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BAIN MUSC 725
Contemporary Styles II

Serial Composition Project

Please be sure to clearly number each assignment and exercise.


Assignments: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Project 1

No.DescriptionDue Date
8. Revise the serial composition and supporting analytical documents you created for Assignment 3 in order to create a finished composition that is ready for performance by the class ensemble.

Analytical documentation should include at least the following

  1. P0 in musical staff notation. Use white- or black-note heads and segmentation brackets to indicate structurally significant groupings of P0
  2. Mark the ordered pitch-class integer interval succession immediately under the musical staff notation for P0
  3. Write out P0 in pitch-class letter name notation
  4. Write out P0 in pitch-class integer notation (C = 0)

  5. Provide the following information about the structure of P0:
    1. Interval class succession
    2. PC set prime form for trichords
    3. PC set prime form for tetrachords
    4. PC set prime form for hexachords

    Note any special features of your row:


  6. Is the row hexachordally combinatorial? If so, at what row forms?
  7. Is the row an all-interval row?
  8. Is the row palindromic with regard to its interval structure?
  9. Are there any references to tonal sonorities? If so, which?
  10. Are row presentation overlaps possible? If so, at how many notes?

    Briefly describe (1-2 pages, typed, summary form) how you went about composing the work. Classify your your work as a Category A or B type of serial composition. Comment on the form, phrase structure, as well as what row forms you decided to employ and why. Note any use of special textrual devices such as row overlap, fixed registration, integral serialism, , and so on.

Submission Guidelines:


  1. A clean performance copy of the score. You score should have an appropriate header including the title, instrumentation, composer's name. A footer containing Copyright information should appear on the first page only.
  2. An analytical copy of the same score with all row forms and all order numbers appropriately marked on the copy.
  3. Analytical documentation as described above.
Friday, March 24

Updated: February 29. 2000