Commissioning A New Work
What does it cost?
Rather than a per-minute rate (one minute of allegro is considerably more measures than one minute of adagio), Andrea hopes to gather a complete understanding of the desired work and provide a fee range that can be scaled up or down according to the commissioner’s liking. This fee range will take into consideration the creative appeal of the project, Andrea’s calendar availability, voicing & instrumentation, recent commissions, duration of the work, tempo, and any voiced budgetary considerations of the commissioning body.
Who makes the decisions?
The commissioning party can decide upon: wording of the title dedication, desired duration of the piece, voicing and instrumentation, style & mood, and preferred vocal ranges. It is also fine if the commissioning party wants to leave this up to the composer.
The composer will decide upon: text, musical setting of text
Commissioning parties are strongly encouraged to suggest meaningful text options, as frequently these options work well. However, the composer reserves the right to make the final decision regarding the text, which may mean a dialogue of options before settling on a text that feels right for both parties. It’s important that the composer connects with the text and yields a better work.
Are there any satisfaction guarantees?
Once the above details have been decided upon, a contract will be created before any composing is done to ensure that both parties are happy with the defined parameters and that all requests are clearly understood. As beauty and art are subjective forms, no guarantee can be offered, but Andrea does her best to fully understand the commissioning body’s desires for the work and to honor those. Occasionally, she may send 1-2 page previews to commissioning parties as she begins to compose to ensure she is on the right track if there is any uncertainty.
What is the time frame?
If you want a for-sure commission, contact a minimum of two years in advance. If you want to roll the dice, contact one year in advance— there may be an opening, but there also may not be!
Will the work be published?
Most likely, but the composer reserves the right to choose whether or not to publish, and in what format. Andrea works with a variety of traditional publishers (Hal Leonard, Boosey & Hawkes, GIA, Carl Fischer, Walton, Santa Barbara, Colla Voce, and Pavane) and lately primarily with digital marketplace, MusicSpoke (www.musicspoke.com) Regardless of whether the piece is published traditionally or digitally, it is likely that it will be made available to others after your ensemble’s premiere of the work, but not guaranteed.
How Do I Get Started?
As part of Chorus America Commissioning Consortium, Andrea created "But A Flint Holds Fire," a work addressing the water crisis in Flint, Michigan.
Read her interview with ACDA-Michigan's Jed Scott here.
“Her music shows great range—lyrical, dramatic, beautiful—and she has the rare talent to write really fresh-sounding music but well within the capabilities of all kinds of ensembles.”
- Composer Lee Kesselman
