Outline

Overview

Principal Study Composition supports the sustained development of compositional craft and creative voice through the preparation of composition(s) to be submitted at the end of each semester. Via one to one (individual) lessons, attendance at the weekly Composition Seminar and Supplementary Classes, students are expected to progressively advance through Composition 3 to 8. By the conclusion of this degree, students will have demonstrated a very high level of compositional ability, research capacity and notation/production skills. Weekly Composition Seminars provide a forum for expert guests to present specialised knowledge. In Composition 4, weekly Supplementary Classes cover a range of topics relevant to craft, creativity, repertoire and aesthetic decision making. Small homework tasks are set to consolidate the topics covered. One semester of individual lessons will be focussed on instrumental composition and the other on electroacoustic composition.

Unit details and rules

Unit code	CMPN2604
Academic unit	Composition and Music Technology
Credit points	6
Prohibitions ?	None
Prerequisites ?	CMPN2603
Corequisites ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	No

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Peggy Polias, peggy.polias@sydney.edu.au
Lecturer(s)	Peggy Polias, peggy.polias@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Assignment	Composition portfolio 7 x 1hr one-to-one lessons focused on creativity, craft, and presentation	60%	Formal exam period Due date: 14 Nov 2023 at 23:59	Portfolio of 5-10min of original music
Outcomes assessed:
Presentation	Student Presentations Presentation and peer/teacher feedback on of current composition portfolio	5%	Multiple weeks Due date: 25 Oct 2023 at 23:59	5 min plus class discussion
Outcomes assessed:
Participation	Application and engagement Active engagement and contribution in lessons and composition community.	10%	Ongoing	Ongoing
Outcomes assessed:
Creative assessment / demonstration	Composition - small assignments Portfolio of works demonstrating the skills learned during the semester	25%	Week 13 Due date: 03 Nov 2023 at 23:59	Portfolio of small composition tasks
Outcomes assessed:
= hurdle task ?

Assessment summary

Detailed for each assessment can be found on Canvas.

Assessment criteria

Composition Portfolio 60%

Criteria/Rubric

A portfolio of 5-10 minutes of original music with regular individual supervision by an allocated tutor. All notated compositions must include a score with front matter, including a program note. Students who take the electro-acoustic option are required to include supporting documentation, the scope and contents of which are subject to discussions with the tutor.

Composition portfolios are assessed according to three criteria and account for 60% of Composition 4:

Creativity: 40% ( /24)
Craft: 40% ( /24)
Presentation: 20% ( /12)

The following guide provides a reference with regards marking expectations. However, it should be noted that staff may interpret the criteria as deemed appropriate to the creative form and media of the portfolio. Portfolios will be marked by individual tutors.

Creativity (24)

Unacceptable (F): Generic, hackneyed, pastiche.
Acceptable (12-15): Engaged with contemporary music culture and ideas but may parrot rather than seek to extend the ideas of other composers.
Competent (15-18): Influences of other composers are evident, and display steps towards taking such influences into a new, personal direction.
Superior (18-21): Convincing musical logic and direction. Engagement with repertory goes beyond imitation.
Exceptional (21-24): An original contribution to musical thinking. Convincing, confident, imaginative, personal, bold, risk-taking, engaging.

Craft (24)

Unacceptable (F): Fundamental technical errors evident in notation, digital production, understanding of instruments, musical form, etc.
Acceptable (12-15): Capacity to express musical ideas with appropriate instrumental and/or digital media.
Competent (15-18): Displays coherent structure and convincing clarity in orchestration/standard of production.
Superior (18-21): Musical structure is fluent and lucid throughout. Displays sophisticated ability to develop and manipulate material. Advanced use of colour.
Exceptional (21-24): Obvious and unequivocal command of resources. Technique is matched to creative intentions.

