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The 2012 Young Composers Awards! (Planning Thread)


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Youngest composer/Oldest composer

Most performed composer

Most shoutbox shouts

These are measurable, so it makes little sense to vote about it.

Something about trolling seems ok. harshest critic too. But the lower ones are quite the same. And what does 'most american' even mean?!

as in music style? then it is a valid posible thing to vote on, although it then is just as random as any style mockup, if you mean what the continent is votee is from, then it is kind of pointless, and rather idiot from an european pov

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Most American - most patriotic American (who can't help filling the shoutbox with long, enlightening debates on politics and history). Not a slur or anything. :)

Thanks for the elaboration. As this is an international community, I am not really interested in patriotic things like these :P Although american politics does interest me, I do not think it is fitting for an international musicians community

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The number of "oscars" depends on the idea if this would likely be a joke or serious.

If you want the awards to be serious then you simply make a selection:

1. Large orchestral piece of the year

2. Chamber orchestral piece of the year

3. Concerto of the year

4. Wind-Brass orchestral piece of the year

5. Chamber composition with strings of the year

6. Chamber composition with winds of the year

7. Chamber composition with brass of the year

8. Chamber composition with percussion of the year

9. Chamber composition with mixed cast of the year

10. Keyboard solo composition of the year

11. Any solo instrument composition of the year

12. Choral composition of the year

13. Vocal composition of the year (solo voice, duo, trio, quartet, up to eight singers with accompaniment or without)

14. Operatic composition of the year (I personally doubt there is one though)

15. Ballet composition of the year

There should be a special award for most improved composer in 2012, "noob" of the year (joined in 2012), maybe a special prize for life achievement (for a member who joined in 2007 or earlier, at least five years of being here).

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Not that I know a lot about awards or care too much, but...

I think the composition awards should somehow fall between the more 'traditional' approach of the Austen's proposal and the more 'specialized' from Sojar. And also spice things up with a couple jokish awards, too (why does everything need to be so full of solemnity?).

As for the members polls, I generally like Austen's - while adding a couple of the new categories suggested by S. Buck. And heck - let's include the best couple thing! We're nothing short of a homecoming party anyways, so...

If it depended of me, I wouldn't have any vote on threads. There are too many of them in the archives and too few new, worthy ones.

And be sure to make it known when the nomination process is open - I have some nominees already in mind.

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Newbie of the year = I like that - it seems Sojar and Aniolel had a similar idea.

Not sure about ChristianPerrotta's suggestion about awarding the recordings, though. Getting a live recording doesn't always depend on the musical merits of a work, but rather on the composer's ability for networking. And producing a very realistic mockup depends on the sound libraries the composer or arranger is able to purchase :( ... So I think these two would go beyond the goal recognizing composers and compositions.

Anyway... when will we know for sure what categories will be definitely opened for nominations?

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Getting a live recording doesn't always depend on the musical merits of a work, but rather on the composer's ability for networking. And producing a very realistic mockup depends on the sound libraries the composer or arranger is able to purchase :( ... So I think these two would go beyond the goal recognizing composers and compositions.

I disagree. It is about the effort the composer put into it. I think communicating with performers is part of being a composer too. As it provides the live feedback whether or not you communicated your ideas effectively.

You are right that there is a difference in people that are willing to spend a fortune on samples and those that do not. But the same applies for composers. Some happen to be (self acclaimed) geniuses, while mere mortals like we, just have to study and work to get results. As for me. Although I use often the bare Garritan Lite samples that came with Finale, I put some effort in hidden ritenuto and a tempo marks to control the humanized playback. Or I search for the right soundfont for an organ work, etc. There is a lot that composers do. Presentation is very important.

That brings me to another possible award:

neatest score.

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Adding an update to take into account the latest suggestions... Again, new categories are marked in red, categories suggested for deletion are scratched out, and my comments in italics.

