Classical Goldie on BBC2

funky penguin · 08-08-2009 12:11am #1

Did anyone catch this?

I enjoyed the programme aired during last years Proms, 'Maestro'. Felt it could have gone more in dept into the art of conducting, but interesting nonetheless!

This one put the DJ Goldie in the position of composing a 7 minute piece for orchestra and choir for this year's Proms.

Again, I enjoyed this, and to be honest I felt it was down to Goldie's overall enthusiasm and energy. For what it was (an amateur's first composition), it was terrific. Full of energy and a clearly laid out structure.

What interested me most was the process he went through. Modern technology and modern tastes have opened the gates for less educated musicians to compose (he couldn't read or write music and can't play an instrument), the results of which can, in my opinion, be very surprising and fresh. I'm sure it can lead to complete cheese as well, but good with teh bad etc.

Thoughts, opinions?

I'll put a youtube link up if/when one comes available.

banquo · 08-08-2009 3:38am

Missed this

But I look forward to your link

gillo_100 · 08-08-2009 2:18pm

I'm sorry to say the piece did nothing for me at all, I'm don't enjoy or understand a lot of modern classical music.

However the program itself was kind of interesting, and I would like to see more like this on the process of composing, with more detail.

Norrdeth · 08-08-2009 7:01pm

How to compose.....
Get Sibelius 5/6, buy The Study of Orchestration by Samuel Adler,
buy a Keyboard with lots of different orchestral samples, oh and buy a portable recorder for sampling.
Get hold of/study as many scores as you can, listen to music you love,
but try to have as many stylistic influences(that you like) as you can so your style becomes more individualistic.

Make loads of cool musician friends willing to play your stuff(so try make it good) and befriend a few conductors and good orchestras.

Be nice to your performers but be fair, if it doesn't sound like how you
imagined it, address the situation score first and then question their playing and or expression.
Get access to and become familiar with a music production computer
program (e.g. Logic Pro or Protools) also become as familiar with modern music production as you can.

If all that fails you can always become a solo recitalist, more monies!

Sandwich · 08-08-2009 10:09pm

Rather an unorthodox route there Norrdeth.

More usual route is :
- be born a musical genius
- spend at least 15 years doing nothing but spending every waking hour studying the old masters
- not sure how you find the time, but during the same period you must also become a world class virtuoso in at least two instruments and professionally proficient in 4 others
- develop psycholigcal demons and permanent mental scars, which affect every subsequent waking moment (typical examples: 'parental acceptance/rejection love/hate', 'the world doesnt appreciate my genius', 'rage against the establishment', 'great love lost'
- mix, the above for a year or two, then sit down at a blank sheet
- the music will pour forth