Introduction

After one semester of studying composition, I believe I have progressed a great amount in developing a variety of music areas such as my knowledge of theory, aural, compositional techniques, and notation. I currently aspire to break into the music industry to create for modern media, such as films or video games, and listen to a variety of musicians from the modern media industry for creative inspiration for my own works. Because I want to develop as a musician, I have not only learned from my classes but also from books such as “The Technique of Orchestration”, a book that has taught me about the ways different instruments can be orchestrated, as well as their capabilities and ideal usage and another book called “Melody Writing Essentials”, which has taught me a variety of useful techniques to create interesting and creative melodies. Because I have developed as a composer, I have realized multiple mistakes and misinterpretations I have made in my composition that I am now aware of thanks to my newfound knowledge, such as how harmony can be created and how some forms of music theory can be applied to works. I am currently learning about many different forms of music and the multitude of pathways that I can take, but one area I currently show particular interest in is orchestration, this semester I had the privilege of having one of my orchestral pieces played live for the ROSL competition as I was a finalist, this experience ignited a passion for orchestration and has helped me consider the pathways in orchestration that I can take. I look forward to further developing these newfound abilities and passions next semester.

The works I’ve created this semester include my composition for the ROSL orchestration competition titled ‘Displaced’, composition for casual use such as ‘Forerunner’ and compositions for my university portfolio including “Makin’ Pancakes” and “Alluvion”, as well as a string arrangement of “Numb” by Linkin Park. These university pieces were created with the intention of being easy to listen to by the general public, meaning all three make use of a contemporary style, whilst still incorporating elements of other genres such as folk and rock. With my university pieces, I have strived to demonstrate my knowledge of different types of instruments and make use of these instruments to their full potential in ways such as incorporating instrument-specific techniques. Overall, I was able to successfully compose a variety of works that I believe were successful in portraying each of their ideas in their own way.