Benefits of Composing in Orchestra

There are many musical and non-musical benefits for students who participate in composing projects. Researchers have learned that students find good composition instruction and activities to be exciting, engaging, enjoyable, and interesting (Menard, 2015; Taft, 2019). The self-determination theory of motivation may help explain why this is so. Ryan and Deci (2000) identified three needs that are essential for growth, social development, and personal well-being: (a) competence, (b) relatedness (i.e., connections and associations with others), and (c) autonomy. I will describe how composing addresses each of these three needs.

Competence.Deci and Ryan (2000) explain that intrinsic motivation is maintained when our students feel stimulated and challenged. Composing stimulates students by helping them understand music from a different perspective than as a performer. Composing provides insights into form, theory, harmony, and the creative process (Koops, 2013; Menard, 2015). When students are composing they learn that achievement in performance isn’t the only valid expression of musicianship. Some of our students may musically thrive as composers, enhancing their sense of musical competence.

Composing also gives students an opportunity to showcase their performance competence (Chartier, 2009; Hopkins, 2013b; Riley, 2006). I have found that students’ performance skills are often enhanced through participation in composing projects. When students write music to play they challenge themselves, but they never write music they are incapable of playing. Therefore, composing projects lead to an enhancement of students’ performance skills in a way that they find manageable. A common reason ensemble directors state for not doing composing projects is that it will take time away from preparing for a performance. My experience suggests that composing projects not only enhance performance skills, but they also increase feelings of competence by allowing students to think at a much deeper level about the connections between music composition and performance.

Relatedness.In self-determination theory, relatedness refers to the human need to feel socially connected. Collaborative composing has great potential for enhancing feelings of relatedness to others, especially when students are asked to compose collaboratively. Research on collaborative learning has revealed that students working in small groups promote each other’s success by: (a) giving and receiving help and assistance, (b) exchanging resources and information, (c) providing feedback on taskwork and teamwork behaviors, (d) challenging each other’s reasoning, (e) advocating increased efforts to achieve, (f) processing how effectively group members are working together, and how the group’s effectiveness can be continuously improved (Johnson & Johnson, 1998). Students collaborating in small groups engage with each other’s ideas and establish shared meaning. They negotiate, compromise, and reach consensus to achieve a goal. These skills are fundamental for entering the professional work force and the world community. My own research has revealed that there is a relationship between the balance of a group’s collaboration and the quality of the resulting music composition (Hopkins, 2015). Chamber music participation has been promoted by string educators for improving attitudes toward music and music participation, promoting leadership ability, and developing communication, time management, empathy, and awareness (Leshnower, 2001; Trapkus, 2018; Zorn, 1973). When students are asked to compose collaboratively in small groups they have the opportunity to engage their musical imagination, creativity, and problem-solving skills in ways that are quite different from the skills used to interpret canonical repertoire.

Another aspect of relatedness promoted by composing is the potential for student compositions to enhance cultural understanding between students from diverse backgrounds. Orchestra directors have been interested for many years in diversifying the repertoire performed by school orchestras (Rotjan, 2018). What better way to diversify repertoire than to ask students to create an original composition? It is difficult to imagine any music that is more culturally relevant to students than music they composed themselves.

Autonomy.Autonomy refers to our students’ need to self-regulate their experiences and actions (Ryan & Deci, 2017). Composing projects that take place in ensemble settings foster student-centered classroom environments (Webb, 2013), which lead to stronger feelings of autonomy.

Doing a composing project changes your role from ensemble director to a facilitator. This is often referred to as a “flipped classroom” or learner-centered versus teacher- centered instruction (Scruggs, 2009). This model of learning is prevalent in many subject areas within school, but used less often in large ensembles. When students compose, their musical autonomy is revealed. They show the teacher what they understand about how music is structured and organized. Through composing projects, I have learned that my students intuitively understand a great deal about musical structure and form that would not likely be revealed in a typical orchestra rehearsal. Feelings of autonomy also develop from composing because students have control over many aspects of their composition. This lies in stark contrast to the performance of large ensemble repertoire, where students must follow a set of elaborate instructions provided by the composer and conductor.

Showcasing Your Orchestra Program.There has been a very clear trend over the past two decades toward an emphasis on creativity, innovation, problem-solving, and collaboration in education. The P21 Framework for 21st Century Learning (2007) states that “Learning and innovation skills are what separate students who are prepared for increasingly complex life and work environments in today’s world and those who are not. They include: creativity and innovation, critical thinking and problem solving, communication and collaboration" In 2014 the National Coalition for Core Arts Standards released a new set of voluntary standards for music with a framework that includes Creating, Performing, Responding, and Connecting (NCCAS, 2014).

Project-Based Learning is a current movement in education that includes five components. The project is: a) central to the curriculum, b) arranged around “driving questions” that guide students to the main principles or concepts, c) focused on a constructivist investigation that involves inquiry and knowledge building, d) student-driven (students are responsible for designing and managing their work) and e) authentic (focusing on real-world applications) (Thomas, 2000, pp. 3-4). Composing projects provide string educators with opportunities to showcase their music programs in ways that connect with schools’ overall mission and vision for student learning, thereby strengthening the importance of the orchestra program within the overall curriculum.