My only surviving test from Composition school
posted 14 Sep 2019 by Krister Axel
My teacher had a thing for Copeland and Bartok. They were kind of a big deal.

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I spent a year in composition school as a youth and it is a bit of a shame that I wan't in a place to get much out of it. I learned a lot of technical stuff but my teacher hated me and had every reason to. I was quite irreverent in my early years. Learning music theory was always very hard work, much like any of the sciences. You first learn about who came before you and it is always very humbling. My teacher had a thing for Copeland and Bartok. They were kind of a big deal.

Anyway, as I'm looking through stuff I came across this old test from my class in harmony. I probably kept it around because I did ok. Now it just feels like a relic from a very different time. It's funny, I still remember and use rules from species counterpoint, so I guess some of this stuff does stick.

photo credit: Dayne Topkin

About the Author

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Krister Bjornson Axel

Ogdensburg, New York

Paris, France. Madison, Wisconsin. Los Angeles. Ashland, Oregon. Ottawa. I write music, I write about music, and I write code. See also: photography, prose, podcasting. I have 1 gorgeous wife, 2 amazing kids, and many interests.


Recent Awards: 2020 ND (Photo) Honorable Mention, 2020 Accenti Writing Contest Finalist