How one composition student puts music to paper and brings it to life through performance

Davis, Laura

English

How one composition student puts music to paper and brings it to life through performance

DigitalCommons@Linfield

Linfield Magazine Volume 2 Number 1 Summer 2005 Article 7 Summer 2005 Bringing Music to Life Laura Davis Linfield College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/linfield_magazine Recommended Citation Davis, Laura (2005) "Bringing Music to Life," Linfield Magazine: Vol. 2 : No. 1 , Article 7. Available at: https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/linfield_magazine/vol2/iss1/7 This article is brought to you for free via open access, courtesy of DigitalCommons@Linfield. For more information, please contact digitalcommons@linfield.edu. Bringing music to lifeost days, Beth Kumbalek ’05 has a songrunning through her head.But rather than letting the tune slipaway, Kumbalek is more likely to jot downthe notes and turn them into a musical composition. “I’ll be walking down the street humming some-thing and think, ‘Oh, that would be a really cool piece.’And I work from that,” she said.As a composition major, Kumbalek’s creativity andspirited sense of humor have shown up in a number ofLinfield projects this spring. She created an hour ofmusic for her senior recital, a score for a student film anda piece for the Linfield dance ensemble.“It’s incredible to hear pieces I’ve written per-formed by students here,” she said. “The sounds seem tocome alive and swell up around you. The reality of theperformance makes it amazing.”Kumbalek composed 10 pieces of music for her sen-ior recital, which seven student ensembles performed inMay. Not only did Kumbalek write all the music, butweeks before the performance she enlisted performers,scheduled rehearsals, coordinated equipment andarranged stage management for the evening.“It’s a huge, huge undertaking,” said RichardBourassa, professor of music. “It requires the best careand organization.” After a January Term trip to Ireland this year,Kumbalek wrote a piece for voice, cello and percussionto accompany a short film about the country created byNiki Hunter ’05. Kumbalek used thoughtful music tocapture the character of Ireland. She then collaboratedwith choreographer Heather Williams ’06, writingmusic for percussion, cello, violin and viola, which fourmembers of the Linfield Dance Ensemble performed.This student collaboration has been important toKumbalek.“It’s such an exciting experience to work with stu-dents in different artistic areas, such as dance or film,” shesaid. “Collaborating with different departments helps inthe growth process of my own music.”  Kumbalek, who plays French horn, piano and gui-tar, began composition lessons with Bourassa as a junior.Her talent as a horn player makes her a successful com-poser, Bourassa said.“It takes a strong performer to be a strong compos-er,” he said. “You have to know the boundaries ofinstruments and musicians and she has a good sense ofthat.”Bourassa works with an average of five compositionmajors each year and said student collaboration acrossthe curriculum is common thanks to Linfield's smallclass sizes. “Students know what each other are doing,” he said.“They have conversations and begin to make connec-tions with other areas, and that’s where the sharingcomes along. The more you know, the more you seeopportunities.”For Kumbalek, who plans to pursue a career in filmscoring, Linfield's supportive environment has given herample room to explore options related to composition.“I feel very fortunate to be at Linfield where, if I need a performer, I just ask,” she said. “If I want to put music to a dance, I can.  If I want to put music to a video, I can. The possibilities are endless.”– Laura DavisMPutting the music to paperWhat does it take to put music to paperand bring it to life during a performance?When Beth Kumbalek ’05 begins a com-position, she first decides on a basic style for themusic, then considers the speed and mood ofthe piece, and the musicians who will play it.“I think about what will be fun for them toplay and also enjoyable for the listener to hear,”she said. “I like slow, pensive music, where youcan hear the harmonies change, rather than abunch of fast notes going by, although it is funto write that, too.”Harmonies are added next. SometimesKumbalek augments a melody, extending thelength from five quarter notes to five halfnotes. All the while, she analyzes her musicmathematically. “I focus on the rhythms, tapping my fingerson the table, going through the piece as if it wereplaying in my head,” she said. “I’m sure peoplelook at me and wonder, ‘What is she doing?’”Though Kumbalek prefers to write at apiano, she can compose almost anywhere –in the silence of her apartment, in a bustlingcoffee house or outside on the grass.“If I’m humming a major third, I knowit’s a major third because I’ve had that train-ing,” she said. “I don’t need to have a pianoto write it down.”Eventually, she transfers the music to thecomputer and works in the music media lab,where she can hear parts played electronicallyby the instruments she chooses.“It’s helpful to use playback in the compo-sition process, but hearing it live is a completely different experience.”