Process: conception to final draft

Okay, this question is primarily for those who compose pseudo-professionally and higher. Not to discount the thoughts of amateur composers, but in this case I'm asking for accomplished experience, ie methods that have been tried-and-true through experience and success.

EDIT: What is your process for composing works from start to finish for works with very large orchestration?

How do you handle looking at all those staves at your disposal? Do you have some sort of plan, set up the bones and fill it in afterwards, or something else???

Thanks!

-Peter

For me it varies a bit, but usually I start with the thematic ideas or just a really good rhythmic groove. From there, I just keep fleshing the piece out until its a nice decent length filled with harmonies, countermelodies, and contrast. Considering the piece's development at an early stage in your process is really helpful too because it guides the rest of your ideas and helps you imagine your entire piece before you've even written it.

I didn't really address the voices question because that's usually not what I think of when writing. If you wanted something more specific, I could do that too :)

Hope that helped!

-John

Okay, I've focused the question a bit. What I'm really asking is how one goes about tackling composing for large orchestration.

I've just started work on a larger work, so I might be able to ramble on about what I'm doing. I believe the journals section is for that. Onward then!

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