Wild Rumpus - Latest Comments

Re: Composition Applications for Beginners

David Batchelor — Fri, 27 Feb 2015 23:10:23 -0000

Go Wild Rumpus! Thank you for the time you took to help us composers. The information you provided is spot on! I have also shared the "Submitting Unsolicited Scores" blog post with my composer friends. We need all the help we can get.

Re: The Wild Rumpus Kickstarter

jen_wang — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 03:24:33 -0000

Hi, Caitlin! The Kickstarter is indeed closed, but what we can do instead is accept a regular donation, and give you the corresponding Kickstarter reward of your choice, if we still have it. Hope that sounds good! If it does, here's what you can do:

-- Donate to us through our fiscal sponsor, at their donation page: https://npo1.networkforgood... (Note: please double-check that only Wild Rumpus is selected; at least on my browser, it selects the first ensemble by default.)
-- Send me an e-mail (jen at wildrumpusmusic dot org) and let me know what Kickstarter reward you'd like.

Thanks so much!

Re: The Wild Rumpus Kickstarter

Simms Cm — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 02:09:39 -0000

Dear Wild Rumpus, I see that the campaign has closed, but my spouse and I would still like to donate! Is this possible?

Re: Composition Applications for Beginners

Sivanx1 — Sat, 01 Sep 2012 05:21:42 -0000

I always think of a resume as a short CV, between one and two pages long, with highlights rather than complete lists of composition-related achievement...

Re: Composition Applications for Beginners

jen_wang — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 09:57:58 -0000

Hi, Jeff,

A bio is prose. They vary in length, but commonly appear in programs, people's websites, etc. For this blog entry (http://wildrumpusmusic.org/... ), I asked the commissioned composers for short bios, and what's printed there is what they gave me.

A resume is somewhat equivalent to a curriculum vitae. Depending on your country of origin, a resume may be considered a shortened form of a CV, or they might be considered the same thing—for our purposes, either is fine. I Googled "curriculum vitae composer" and "resume composer" and found a number of great examples, as well as this handbook from Eastman: http://www.esm.rochester.ed... While some of it is more appropriate for performers than composers, there are a number of good examples within it. Between all those, I think you'll have a clear understanding of what should be on the resume, and some different possibilities for order and format.

Re: Composition Applications for Beginners

Jeffw — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 08:33:43 -0000

You touched on it, but I'd like you to say definitively what you expect to get out of a resume vs. a bio. I've been submitting scores for over 15 years and this is the first time I've ever seen anyone request both, or make a distinction between the two. Thank you.

Re: Spring Concert On June 8, 2012

Samyao — Sun, 03 Jun 2012 23:12:25 -0000

how exciting!

Re: Composition Applications for Beginners

jen_wang — Thu, 31 May 2012 23:27:27 -0000

Hi! Anybody, no matter how early they are in their career, can put together a good bio and resume--there's always something to say. A resume should list your education (music-related or not), and can list works that you've written (whether or not they've been performed). If you have music-related secondary interests that are worth mentioning (arts administration, research, performance, conducting) you can discuss those as well. Even if you haven't had many performances (or any), there's still a lot a resume can say about your background. The same thing holds true for a bio. You can talk about your background in related areas, you can talk about your musical interests/concerns, etc.

While a bio and/or resume can read like a brag sheet, another way to think about it is that those of us who are reviewing those materials will consult them not because we'll think you're a better composer if you have a fancier resume, but because we want to know more about you, your knowledge and background. There's lots of material that can go on a bio or resume that isn't necessarily a Major Achievement.

Re: Composition Applications for Beginners

Anonymous — Thu, 31 May 2012 13:07:30 -0000

Hello, and many thanks for this Article. I have a question, though. What about emerging composers, who have really no Bio and no Resume? Everyone has to start somewhere, some are self-taught, and not everyone is lucky to have contacts in the scene already and so on. Perhaps he also didn't had a premiere yet. How should a Bio and a Resume look, if there's really nothing to say?
Best Regards

Re: Composition Applications for Beginners

jen_wang — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 20:18:47 -0000

With permission from Christian Carey (Twitter: @cbcarey), I'm reposting a comment he left me on Twitter: "My one difference of opinion: Applicants shouldn't feel entitled to 'check in' for a progress report. Wastes jurors' time...most juries may view it traditionally—that it is a form of pressuring them into a result."

Even though I didn't explicitly say so, I agree with this. No amount of follow-up can hurry a decision along. Follow-up is only worthwhile if there's some other issue that requires attention, one for which the person on the other end can really be helpful.

Re: The Wild Rumpus Starts

Rio — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 17:08:45 -0000

Jen! This is fantastic! Great article, and I hope to hear some great music. Wanna write something for cello? ;)

Re: The Wild Rumpus Starts

Janet — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 06:28:45 -0000

Jen, you rock.

Can't wait to see Wild Rumpus take off! Come tour Australia sometime, ok?