– Laura DavisIn addition to composing the music for her senior recital, Kumbalek also performed on French horn.Beth Kumbalek ’05 enjoys composing music at a piano when possible, but she islikely to be found writing just about anywhere. She said she “just knows” whena piece is finished.Kumbalek and Richard Bourassa, professor of music, critique a computerized versionof one of Kumbalek’s compositions, in the Renshaw Hall Music Media Lab.Kumbalek conducts students during a rehearsal of “Guardez Votre Coeur,” a piece performed livefor the Linfield Dance Ensemble.S U M M E R  2 0 0 5 -   1 51 4  -  L I N F I E L D  M A G A Z I N EStudent ProfileBringing music to lifeost days, Beth Kumbalek ’05 has a songrunning through her head.But rather than letting the tune slipaway, Kumbalek is more likely to jot downthe notes and turn them into a musical composition. “I’ll be walking down the street humming some-thing and think, ‘Oh, that would be a really cool piece.’And I work from that,” she said.As a composition major, Kumbalek’s creativity andspirited sense of humor have shown up in a number ofLinfield projects this spring. She created an hour ofmusic for her senior recital, a score for a student film anda piece for the Linfield dance ensemble.“It’s incredible to hear pieces I’ve written per-formed by students here,” she said. “The sounds seem tocome alive and swell up around you. The reality of theperformance makes it amazing.”Kumbalek composed 10 pieces of music for her sen-ior recital, which seven student ensembles performed inMay. Not only did Kumbalek write all the music, butweeks before the performance she enlisted performers,scheduled rehearsals, coordinated equipment andarranged stage management for the evening.“It’s a huge, huge undertaking,” said RichardBourassa, professor of music. “It requires the best careand organization.” After a January Term trip to Ireland this year,Kumbalek wrote a piece for voice, cello and percussionto accompany a short film about the country created byNiki Hunter ’05. Kumbalek used thoughtful music tocapture the character of Ireland. She then collaboratedwith choreographer Heather Williams ’06, writingmusic for percussion, cello, violin and viola, which fourmembers of the Linfield Dance Ensemble performed.This student collaboration has been important toKumbalek.“It’s such an exciting experience to work with stu-dents in different artistic areas, such as dance or film,” shesaid. “Collaborating with different departments helps inthe growth process of my own music.”  Kumbalek, who plays French horn, piano and gui-tar, began composition lessons with Bourassa as a junior.Her talent as a horn player makes her a successful com-poser, Bourassa said.“It takes a strong performer to be a strong compos-er,” he said. “You have to know the boundaries ofinstruments and musicians and she has a good sense ofthat.”Bourassa works with an average of five compositionmajors each year and said student collaboration acrossthe curriculum is common thanks to Linfield's smallclass sizes. “Students know what each other are doing,” he said.“They have conversations and begin to make connec-tions with other areas, and that’s where the sharingcomes along. The more you know, the more you seeopportunities.”For Kumbalek, who plans to pursue a career in filmscoring, Linfield's supportive environment has given herample room to explore options related to composition.“I feel very fortunate to be at Linfield where, if I need a performer, I just ask,” she said. “If I want to put music to a dance, I can.  If I want to put music to a video, I can. The possibilities are endless.”– Laura DavisMPutting the music to paperWhat does it take to put music to paperand bring it to life during a performance?When Beth Kumbalek ’05 begins a com-position, she first decides on a basic style for themusic, then considers the speed and mood ofthe piece, and the musicians who will play it.“I think about what will be fun for them toplay and also enjoyable for the listener to hear,”she said. “I like slow, pensive music, where youcan hear the harmonies change, rather than abunch of fast notes going by, although it is funto write that, too.”Harmonies are added next. SometimesKumbalek augments a melody, extending thelength from five quarter notes to five halfnotes. All the while, she analyzes her musicmathematically. “I focus on the rhythms, tapping my fingerson the table, going through the piece as if it wereplaying in my head,” she said. “I’m sure peoplelook at me and wonder, ‘What is she doing?’”Though Kumbalek prefers to write at apiano, she can compose almost anywhere –in the silence of her apartment, in a bustlingcoffee house or outside on the grass.“If I’m humming a major third, I knowit’s a major third because I’ve had that train-ing,” she said. “I don’t need to have a pianoto write it down.”Eventually, she transfers the music to thecomputer and works in the music media lab,where she can hear parts played electronicallyby the instruments she chooses.“It’s helpful to use playback in the compo-sition process, but hearing it live is a completely different experience.”– Laura DavisIn addition to composing the music for her senior recital, Kumbalek also performed on French horn.Beth Kumbalek ’05 enjoys composing music at a piano when possible, but she islikely to be found writing just about anywhere. She said she “just knows” whena piece is finished.Kumbalek and Richard Bourassa, professor of music, critique a computerized versionof one of Kumbalek’s compositions, in the Renshaw Hall Music Media Lab.Kumbalek conducts students during a rehearsal of “Guardez Votre Coeur,” a piece performed livefor the Linfield Dance Ensemble.S U M M E R  2 0 0 5 -   1 51 4  -  L I N F I E L D  M A G A Z I N EStudent Profile

Bringing Music to Life

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Bringing Music to Life

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