Helen Bledsoe

Category: Advice for Composers

  • Bisbigliando or Not?

    Let’s do some logic: I assume the answer is “no” – at tempo = 60 this is not really rapid. Again my guess is “no”, neither the notation nor the tempo would qualify this as a tremolo. Again the logical conclusion is “no”. It does not fit the criteria for a tremolo or a trill.…

  • Lumping and Splitting Part III

    Subtitle: the Great Jet Whistle Lump (for an introduction to the topic of Lumping and Splitting, read Part I) “Airy Sound” is an indication that I come across very often. Although I use it myself in my own pieces, I am aware that it’s a whole kettle of lumped-together fish! For flutists, the main distinction…

  • Lumping and Splitting Part II

    (Read Part I for an intro to this topic.) Here are my opinions (at this point) about notating techniques for the flute: which techniques for the flute one can lump together (generalize), and which ones benefit from more differentiation. Percussive sounds in Ensemble/orchestral situations There are several places to put your tongue inside your mouth…

  • Lumping Whistles and Splitting Pizzes

    Part 1 In the realm of notation of extended techniques, the phenomenon of Lumpers and Splitters is alive and well. First, a short explanation of this phenomenon, then I will give you my take on how lumpers and lumping seems to be the dominant force behind recent notation trends. In Part 2 I will discuss…

  • New Tutorial Series for Composers

    I have done quite a few tutorials, thanks to the Musikfabrik and our youth ensemble Studio Musifabrik. However, in the course of our Adventure project with composition students from the Hochschule here in Cologne, there are several topics that keep coming up. I have been asked to make short explanatory videos about these topics, and…

  • Special Sounds: Describe rather than Prescribe

    I tend to get caught up in issues of notation, so it’s time for me to step back. Keep it simple. If you are a composer looking for a special kind of sound, but aren’t sure how to notate it, your solution may be as easy as adding a bit of text describing what you…

  • Style Guide for Composers

    If you are a composer looking for general-purpose layout advice, or a performer/group looking for a single page reference guide to give to the people who write for you, here is a document my colleagues and I at Musikfabrik have come up with. It is by no means exhaustive. One could read the 704-page Behind…

  • Extended Techniques for Flute – Notation Cheat-Sheet

    So here is my attempt to get a lot of information to you quickly and succinctly via Google spreadsheets. The photo quality is not so good, but this way I can make quick changes, and you are always viewing the latest version. This is not an exhaustive overview of all notation practices – it is…