Young composers compare notes

Mrs Susan Sal-Short - Junior School Music Teacher

YEAR 6 Junior School students Josephine Langford and Kristina Lang began their music composing partnership during the Junior Chamber Choir Tour to Melbourne in 2006.

Since then, their works have met with success at the 2008 Fremantle Eisteddfod (second place for original composition) and The West Australian Newspaper's Sea Shanty Songwriter's Competition (first place for original composition, together with Ellen Mason). Year 12 All Saints' student and fellow successful composer, Glenn Tippett, achieved first place for original composition at the 2008 Fremantle Eisteddfod.

During Composer-in-Residence Week in June 2008, the three College composers were invited to work with Mr Daniel Walker to sharpen their skills and get tips from a professional composer.

The trio met recently to share notes about getting started in composing music and song.

WHEN DID YOU REALISE YOU WANTED TO START WRITING MUSIC? J: We started writing on a bus. I was humming a tune and Kristina thought she would add some words to it. It kind of emerged from there. K: Mrs Kerkovius told us about a competition we could enter so we went for it from there. G: I started composing in Year 8, the same year I began learning piano. I started putting my compositions on paper in

Year 10. WHAT COMES FIRST, THE MUSIC OR THE LYRICS? J: It depends where you are, sometimes the songs and words come at the same time. K: If you have a piano available you can pick out a tune then add the words. G: My compositional range varies from instrumental pieces to writing songs for the band I am in with a group of friends.

WHEN YOU COMPOSE TOGETHER, WHO DOES WHAT? J: We work on the words together. K: Mostly I make the arrangements on the piano or I add the chords to Josephine's melodies that she sings to me. G: I'm currently in the process of writing a piece of music for an orchestra, as well as a choral work.

WHERE DO YOU GET YOUR INSPIRATION? DO YOU COMPOSE IN THE CAR, OR IN THE SHOWER? J: Sometimes I use the keyboard to play tunes. One day I was playing the piano,

I saw my shadow cast across the piano and that became the inspiration for my song Shadows. K: I like to talk a lot on the phone sometimes we share songs across the phone. G: Sometimes I have a melody in my head, then I write it down before I forget and it develops from there. Other times, my compositions come from doing improvisation work. My music always depends on the mood I am in at the time. WHICH INSTRUMENT DO YOU USE TO BEGIN YOUR COMPOSITIONS? J: We both use piano. G: Piano

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN LEARNING YOUR INSTRUMENTS? J: I studied violin for six months and I'm currently learning saxophone. K: I have been learning for five years and am studying for Grade 5 Piano. I also studied violin for three years at school. G: I have been learning piano since I was in Year 8, I'm currently studying Grade 7

Piano as well as Grade 5 theory.

HOW DO YOU RECORD YOUR WORK? K: We write down the lyrics but have not yet started to write down the music notation. G: I handwrite my compositions, and I record them on a program called Pro-Tools. DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR STUDENTS WHO WANT TO START COMPOSING? J: Get a musical instrument - we recommend a piano. K: We have started a journal in which we put all the words for our songs. Pick a theme and think of lots of rhyming words. G: I recommend learning the piano to begin, and do whatever it takes to inspire you. WHERE TO FROM HERE? WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO ACHIEVE WITH YOUR COMPOSITIONS? on the radio and possibly be famous at a young age. K:

G: I haven't decided yet -I'd love to be a singer. We want to keep composing and singing together for the next few years. I am hoping to be accepted into the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) to study towards a Bachelor of Music degree majoring in Composition. I'm not sure what from there, maybe writing for film or plays. I'd love to be an entertainer.

Post script: Josephine recently won the WA Music Industry Association's Song of the Year Competition (Primary School under 12 section)

J: I want music,to make more advanced pieces ofand write a song that will be played ."'!Il!III!I"'!!!lI!._•• for her composition Shadows.