Composition (2012): 'Popular Music'

For any instrumental ensemble (probably around ten people would be ideal) and one vocalist.

Procure a copy of the vocal score of any recent hit single, with the lyrics printed underneath the notes. With scissors, cut the score into its as many sections as there are individual bars, being sure to include the corresponding lyrics underneath each bar. 

Distribute the score fragments amongst the instrumentalists, giving each musician an equal number . 

A singer, actor, or vocal artist of some other sort should then intone the words of the song in order. Each musician should listen out for any words that appear on their fragments. 

Upon hearing a word that appears on one of your score fragments, play the notes on that fragment in free time (even if your fragment refers to a different occurrence of the same word, eg, if words like "and" or "you" appear in several places in the lyrics, any bar which features the word "and" should be played every time the vocalist utters the word "and").

The performance ends when the vocalist has reached the end of the lyrics.

Composition (2012): 'Repetitive Music'

For any ensemble of more than one singer or instrumentalist

Play (or sing) a note in the key of C major and, at a constant metre but a different tempo to all other performers, repeat.

Play (or sing) a different note in the key of C major and alternate between your new note and the last one at the same constant tempo. Repeat.

As before, adding a further note, repeat.

Keep going, adding more and more notes from the C major scale, until all performers are cycling through the entire scale of C major at different speeds. Then, at an agreed signal, stop.

Composition (2011): 'Seriesism'

For any ensemble (however at least seven performers are recommended, and a combination of strings and woodwind or similar sounding instruments is ideal)

There is a series of pitches: F / A / C' / E' / G' / B' / D'' / F#'' / A'' / C#''' / E''' / G#'''

* for groups of instruments in just intonation or capable of precise degrees of microtonal tuning adjustment, a pitch series based on the partials of the harmonic series may be substituted for a quite different effect.

There is also a series of durations: dotted minim / minim tied to dotted quaver / minim tied to quaver / mimim tied to semi quaver / minim / double dotted crotchet / dotted crotchet / crotchet tied to semi quaver / crotchet / dotted quaver / quaver / semi quaver

* for skilled players, a series of durations involving smaller and more complex note lengths - e.g. demi-semi-quavers and various kinds of tuplets - may be preferred

[It will be noticed that neither of these series are quite the same as those used by the mid-twentieth century serialists]

Pitches and durations should be distributed amongst the players as is felt to be appropriate.

Each player should consider four notes, whatever their length, to be their own 'bar' (so that each player conceives of a bar as of a different length to everyone else). Bars played and rested are then alternated following the pattern of the fibonacci sequence (starting with a 'bar' of rest), i.e. 1 bar rest, followed by 1 bar played, followed by 2 bars rest, followed by 3 bars played, followed by 5 bars rest, followed by 8 bars played, followed by 13 bars rest, etc.

As far as possible, each note should be played with a slow attack and a short (staccato) sustain.

If any one player finds him or herself the only sounding player for a period of 8 crotchet lengths, s/he should cease playing.

If any two players find themselves the only sounding players for a period of 16 crotchet lengths they should - on an agreed signal between them - simultaneously cease playing.

The piece ends when the whole group reaches a silence of at least four crotchet lengths.

[Please contact me in the event of any public performance of this piece]

Composition (2011): 'Apart'

For a large ensemble

The group should be spread as far apart as possible throughout the room - sitting or standing amongst the audience, occupying the nooks and the corners, facing away from each other. Do not listen. Play repeated arpeggios from any chord in the scale of C Major, as slowly and as quietly as possible without paying attention to the playing of any other person in the group.

Gradually, increase your speed and volume, until you are playing as fast as possible.

Play even faster.

Allow your accuracy to decrease, let wrong notes slip in and gradually take over your performance, and let the noise element come to dominate the tone element of your playing.

Only then, start to listen to to the others.

When you are satisfied with what you can hear, and your listening has overtaken your ability to concentrate on your playing, stop.

[Please contact me in the event of any public performance of this piece]

Composition (2010) No. 4

For any ensemble (and a conductor)

The group must be assembled in a circle or semi-circle with the conductor in the middle.

