As a composer at BUTI, you will be guided by faculty and guest artists with a wide range of aesthetic perspectives to refine your technique, grow as an artist, and develop your own personal voice. The program offers individualized and class instruction in a supportive environment.

Composition Fundamentals Workshop

June 18 – July 1, 2023

Ages 14–19*

Please note: 2023 program dates, lengths, and locations subject to change due to extenuating circumstances.

The Composition Fundamentals Workshop (CFWS) is a two-week program exploring the art of music composition using the foundations of Western musical notation. Directed by composer and pianist Martin Amlin, this workshop welcomes aspiring composers ages 14-19 who demonstrate promise and dedication at early stages of their creative development. Through private instruction, group activities and classes, performance of students’ works, and interaction with guest artists, the program focuses on the fundamentals of composition and prepares students for the next stage of their artistic journey. Applicants should be familiar with Western musical notation and should possess basic competency on an instrument, including voice.

*The Composition Fundamentals Workshop is open to high school students who have not yet begun full-time college or conservatory study.

Application fees for this program will be waived. Applicants will receive a discount code at the time of submission.

More Details on CFWS

Course highlights include:

  1. Individual lessons
  2. Notation and Music Theory classes
  3. Mentoring in style and fundamentals of compositional technique
  4. Guest lectures and presentations**
  5. Boston University transferable course credit

**Valerie Coleman (BUTI’89, CFA’95) and Missy Mazzoli (BUTI’98, CFA’02) are program advisors and guest faculty for the Composition Fundamentals Workshop. 

      Electroacoustic Composition Workshop

      June 18 – July 1, 2023

      Ages 14–20

      Please note: 2023 program dates, lengths, and locations subject to change due to extenuating circumstances.

      Electroacoustic composition is the art of using electronics, in this case the use of computers, to record, manipulate, generate and arrange sounds as our compositional material. The two-week Electroacoustic Composition Workshop (ECWS), which is open to all levels and genres of composers, regardless of experience with electronic music, introduces students to this important facet of contemporary composition through classes, private lessons, and scheduled time in our multiple 5.1 surround-sound studio spaces. Through daily hands-on work, listening, discussion, and analysis, you will explore the techniques, philosophy, history, and compositional methods behind various genres of electronic music, including recording, the use of plug-ins, synthesis, MIDI, and more. Centered specifically around using these tools for composition in the contemporary concert genre, the techniques learned in the ECWS are relevant to creating, recording, and editing in any field, including audio production, music for gaming, electronic dance music and more. The capstone project of the workshop is the composition and presentation of a 5.1 surround-sound piece. Learn on your preferred DAW, including Logic, ProTools, Reaper and more. The ECWS is directed by composer and sound designer Justin Casinghino, a BU Lecturer in Music, who models this workshop after the courses he teaches at Boston University.

      More Details on CFWS

      Course topics include:

      1. Audio and recording manipulation
      2. Understanding the nature of sound
      3. DAW platforms
      4. Creating and composing with computer manipulated sound
      5. Aesthetics in electronic music
      6. Historically important works in the genre
      7. Individualized attention and masterclasses

      Additional course highlights include:

      1. Performance opportunities
      2. Boston University transferable course credit

        Young Artists Composition Program

        July 2 – August 12, 2023

        Ages 14–19*

        Please note: 2023 program dates, lengths, and locations subject to change due to extenuating circumstances.

        The six-week Young Artists Composition Program (YACP) offers talented high school composers the unique opportunity to focus solely on exploring and refining their compositional skills. YACP is led by Martin Amlin, Senior Director and BU Professor of Music, and Justin Casinghino, Director and BU Lecturer in Music.

        *The Young Artists Composition Program is open to high school students who have not yet begun full-time college or conservatory study.

        More Details on YACP

        Course highlights include:

        1. Individual lessons
        2. Academic classes in analysis, score-reading, tonal and post-tonal theory, and compositional techniques
        3. Weekly individual composition projects with discussion classes and faculty demonstrations and a culminating project
        4. Masterclasses and guest lectures
        5. Elective courses in music theory, music history, health and wellness, and more
        6. Boston University transferable course credit