MUSI 3360

Composition Assignment 1

Compose an art song for voice and piano in the 19th-c. German Romantic style, observing the following
instructions:

Form

This will be through-composed, but it should somehow reflect the structure of the text—i.e., sentence-
ending punctuation typically indicates a cadence. The composition should be 16 bars in length.

Melody/vocal range

Obviously, your melody must be singable. Avoid awkward leaps or rhythms. Stay within the treble clef
and avoid ledger lines; this will put your song in a medium range.

Accompaniment

Begin by writing your accompaniment in chorale style, then choose an accompaniment style and
elaborate your chorale into an arpeggiated or chordal pattern.

Harmony

Part of the purpose of this composition is to test your understanding of chromatic harmony. The
chromatic harmony will in some way create text painting with the words of your poem. Look over your
text and choose the moment where you will introduce these chromatic harmonies.

Sketch out the chords throughout the song by writing Roman numerals underneath the staff. Some tips:
• Use about one chord per bar.
• Write in your cadential progressions first.
• Keep it simple—rely mostly on I, V7, and their inversions.
• Use chromatic harmonies at key moments in the piece

Chromatic Harmony requirements:

• If your song is in a major mode, use mode mixture (if the song is in major).
• If your song is in minor mode, use a Neapolitan chord (if the song is in minor).
• You should use an augmented-sixth chord as a chromatic predominant
• You should use one instance of a common-tone chord (German sixth or diminished seventh) at
the beginning of a phrase, to expand the tonic

Analysis

Your score should include a complete harmonic analysis of the piece.

Lyrics/Text setting

You should match the scansion of the text to the rhythm of the melody.
Determine what meter will be good for your poem based on the scansion of it. Write this meter in your
template.

Each poem is 8 lines long, which means each line should take up about two bars. Write each line of your
chosen poem underneath the voice staff, using two bars per line.

Determine where your cadences will go, and what type they will be. Mark the cadences and their type on
the template. Hint: it will be most effective if you base your cadences on the punctuation in the poem.

Set your text to specific rhythms. As you go, erase the words and rewrite them, aligning the text under the
rhythms appropriately.

Keep in mind your cadences, the meter of the piece, and the scansion of the text. You may want to use a
pickup bar to make the text fit better.

Texts

“My Pretty Rose Tree” William Blake

A flower was offered to me,

Such a flower as May never bore;
But I said ‘I've a pretty rose tree,'
And I passed the sweet flower o'er.
Then I went to my pretty rose tree,
To tend her by day and by night;
But my rose turned away with jealousy,
And her thorns were my only delight.

“She died,—this was the way she died” Emily Dickinson

She died,—this was the way she died;

And when her breath was done,
Took up her simple wardrobe
And started for the sun.

Her little figure at the gate

The angels must have spied,
Since I could never find her
Upon the mortal side.

Submission

Submit your final copy a Musescore file (via Moodle). The assignment is due by the beginning of class on
November 6, 2023.