this possibility.
  
  
• Obviously, your project should have an interesting melody, use correct voice leading and suitable harmonic progressions, make appropriate use of non chord tones, and demonstrate good phrase construction and balance.
  
  
• Include at least three of the following compositional techniques:
  
  
  • sequence (melodic and/or harmonic)
  • secondary harmonic functions (secondary dominants or leading tones)
  • modulation
  • mode mixture
  • one or more Neapolitan chords
  • one or more Augmented sixth chords
  
  
  The latter topics above will be covered in class between now and the end of the semester; while they can often be "dropped into" an existing composition (since they basically represent chromatic alterations of chords you already know about), you may wish to scan ahead in the textbook to see what they're all about.
  
  
• Provide a full score (harmonic analysis is not required) and, because these pieces will be performed, parts suitable for performance.

We will meet to hear performances of all projects during the normal finals period for this class. You must attend this class meeting in order to receive a passing grade for the semester.

9:00 a.m. class: Wednesday, May 26, 8:00 a.m.–10:00 a.m.
11:00 a.m. class: Wednesday, May 26, 10:15 a.m.–12:15 p.m.

You are responsible for rehearsing your piece in advance; you will not be allowed to step out of class for rehearsal on the day of performance. You may want to schedule more than one such rehearsal, not because your piece will be so difficult that your colleagues will have trouble performing it, but so you will have plenty of time to make adjustments after you hear the rehearsal.

A suggestion: you may find it better to not try to both conduct and perform in your own piece. Unless you have experience doing both simultaneously, you may discover it’s difficult to do both very well!

You may show your work in progress to the instructor at any time for comments (in fact, this is recommended, though not required).

As you work on your composition, you may find that following these steps facilitates your work.

1. Start thinking about your composition right away, considering possible melodic patterns and harmonic progressions.
   
   
2. Decide on the style and instrumentation you want to use.
   
   
3. Confirm the comfortable and "possible" performing ranges of each instrument and voice part you intend to use.
   
   
4. Early on, contact your classmates to establish their willingness to perform your project. You may find it logistically helpful for a group of five classmates to agree to perform each others' projects; while this means your "instrumentations" will be essentially similar, it may facilitate the gnarly problem of finding rehearsal times. In any case, since everyone's time becomes more and more valuable as the semester wears on, consider calendaring rehearsal times well in advance.
   
   
5. Write your piece, following all the guidelines listed above. If you haven't figured it out by this point, understand that, for the purposes of this project, we're more interested in staying within the guidelines than in writing a strange and wonderful composition. (Wonderful, perhaps; strange, definitely not!) For this project, staying within the guidelines is considered the master of creativity!
   
   
6. At any point, you are welcome to show your work in progress to the instructor for comments and/or advice on how you're doing. (You should know by now that your instructor is always willing to give advice!)
   
   
7. Prior to the first rehearsal, prepare performance parts (observing relevant transposition requirements). Note that instrumentalists are typically used to seeing only their part; singers, especially in an ensemble (choral group), are used to seeing their part along with everyone else's.
   
   
8. Rehearse your piece. If appropriate, make relevant adjustments to your composition, prepare revised parts (if necessary), and rehearse it again. (Leave nothing to chance!)
   
   
9. Bring the full score to the performance for use by the instructor. Have all instruments ready to go in the room (no running down the hall to acquire instruments!). Four music stands will be provided. Performance order will be determined more or less randomly; it will be announced at the final class period before finals week.
   
   
10. After the performance, give the parts to the instructor.