echurchill

So I think you use Finale, right? I myself always compose on paper. Occasionally I will copy one of my compositions into a MIDI editor to make a virtual "performance" of a piece, editing articulations and tempi to make a realistic MP3 using soundfonts or other samples. I often sightread my compositions as I finish them, but I rarely have time to learn to play them properly.

That said, I have Finale Notepad and if it's OK with you I will post examples in Finale.



What instruments do you play? On detail that I forgot to mention is that I have absolutely no knowledge of orchestration. Most of my writing is either for solo keyboard or for chamber groups of a few equal instruments and continuo. I think that the keyboard would be an ideal instrument for us to work with, especially with simple harmonizations and imitative counterpoint. Of course if you are more comfortable with another instrument, feel free to write for duets or trios or quartets or whatever. In baroque music a figured bass part is almost mandatory in such ensembles. Figured bass usually was given to harpsichord and cello, but organ, bassoon or dulcian, lute, theorbo, etc... were fairly common as well.



So, just to get a general picture of your knowledge of baroque melody and harmony and craftsmanship, I would like for you to write a simple 5-8 bar accompanied melody. The melody itself should be clear and singable and aria-like, though perhaps lightly ornamented. The accompaniment should be fairly chordal but not too blocky. You could write for keyboard or for solo instrument and keyboard. If you write for solo instrument and keyboard, however, I would prefer if you could write out the chords instead of using figured symbols.

Feel free to use chromaticism, but only if appropriate. I just want to see how you handle harmony and melody in general. I plan on also doing all the exercises I assign to you myself.

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So I plan to teach a few lessons with exercises on chromaticism in the Baroque period, and we could simultaneously work on a short piece to practice the concepts, like a keyboard suite or some sort of fugue or other imitative counterpoint. Does this sound like a good idea?