Music Composition Guidelines
The science or art of arranging music by ordering tones or sounds in succession, in combination or in temporal relationships to produce a composition having unity and continuity
Requirements:
1. Only one (1) original notarized composition with six (6) copies of the notarized original must be submitted two (2) weeks prior to date of the Beaver County ACT-SO Annual competition.
2. The top of each page must include the contestant’s name, page number and unit name (Beaver County) and unit number (2372).
3. The composition must be neatly and precisely written on music manuscript paper, in such a manner that any trained musician could perform the composition. Before submission, all electronically generated manuscripts (Finale, Sibelius, etc.) must be proofread to ensure proper Quantization in the final print generated composition.
4. The contestant must provide a CD recording of the composition and be prepared to perform or have the composition performed on site. Competitors will not perform their compositions at the competition.
5. The composition must not exceed five (5) minutes.
Contestants Will Be Judged By The Following Criteria:
• Creative sense (10 pts)
• Form (20 pts)
• Harmonic and rhythmic interest (20 pts)
• Strength of melodic line (20 pts)
• Use of theory (20 pts)
• Quality of transcript (10 pts)
NOTE: For students that qualify for the National Competition
The deadline for submission of national registration documents is the second Saturday of May. No materials or copies will be accepted after that time or at the National Competition.
Contact ACT-SO Chairman Carter Spruill for further information