Presentation (12)

Unacceptable (F): Illegible scores. Audio format errors.
Acceptable (6-7.5): Notation legible but may still include unnecessary ambiguity. Electroacoustic and non score-based work supported with appropriate documentation. Front matter is sketchy or excluded.
Competent (7.5-9): Attractive scores presented with clarity and supported with recordings and adequate front matter. Non score-based work informed by concise and compelling supporting documentation.
Superior (9-10.5): Presentation of work demonstrates awareness of user-friendliness and attention to consistent and individual visual style. Front matter is compelling and detailed.
Exceptional (10.5-12): The standard of a professional commercial publication or recording with coherent visual identity. Front matter or supporting documentation is of professional quality.

Application, Contribution and Engagement (10)

The Participation mark of 10% will include a 5% component from individual tutors and a 5% component reflecting attendance and engagement during classes and also at student composition concert events and projects.

For the Application, Contribution and Engagement, the following criteria serves as a guide:

Unacceptable (F): Unmotivated, fails to work in a consistent fashion.
Acceptable (5-6): Attends lessons, seminars, workshop opportunities and demonstrates openness to learn from tutors although somewhat inconsistently. Only somewhat engaged with the composition community.
Competent (6-7): Demonstrates independent motivation and works consistently throughout the semester. Engaged in generating opportunities for public dissemination of work.
Superior (7-8): Is highly committed to composition as evidenced via engagement with the repertory, attendance at concerts, etc. Generally seizes opportunities to extend learning as they arise.
Exceptional (8-10): Is consumed by his or her artform and actively contributes to the music community at large.

Composition Craft Tasks 25% & Student Presentations 5%

Detailed rubrics for the Homework Tasks can be found in the assignment description in the Canvas site for this UoS.

Please note that Student Presentations (5%) will take place during group seminar hours.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

This unit has an exception to the standard University policy or supplementary information has been provided by the unit coordinator. This information is displayed below:

A penalty of 5% per day applies to assignments submitted late without prior written permission or agreement with the UoS Coordinator or Tutor. Please see the Conservatorium Handbook for further information on the late penalties.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

You may only use artificial intelligence and writing assistance tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator, and if you do use them, you must also acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section.

Studiosity is permitted for postgraduate units unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Multiple weeks	Individual composition lesson 7 x 1 hour sessions	One-to-one tuition (7 hr)
	Composition Seminar in Weeks 1, 6 & 13	Seminar (3 hr)
	Weeks 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12 as specified on Canvas site	Lecture and tutorial (18 hr)
Week 13	End of Semester composer concert	Presentation (2 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance: Students are expected to attend a minimum of 90 per cent of timetabled activities for a unit of study, unless granted exemption by the Associate Dean (Education) or relevent delegated authority. The Associate Dean (Education) may determine that a student fails a unit of study because of inadequate attendance. Alternatively, at their discretion, they may set additional assessment items where attendance is lower than 90 per cent.

In addition to the rule above, full (100 per cent) and punctual attendance is a requirement in all activities where students have a role as active participants in the class or activity. Active participation includes situations where the student's contribution is to perform, rehearse or direct rehearsals in a small or large ensemble, or to give seminar and tutorial papers or presentations or undertake assessment tasks. Active participation also includes all one-to-one studio teaching and supervision. Except in cases of specal consideration, failure to attend activities or classes where a student is an active participant will be seen as failure to meet the requirements of the unit of study.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. demonstrate a very high level of compositional craft, research capacity, and notation and production skills
LO2. demonstrate good discernment in compositional decisions
LO3. demonstrate an appreciation of, and engagement with, a broad range of compositional traditions, genres, perspectives and practices
LO4. demonstrate confidence and independence in your creative practice
LO5. develop strategies to compose regularly and proactively
LO6. liaise with the performers of your compositions, emphasising clear communication and meet submission deadlines.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

In response to feedback we are endeavouring to teach group sessions in a 2 hour block and to build more group feedback and discussion time into the student presentations.

Additional information

Extensive information can be found on the Canvas Hubsite for Composition, Digital Music and Creative Industries. This includes information regarding subsequent principal study units and their assessment criteria, broader degree details, and other content, such as composition/career opportunities.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect

Current students

CMPN2604: Composition 4

Semester 2, 2023 [Normal day] - Sydney

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect