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A bag contains about 107 cards. 102 of these cards have words suggesting moods, feelings or atmospheres. Approximately half of the words could be described as 'positive' or 'neutral' and half as 'negative'. Five of the cards are blank. You are each asked to choose three cards from the bag (without looking).
Any individual may exchange one card from their selection while there are cards remaining.
No individual may have more than one blank card.
Blank cards may be used as any word the individual wishes, as long as it is descriptive of a mood.
For these, you are asked to produce a short notated composition based on the words you chose. This should be a continuous piece, and is not to be sectional in nature. Write for people in the class. Compositions should be between 3 & 5 minutes in duration. Instrumentation should be restricted to members of the class.
Each individual has been allotted about 12 minutes to rehearse and perform their pieces. It is highly recommended that you rehearse previously if possible, if only to check that parts are okay.
Music is very often described as an 'emotional' art form, one where 'feelings' are primary. Music can make one sad, happy or whatever, and music is often described in terms of the emotions that it arouses.
Quite clearly, composers do use these feelings and ideas as inspirations or triggers for their musical ideas. This project explores this idea. However, it is not supposed to be a 'descriptive' exercise. The idea is to allow words, ideas, moods to prompt you into thinking about differing musical ideas. Once these ideas have been invented, their expressive qualities should take on an independent existence. In other words, the final piece should not 'resemble' your words in any particular way.
This is most important - you are writing a piece of music, not a musical transposition of the words. For this reason, it is to your advantage to have chosen words which substantially contrast with each other. They will help to produce musical ideas which differ from each other more substantially, and this contrast will help you to produce music which is more interesting, diverse and expressive than you may have done otherwise.
Don't simply write three separate 'pieces' and stick them together (ABC... form). This will not produce a single, continuous piece, and in is likely that you will lose marks.
The piece should be between three and five minutes long always bearing in mind that quality is more important than quantity. You should write for at least three instruments. You are recommended to use instrumentalists from the group, although you may arrrange for others to attend. It is your responsibility to ensure that everyone who needs to be there has been informed.
Good luck!