<p>My D had an AMAZING summer experience last year at UNCSA in composition and music technology. She loves composing and thinks she'd like to focus on film scoring. She is currently in her junior year and I would like to find another summer program (or 2 since many seem to be only 1 to 3 weeks) that will give her more experience in composing while continuing her passion in music technology as well. She will be taking Berklee's online Film Scoring 101 course in January. Any suggestions would be helpful and greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>First, can you define what you mean by technology? The term “music technology” is used to mean many different things. Ditto electronics. Did your daughter do electroacoustic composition? Acousmatic? Computer-generated? Samples?</p>
<p>Walden School in Dublin NH is 6 weeks. The focus is composition, with classes in technology and the opportunity to have a major work performed and recorded (useful for application portfolios). World class musicians perform and a well-known composer is in residence each year. The program is big on community-building, and kids hike mountains on weekends. Phones and laptops are not allowed, in the interest of being present at the program. Students from around the world.</p>
<p>There are many other programs. Oberlin has one w/focus on technology. I seem to remember that UC Berkeley might have something, maybe Cal Arts-? Others will come on here to suggest some others.</p>
<p>By the way, Brown has a music major with three strands: theory/composition, ethnomusicology, and technology. Harvard has HUSEAC. You could check with any college or university, or conservatory, to see if there are any summer classes if she prefers that to a residential program.</p>
<p>Thanks for the suggestions. I am not sure exactly what “music technology” means to her. She composes using her instrument and computer software. Last summer she completed a fugue for string instruments, music for dance which was choreographed and performed as well as music for a film clip. She writes and scores the music and then records it either playing the instruments live herself and then laying tracks or plays it digitally. Her primary instruments are saxophone and drums. Right now she is composing music for a short film created by a student along with writing a full orchestration to be played by our local middle school this Spring. In addition she has really enjoyed creating the sound track for some pantomime students to take to Thespians. I don’t think she is looking for a program that is more electronic than acoustic, but she if definitely not a “songwritier” or looking to compose and score classical music. I think she would prefer one or two short programs over a 5-8 week program. Three weeks at UNCSA was perfect and she was able to work on several projects with a wonderful professor. We are looking at BoCo’s High School Composition Intensive, Illinois Wesleyan’s Summer Music Composition/Institute and Oberlin’s Sonic Arts Workshop. (She also has to fit in a 3 day Phanton Regimen drum major camp for next year since she moves up into the head drum major position at school.) Any information on any of the 3 programs I mentioned would really be helpful.</p>
<p>I am confused. She writes “fugues for string instruments” but does not want to “compose and score classical music” so can you clarify what she is writing instead? That would help people give good suggestions :)</p>
<p>I know that UNCSA has dance and film departments and the opportunity to do interdisciplinary or collaborative work. So her technology experience seems to be in using programs for film scores, is that right?</p>
<p>There is a lecture by Sean Ferguson of McGill online that explains electronics in composition. That is a different animal altogether. I cannot articulate it very well, but he certainly does. For instance, has your daughter done any work using multiple speakers, or worked in a lab using, say, everyday sounds to create a piece, or used algorithms for computer-generated music?</p>
<p>I believe BoCo’s program is classically-oriented but could be wrong. I also have heard there are a lot of short compositional exercises. If your daughter wants a portfolio for application purposes, a program that allows recording of a substantial work can be really useful.</p>
<p>Yellow Barn, BUTI (Tanglewood, not sure if it is still running). and Brevard are good summer programs for classical work.</p>
<p>Oberlin is a real leader in undergrad electronic compositional work, so I assume (and have heard here on CC) that a summer program there would be great. You can read about their TIMARA undergrad program. Their sonic arts program will be top notch and introduce your daughter to what is going on in the composition world in terms of electronics and technology. </p>
<p>There are a couple of posters here whose sons went to that program and loved it. And it gives a good idea about what t Oberlin would be like as an undergrad, too…</p>
<p>BUTI seems still to be running: <a href=“http://www.bu.edu/cfa/tanglewood/”>http://www.bu.edu/cfa/tanglewood/</a> It was great for my son, but I don’t think there was much technology involved (other than using composition software).</p>