Composition Categories:

Most Outstanding Composition

Top Orchestral

Top Incidental (I'm guessing this includes not only Game & Film Music, but also stage / musical / ballet - am I right?)

Top Chamber (I think we could split this one in a way similar to what Sojar suggested - but only in 'chamber orchestral' and 'smaller ensembles', or we'll have too many mini-categories within chamber music).

Top Band

Top Jazz

Top Pop/Rock

Top Electronic

Top Vocal/Choral (we could also split this one in two - large vocal/choral and chamber vocal/choral...)

Top Keyboard

Top Solo Instrument

Most Underrated Piece

Worst Title

Oddest Ensemble Written For

Neatest Score

Best Recording

Thread Categories: (it's somewhat harder to get people to vote on this category, since many people don't even look at the forums, but anyway...)

Most interesting Thread

Most Underrated, overlooked Thread

Funniest Thread

Most Controversial Thread

Oddest Thread

Best Journal

Thread of the Year

Member Categories:

Best Staff Member

Best Moderator

Best Reviewer

Most Disliked Staff Member

Best Composer

Most Versatile Composer (not the same as Best Composer, but rather focused on the ability to compose in diverse styles)

Most Reasonable Member

Least Reasonable Member

Rookie of the Year

Special Award for Old Members

Most Tech Savvy

Most Improved Composer

Oddest Member (this is the same as strangest member, right?)...

Most Annoying Member

Most Missed Member

Least Missed Member

Most Sexy-grazed MemberBest Looking / Most Attractive Member (?)

Best YC Couple

Member who contributed most to the community

Most Skilled Debater

Most Politically Opinionated Member

Most Spiritual Member (not necessarily the same as most religious, right?)

Staff's Pet (or favorite)

Staff's Nightmare (or Top Troublemaker)

We should be ready by now ;) ... According to Morivou's timeline, the cats should be set and the nominations should start next week. So aim your guns...

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I dont know where this fits on the timeline, but I have 2 other sugestions.

1. dont offer too many categories to vote for, it will scare peope away. I know I would be scared away, because if its too much trouble I wouldnt bother

2. previously, one could only vote, if one voted in all categories. this too scares people away. Although I would like to see as many as possible votes, and doing the all-or-nothing thing is a way to try that, I think making the election open and not force a voter to vote in all categories is a better and more honest procedure.

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I slightly disagree with Jaap.

1) It would certainly be harder to nominate pieces than to vote (though, as I listen to and review a lot of works, I've been keeping track on possible nominees already). The voting stage is only reached by a few nominated works, so the options are thus manageable. I wouldn't like to broaden the categories so much that they stop making sense. On the other hand, I also oppose too specific categories (esp. when I feel they are intended to award a specific member or style).

2) That's why we have three separate polls. Last year we received about 27 votes in the composition categories, but only 24 in the member-related poll and barely 18-20 in the thread poll. That being said, I'd prefer to have as many votes as possible, rather than a bunch of blank spaces.

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There should be several rules about this.

For example: You can't nominate your own composition and you can't vote for your own nominated composition.

I think there should also be a category: Live performances and midi productions as midi can never sound convincing enough compared to live performance unless it is an electoacousting composition.

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For example: You can't nominate your own composition and you can't vote for your own nominated composition.

I totally agree with no self-nominations. But as the vote is supposed to be completely anonymous, I doubt that a composer won't be able to vote for his own piece (I'm not sure if there's any problem with that, though - but I'd honestly vote for the best composition even if that means voting agains my own).

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Best Troll

Best/Worst Username (I'm nominating pervycreeper for both here)

Dumbest Member

Smartest Member

Biggest Charlatan

Most Pretentious Composer

Most Original Composer

Least Original Composer

Best Competition Piece that won this year

Best Performer

Biggest Kissass

Most Saccharine Composer/Composition

The John Adams Award for Gayest-sounding music written by a heterosexual

The Samuel Barber Award for Manliest-sounding music written by a homosexual

Stupidest Suggestion(s) Made in the Suggestion Thread

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