All Drums Are Percussion, but Most Percussion Is Not Drums
Every drum is a percussion instrument, but not every percussion instrument is a drum. The confusion between the two terms comes from using "drum…
March 2016
The B-flat Trumpet Lies on Paper: Transposition, Timbre, and Choosing a C
Walk into an orchestra rehearsal and you will usually see C trumpets on the stands. Walk into a jazz club or a wind band rehearsal and you will see B…
A Song Cycle Turns Separate Songs into One Story
A song cycle is a set of individually complete songs designed to be performed together, in order, as a single work. Each song stands on its own, but …
Writing for Children Means Smaller Ranges, Not Smaller Ideas
While it may seem like a simple task, writing music for children can be an extremely challenging task for composers that are used to writing for prof…
The Symphony Is Not the Only Large Form: Four Alternatives That Endure
The classical symphony is one of the largest and most ambitious developments in classical music. As a composer, I view the symphony as one of the hig…
Writer's Block Is the Ear Running Empty: Four Ways Back to Work
Coming up with that first idea can be a very frustrating part of composing. Once you have that initial germ of an idea, the compositional process bec…