OT: Composing (jara: My girlfriend is a conlanger!)

 --- H. S. Teoh skrzypszy:

> writing orchestral music that I will probably never hear in my
> lifetime[2],
Don't say that! Having your music performed is merely a matter of knowing the
right people. Now, I am not pretending that I know them, but I have been asked
at least twice if I had something for orchestra. Usually, I am quite suspicious
against this kind of invitations from people who never ever heard anything I
wrote. But anyway, in these two cases they might actually do it. The only
problem is that I don't *want* to write for orchestra. And I don't consider
myself ready for that.

> [2] Due to the fact that I didn't *know*[3] how to write orchestral music
> to begin with!
>
> [3] But now I've actually gotten off my lazy butt and bought some books on
> orchestral writing, so I'm now more likely to write performable pieces.[4]
> :-P
>
> [4] Although that depends on one's perspective as to what is "performable"
> ... I mean, if I write something that only professionals have any hope of
> performing, and I am an unknown with no recognized portfolio, then it's
> all moot. But that symphony orchestra in my head just refuses[5] to stop
> playing!
To be honest, I am very curious about the music you write. Is it similarly
"unearthy" as Ebisedian? Personally, I see a lot of stylistic correspondances
between my music and my conlangs. Or maybe that's only in my head.
Have you ever scanned pages? Or, if not, would you consider doing that? Did you
also write for smaller ensembles or soloists?

I know the portfolio problem very well. It is true: if you don't have the right
piece of paper (as if a piece of paper, or its absence, could prove or disprove
your artistic abilities!), it is a tough struggle you have to fight for every
kind of recognition. But not impossible. Even among the famous composers of the
past, there were amateurs, people without any serious kind of musical
education.
My opinion is that most of the things you learn at a conservatory (at least: in
the field of composing) you can also learn without a conservatory, and even
better! But the conservatory is not the place where you learn things; it is
also the place where your career begins, where you meet those people who will
"launch" you later for the first time. Without those people, often a tight knit
in a closed circuit, it is very hard to achieve anything. But again: it is
possible, it depends merely on the confidence that your music is good, and on
convincing the right people of that.

Jan

=====
"Originality is the art of concealing your source." - Franklin P. Jones

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