Everybody plays from the same score (above) with transposing instruments using an appropriately transposed version (likewise instruments in higher of lower registers, with octaves adjusted accordingly).

Before commencing, a series of hand gestures should be agreed between the conductor and the musicians, in order that the conductor may signal to any player at any time to:

Begin playing passage 'One' (or 'Two', 'Three', 'Four', etc.);

Loop the bar s/he is currently playing;

Double the length of the phrase being looped;

Start improvising around the themes and phases included in the score;

Stop playing.

A further hand signal should be agreed which indicates all players should stop playing (and the group should agree beforehand whether this signal should bring about an abrupt stop or a more gentle easing out at the end of the current bar).

The piece begins when the conductor indicates a number from one to five to one of the players and counts in.

[Please contact me in the event of any performance of this piece - transposed versions of the score are available on request]

Composition (2010) No. 3

For any ensemble

Before the performance, a number of motifs taken from birdsong should be recorded and notated on manuscript paper, sufficient to assign one to each player.

All musicians should be sat in a circle, with each player having only their own birdsong motif notated on the score before them.

When you feel like it, play the motif in front of you.

Certain things should make you more inclined to play:

the sound of others playing;

any other sound in the room;

catching sight of someone you like;

a pang of hunger;

the sudden recollection of a fond memory, or a joke;

noticing someone else smiling;

an urge to go to the toilet;

feeling sunlight, or any other light, strike you, or suddenly noticing a shiny object somewhere in the room;

but you may always choose not to play.

When others play, even if you are yourself playing at that time, you must listen.

After the first performance of your own motif, you may start to incorporate material - be it pitches, rhythmic patterns or melodic shape - from any other motif you have heard since the beginning of the performance. Through this method, your own motif-string gradually extends and transforms. The longer, the more different from itself, your motif-string becomes, the more often you should want to play it and the faster it should become.

As the piece becomes more and more frantic, more and more crowded, any member of the group may give an agreed signal (which should be silent). At which point everyone should play one long note, choosing the highest note from their current (now presumably quite transformed) motif-string, lasting one long breath, after which the piece ends.

[Please contact me in the event of any performance of this piece]

Composition (2010) No. 2

For any ensemble of roughly equal numbers of each sex

All players should sit in a circle and look around the room.

Upon catching the eyes of any other player, take a deep breath and release it, playing a single note for the time it takes to release your breath.

If the person who catches your eye is female, the note you play should be a major third higher than the last note you played. If the person who catches your eye is male, it should be a perfect fifth higher.

Feel free to change octave whenever you please.

At the beginning of the piece, your hypothetical 'previous note' is a low C. If the rules dictate that your next note should be C, stop playing.When everyone has stopped playing, the piece ends.

[Please contact me in the event of any public performance of this piece]

Composition (2010) No. 1

For any ensemble of strings (and / or trombones, crumhorns, etc.)

The players should all be sat in a circle, each should imagine before him the letters

C, D, E, F, G, A, B,

in other words, the scale of C major. These are the only notes you are allowed to play throughout the piece and, excluding the opening chord, you are only allowed to play each note once.

To begin with, starting notes are:

C,

G above that C,

E above that G,

D above that G,

F above that D,

B above that F, and

A above that B.

[using only the first few lines for smaller groups, and repeating notes in the same order for larger groups]

String players will never leave their starting string, so try and pick one that gives you the greatest chance of bumping into your neighbours.

All musicians play a sustained chord on their starting notes for 7 beats, after the 8th beat, all players begin sliding up or down their chosen string in contrary motion, ceasing your glissando and holding a note only if:

You cross notes with another player, then keep sliding to the next note in C which you have not yet played and hold that note;

If you realise that to continue sliding would make it impossible to land on a note from C which you have not yet played due to the approaching extremes of the string, then simply find the next usable note and hold it;

Or, If you hear any other players have stopped sliding.

Once all four players are holding any given note they should look at each other, count for 6 beats, and then repeat, sliding in the opposite direction, pausing for consecutively fewer beats on each held chord, until finally, having reached, as it were, zero beats, the last note of the scale is held for 8 beats and the piece comes to an end.

[Please contact me in the event of any public performance of this piece]