Quick questions on Composition portfolio and documentation: HSC Music

The recording is how the marker hears the piece, so it must represent your music fairly. It can be a live or studio recording, a sequenced or programmed realisation, or a mix of acoustic and electronic sources, depending on your style. Whatever the method, the balance should let every important layer be heard: melody, bass, harmony and any key inner parts. Mix and present the recording so the marker hears what you intend, not a muddy or unbalanced version that hides your craft.

The written statement or documentation is where you make your craft visible. Use it to explain the structure of the piece, how you generated and developed your ideas, which concepts of music you manipulated and how, your stylistic influences, and the link to your topic of study. This is your chance to point the marker toward the things you are proud of: the development of a motif, a deliberate textural shift, a structural plan. Documentation should be honest and specific, describing what you actually did rather than vague claims, and it should match what the score and recording reveal.

The most common failures are a thin or static piece, an unbalanced recording that hides parts, an inaccurate or incomplete score (costly in Music 2), and documentation that is vague or overstated. The fixes are to develop fewer ideas further, to record and mix carefully, to proofread the notation against the recording, and to write documentation that is specific and matched to the music.

The score is assessed. Proofread pitch, rhythm and conventions against the recording.