COMPOSITION ASSIGNMENTS

Kaleidoscope

Kaleidoscope was composed by Lóren Littlejohn for a Composition IV course at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music.

Assignment: Write a piece utilizing set theory and the 7th mode of the melodic minor scale.

Program Note: Kaleidoscope is inspired by the mind-blowing visuals the composer witnessed when looking at kaleidoscopes. Similar to the instrument, this piece paints a vivid image with the use of set theory (0,4,8) | (0, 4, 6) | (0,3,6), and the 7th mode of the melodic minor scale to create. These compositional tools create the general shapes and colors that the listener will hear throughout the piece. To fade through textures and sounds, similar to the optical instrument, the piece explores the use of Constance in Dissonance with hints of minimalism. To tie everything together, the piece has a general soloistic line that is passed around to showcase the different instruments in the quintet. As that line gets passed around, the other instruments support it and add dynamics and contrast to the piece with the use of tricky rhythms, extended techniques such as flutter tonguing and trills, slightly extreme registers and sudden changes in dynamics.

The Bounce of A Butterfly

The Bounce of A Butterfly was composed by Lóren Littlejohn for a Composition II course at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music.

Assignment: Compose a melody for using ornamentation and variation.

Program Note: The Bounce of A Butterfly explores the concept of melody and how to get the most material out of a short melodic phrase or idea.

This… Is Not Real

This… Is Not Real was composed by Lóren Littlejohn for a Composition III course at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music.
***Note, video contains strobe-like effect in 1st 30+ seconds of the video.

Assignment: Write a contemporary classical concert piece for five voices which is inspired by visual media.

Program Note: Images captured by NASA’s James Webb Telescope, which was launched into space on December 25, 2021, served as inspiration for this This… Is Not Real. This piece is a musical representation of the interplay among the planets, stars, asteroids, space trash and space dust and highlighting the tone, texture and, sometimes chaotic nature of multiple elements found in space.

Dance of the Hidden Shadow

Dance of the Hidden Shadows was composed by Lóren Littlejohn for a Composition III course at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music.

Assignment:
Compose a melody using ornamentation and variation while also using techniques learned in class such as minimalism and extended techniques.

Program Note: Dance of the Hidden Shadows served as a way to branch out of the normal chords and instrumentation that the composer was accustom to. In this piece, the composer exercised his desire to explore different instruments and colors.

The Dream I Can’t Remember

The Dream I Can’t Remember was composed by Lóren Littlejohn for a Composition II course at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music.

Assignment: Composer must use instruments unfamiliar to them while exploring the capabilities and what constitutes idiomatic writing for a chamber ensemble.

Program Note: During the piece, the listener will hear a scattered array of ideas arranged to make the piece sound constant and cohesive. Outerspace is created by so many individuated things and textures, so the composer wanted to capture that by using a mixture of large ensembles, solos, duos (etc). The listener will hear a melody for some parts of the piece; however, it fades in and out to resemble the stars in the picture. The piece can be compared to a conversation between a group of people, rather than a solo voice with the support of other voices. The composer wanted to resemble the texture of the dust clouds and the different forms of matter created by the creation of new stars or the death of old ones. As this piece is being listened to, the listener should look at the picture provided or think back to the images they have seen in outer space. This piece in a sense is a way to portray organized chaos in a tonal/musical way.

Thoughts When Dr. McLoskey Gives An Assignment

Thoughts When Dr. McLoskey Gives an Assignment was composed by Lóren Littlejohn for a Composition I course at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music.

Assignment: Write a piece while exploring the uses of consonant and dissonance, neo-heterophony, variation, and extended techniques.

Program Note: Thoughts When Dr. McLoskey Gives an Assignment is a work that depicts the composer’s mental state each time Dr. McLoskey gave an assignment. This excerpt explores the use of techniques such as Neo- Heterophony, 12-Tone and Metric Modulation in a quartet setting.

A View of Lóren

Instances/Moments/Snapshots