Over the years ACDA conferences have offered me many profoundly moving musical experiences. My reactions have included tears, smiles, joy, laughter and the occasional moment of heart-stopping awe. Every time I attend one of these events I am deeply impressed by the quality of performances presented. Although the variety of […] Read more »
The Five Stages of a Commission
The life of a composer is seldom the glamorous sort of affair that it’s made out to be in movies and novels. I thought it might be of interest to some of you to have a glimpse into the actual process from the composer’s view, and so with apologies to […] Read more »
How to Write a Choral Masterpiece
Recently I received an e-mail message from a composition student at a high school who was working on a senior project which required him to write a piece of choral music and to present some information about composing for choruses. He asked if I would mind answering a few questions […] Read more »