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Admission requirements for MA - Composition

Admission requirements are the same for in person and online applicants unless indicated otherwise.
In case of non-instrumental majors, tuition is only offered in English if there are a minimum of 3 international students admitted in a given year to the same major.

 

Formal Analysis (written and oral exam)

Classical Composition and Applied Composition specializations:

A test based on the book Fundamentals of Musical Composition by Arnold Schönberg

AND

Analysis of a Classical or a Romantic, and a 20th-century or contemporary composition (or excerpt)

 

Electroacoustic Composition specialization:

Analysis of a 20th-century instrumental, and an electroacoustic composition (or excerpt)

The oral exam part is the evaluation of the written part.

 

Orchestration

Classical Composition and Applied Composition specializations:

  • Task to complete on the spot: Orchestration of a couple of measures taken from a piano piece from the Romantic period or from the 20th century, employing a full orchestra of a style that suits the given extract.
  • Task based on the candidate's previously orchestrated material: Presentation of the candidate's knowledge and skills in orchestration by orchestrating a Romantic piece and a piece from the first half of the 20th century, employing a full orchestra

 

Score reading

Classical Composition and Applied Composition specializations:

  • Sight reading of a piece from the Viennese Classical or the Romantic period and from the 20th century or contemporary period

Electroacoustic Composition specialization:

  • Analysis of a contemporary graphic music notation

 

Personal interview

Classical Composition, Applied Composition, and Electroacoustic Composition specializations:

The applicant will talk about their artistic beliefs, personal goals and demonstrate his/her general musical literacy as well as their knowledge about composition.

 

COMPOSITION EXAMINATION - main subject

Free composition:

Classical Composition and Applied Composition specializations:

Presentation of one vocal and one instrumental composition (or excerpt)

One of the two compositions should preferably be written for a large instrumental ensemble. Both pieces may employ electronics (tape, live electronics, computer music, MIDI etc.). If neither of the pieces employs electronics, it is advisable to present a separate electronic composition or etude.

 

Electroacoustic Composition specialization:

Presentation of a fixed electroacoustic music piece and another piece applying live electronics with an acoustic instrument

The pieces submitted together must not exceed 25-30 minutes.

 

Style exercises:

Classical Composition and Applied Composition specializations:

  • 1 – (at least) three parts fugue in the style of J.S.Bach (for applicants coming from electronic music media fields, electroacoustic or computer musical approaches are also acceptable)
  • 1 movement of a Viennese Classical sonata (either in a sonata or a sonata rondo form) in the style of J Haydn, W.A.Mozart or L. van Beethoven (for applicants coming from electronic music media fields, electroacoustic or computer musical approaches are also acceptable)
  • 1 short etude in the style of any significant composer of the 20th century

Electroacoustic Composition specialization:

  • 1 short etude in the style of any significant 20th-century musique concrète composer
  • 1 short etude in the style of significant 20th-century synthesis technique composer

 

Classical Composition and Electroacoustic Composition specializations:

Written part:

The basics of electronic music: test

Syllabus of the test:

  • the history of electronic music (Edgare Varése, concrete music/Paris, electronic music/Cologne, IRCAM/Paris, RAI/Milano, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Iannis Xenakis, Alvin Lucier, Jean-Claude Risset, John Chowning, Jonathan Harvey)
  • the basic parameters of sound: frequency, amplitude, amplitude envelope)
  • the representations of sounds (waveform, 2D spectrum, sonogram)
  • the structure of sound, the types of sounds (harmonic sound, inharmonic sound, noise)
  • sound systems, tunings
  • the parameters of digitalized sounds (sampling rate, Nyquist sampling theorem, bits)
  • sound synthesis techniques (additive, subtractive, FM, granular synthesis)

Oral part:

The basics of electronic music: a practical task to be completed on a computer.

To complete one of the following tasks:

  • mounting using the programme ProTools (or another DAW programme)
  • writing algorithmic music using the programme MAX/MSP (Pd)
  • sound synthesis using the programme MAX/MSP or CSound (Pd, SuperCollider)

Additional information: those students who have not studied electronic music before have to complete two semesters of the course ‘The basics of electronic composition'

 

Applied Composition specialization:

Candidates have to present their work related to theatre and/or film and demonstrate proficiency in this field.