Art Song Project Sample Curriculum

The following is a curriculum designed to help organizations, institutions, and individuals structure their own art song commissioning projects. It is highly flexible and not intended to be comprehensive, rather a starting place to begin structuring your project design. I’m happy to discuss specific details and brainstorm curriculum. Please reach out if you are interested in a commissioning project but don’t know where to start; I’d love to work with you or connect you with a helpful colleague!

Spring Performance Year Long Project Curriculum

Early Fall Seminar/Class: Facilitated Discussion with students (this could be a cross department conversation with vocal/literary/composition students)

• What is Lieder?

• What are some themes/perspectives/languages/etc you would like to explore within Lieder?

• If inviting students to select or write poetry, have a detailed discussion about poetry/lyrics/etc. to prepare them for that part of the project. This might be an entire class in itself, depending on your project and timeline. Further development here could include writing workshops, feedback sessions, group sharing time, seminars with local writers/composers/librettists/dramaturgs/etc.

Early Fall Seminar/Class: Creating Your Range Guide & Call For Proposals

• Sample Voice Guides

  • Chelsea Hollow Range Guide

  • Megan Ihnen Range Guide

• Call For Proposals Discussion/Lecture on logistics

  • Be clear about ensemble requirements

  • Contracts/Permissions Logistics

    • commissioner can source/find/write your own text or ask composers to suggest texts

      • the rights to use this text should be obtained BEFORE composition commission is contracted to ensure the project can continue. Composer should get these rights but singer can negotiate on their behalf.

        Sample Letter for Text Usage Rights

    • Sample Commissioning Contract: many local organizations or performers who have done similar projects have a template contract they send out to structure yours around. Further, don’t be afraid to reach out to local lawyers and ask if they could work up a template for your needs. Many lawyers have a pro-bono rate for arts organizations and it is helpful to get all of the details your project demands.

    • Timeline can vary widely depending on composer. Lecture should include information on setting deadlines that provide ample time for text sourcing, permissions agreements/contracting, composition, singer(s) to prepare material, period of edit requests, etc. Provide students with sample project timelines for them to structure this/further projects around. Assuming a project where multiple composers are responsible for one work/song using text/theme of their choosing to be performed in a larger solo song recital, here is my ideal timeline for a 1/20/24 performance:

      Sample Timeline for Call For Proposals - Solo Voice Recital with Multiple Composers

  Fall Organizational Logistics: Partner Composers with Singers or Commission Art Songs to be Delivered in Time for Spring Distribution

  • Items to Track:

    • figure out budget/scale of project

      • are you collecting/curating existing poetry or sourcing new poetry

    • contact composers and discuss

      • timeline for composing (my composers were on a tight turn-around because of the nature of this being a quarantine project; we had songs in 2 months)

      • singers age/levels/ranges

      • agree on fee

      • ask for midi tracks…while it is easy for many of us to play through new repertoire, I have found that having examples of the bulk is very helpful in sharing the repertoire and idea with others. It is one of those things that is an easy export for most notation software and adds a lot of value to your collection of materials. If possible, ask for one with the vocal line and one just the accompaniment.

      • negotiating permissions to include performing/recording/promoting the work after the premiere performance

    • finalize poems and send to the composer(s)

    • create contracts (some law firms do this pro-bono, others offer discounted rates, local music organizations/institutions might be able to give you a starting template)

    • For more beginner students, it was very helpful to have me record learning tracks for them to listen to in the early stages of learning. I recommend requesting the midi tracks from the composers in the original negotiations.

    • Singer learning time will vary depending on level.

  Spring Semester

  • Song Distribution & Learning

  • Think about possible masterclasses or group workshops to bring students together in their work. Some institutions have small groups of singers learning the same song so they can watch and learn with each other in weekly or biweekly masterclass seminars.

  • Coaching

  • Dress Rehearsal

  • Song Recital

  • Post Mortem: include your students in a facilitated conversation about how it feels to be more directly involved with the music making.

    • What is it like to sing text written by your peers or in this specific theme?

    • What did you like about the format? Anything you would change?

    • Favorite moments? Least favorite moments?

    • What are you proud of?

    • What could you have done better?

    • Did you feel well supported in this project? How could leadership have supported better?

    • Would you like to do a similar project in the future?

    • Ideas to expand the project or develop this idea further?