<p>BUTI looks great but unfortunately our schools start early and their program ends too late. I think I spoke a bit out of line when I said she doesn’t want to compose classical music. She was quick to correct me on that! She is just fascinated by the technology end of music and thinks she would like to eventually study that end of composing. Haven’t heard anything about the Illinois-Wesleyan summer program but it looks like a great week. The literature says all pieces are played and recorded by professional musicians which will be necessary for her college portfolio. The dates work out for her to spend a week there and the 2 week program at BoCo and still fit in the 3 days at drum major camp. Any feedback on the Illinois-Wesleyan or BoCo summer composition programs would be appreciated.</p>
<p>Oberlin’s Sonic Arts workshop is fairly unique and would be quite different from a composition program like BoCo, YellowBarn, BUTI. Sonic Arts is much more focused on sound and electronics as musical/artistic tools. You can probably find some work by Tom Lopez or check out the TIMARA website and that should give you a sense of what the Sonic Arts program is aiming for. TIMARA is a pretty unique for an Undergraduate program and likewise Sonic Arts is pretty unique as a high school aged program. I am not aware of a summer program that is quite like it. </p>
<p>Oberlin also has a weeklong composition program that is more focused on slightly more traditional notation and instrumentation (although, being Oberlin, you may be exposed to more extended technique and more of a modern aesthetic than some other programs). </p>
<p>She either needs a program that gives her instrumentation in advance for a piece she composes in the months prior to a program, or a longer program in which she would compose a piece while there.</p>
<p>For the summer between junior and senior year, getting a piece performed and recorded for a portfolio would be a priority. I don’t see how shorter programs that involve compositions exercises or composing quickly, can provide decent results. Does Illinois-Wesleyan assign pieces in advance?</p>
<p>If she wants to do music and technology, Oberlin would give a good taste of what many colleges offer, which is a little different, I think, than what she has done in the past at NCSA, but is a bit short. Walden is a longer program and offers classes in electroacoustic composition as well as a chance to compose and have a piece performed.</p>
<p>p.s. just looked at the Illinois Wesleyan summer camp site and cannot find anything about composition- where do your find info on it?</p>
<p>Just searched summer programs on their main page and COMPOSE MUSIC came up. It’s their 9th annual summer composition program for high school students. I think I originally heard about it from the cc boards.</p>
<p>Compmom is right that many of the shorter summer comp programs will give you an assignment in advance for a specific instrumentation (i.e… prepare a 3 minute piece for flute, cello, violin). If you are doing more than one short camp make sure she would be able to prepare more than one piece in advance. There are a number of options in the midwest for shorter camps: CIM, CCM, Mizzou, UMKC, UMich (the Performing Arts Institute is tech oriented and much less composition oriented). </p>
<p>The UMich program was perfect but the dates for the performing arts technology program say “returning 2016” : ( So maybe it is only offered every other year. I will check the others out, thank you.</p>
<p>My concern was more that no substantive work can be done in a week or two and to be substantive, a piece needs to be at least 10 minutes , for any kind of development of material. To do that well takes time. Again, just thinking of what needs to be in a portofolio. Alternatively, a program that teaches use of various kinds of technology/software for electronic work would be a different kind of thing.</p>
<p>I guess you could say there are programs geared mainly to learning (exercises, short pieces, theory etc.) and to producing (compose in advance, musicians provided) and some programs do both (mostly longer ones). In junior year, for a young composer, a program geared to learning makes sense except that that is one or the times when producing and recording a piece might be important.</p>
<p>Still cannot find it on the old or the new website. Here is the new one: <a href=“http://www.ilchambermusicfestival.com/”>http://www.ilchambermusicfestival.com/</a>
Can you share the link?</p>
<p>Here is the link to COMPOSE;Music at Illinois-Wesleyan.
<a href=“Summer Music Composition Institute/Camp | Illinois Wesleyan”>https://www.iwu.edu/music/k12/summermusiccompositioninstitute.html</a></p>
<p>And thanks for all of the input. We are rethinking things before making a decision where to apply. She plans to call all of the schools we discussed and get more information about what the expectations are for the finished products and whether or not she is there to complete substantial works or work on new short projects. Looked into CCM and they show composition as a discipline in the Summer Arts Immersion program in 2014 but it isn’t on the list yet for 2015. She plans to call them as well and find out if that program is happening this summer. It also looked like a good option.</p>
<p>I checked out the link to COMPOSE and one of the quotes from an alumni is one of my son’s best friends! How funny. It sounds like a good choice for your daughter.</p>
<p>I found the program with your link, thank you. I still don’t see how a student could write a piece in 6 days that he or she would then want to use in a portfolio. But everyone is different…</p>
<p>I would almost rather one of mine stay home and use the money for lessons when needed.</p>
<p>That said, the sense of community from a program like this is wonderful.</p>