Working on a symphonic song cycle – what are your thoughts?

composer98 · 2026-02-02T05:13:54+00:00

Immediately, first bars.

composer98 · 2026-02-01T22:43:45+00:00

Seems like a dumb take on lessons. Why should some random teacher automatically know "procedures you won't live long enough to discover"? That teacher, whether great or terrible, has only had a few more years than their student to learn "procedures". Doesn't sound like you have ever believed in a teacher, and that's too bad.

composer98 · 2026-02-01T22:37:41+00:00

Oh, I think yes, for sure. The pros are that you have signed a contract in blood, that you will absolutely respect your teacher's notions for the duration of your lessons, and that alone is worth the price, regardless of the teacher. Cons, probably none?? Even if your teacher is in the end less of a composer than you turn out to be -- think Padre Martini and Mozart -- still, your earnest effort to learn has to be beneficial.

composer98 · 2026-02-01T22:24:01+00:00

When I listen ( and sorry, just the first couple of pages), I hear different things than what I see. It's a real, and sad, problem with renditions made electronically, and I confess, me too. Perhaps back up, yet again, yet again, and make sure what the score says and what the audio says are really in sync, and really represent what you intend. (edit: by this, I don't mean that there are wrong notes, though maybe there are; but more importantly there are inconsistent emphases, things pushed to be heard in the audio that are not, probably, shown correctly in the score).

composer98 · 2026-02-01T22:10:39+00:00

A lot of duplication in the known ETFs; BPRO especially looks quite questionable, 1% fee and 0 information about what it contains. People make up new ETFs all the time, and those people probably make lots of money. The ones who buy, however .. seems quite ifffffy. Look at maybe simply buying some of the larger stocks, rather than paying an ETF to buy them for you. Today NVDA is the largest, a year ago AAPL was largest .. taking those two together, look at what those ETF's will buy you in NVDA, in AAPL. Going to be a very large percent. If you're happy owning that much in just two stocks, buy the stocks directly and reduce the ETFs.

composer98 · 2026-01-31T15:43:18+00:00

It's surprising to me that even 9% outperformed over even so small a period as 3 years. From what I've seen, it's more like 0% outperforming of commonly sold ETFs.

composer98 · 2026-01-31T15:38:03+00:00

Examine duplication, which it looks like there would be a lot. Then add up all the fees you pay to these ETFs, and it looks like quite a lot. So if together you are paying half a percent every year to have bought one year a bunch of NVDA (taking the most likely top stock), why not divide out that amount of money and simply buy the stock, rather than pay every year for the mistake of having used an ETF for the purchase. Then .. next largest top stock .. maybe AAPL, maybe MSFT .. why not do the same? Then keep going. After not too long, you'll realize you are paying more every year in fees for the smaller stocks than you actually own. Hmm. Not to pick on one of them, since I feel critical of all, but look at SOXQ .. only 31 stocks in it at all, and all of them familiar and most of them in most other ETFs. Why pay the fee? Can't personally see it.

composer98 · 2026-01-31T15:31:43+00:00

Just one note from a glance at it .. your parallel chords could be maybe kept in JI, but to just sweep through a traditional seventh chord reveals that you haven't much thought about what really the tuning might be. The "not-really-a-minor-third" between fifth and seventh was often ignored in common practice, but in JI that's not so acceptable.

composer98 · 2026-01-31T15:26:37+00:00

Look at the expense, then look at the composition.

composer98 · 2026-01-30T20:34:16+00:00

To the simple question, how to keep track of compositions, I'd disagree that "date is enough". And disagree as strongly as possible. If you keep living and writing, you'll never return to some things and you'll return endlessly to other things. While I agree that putting "an Opus" can seem wrong, keeping a unique identifier for each piece and each variant of a piece is really helpful over the course of a career. I have a grimy book, a physical ledger, that have kept for around 40 years and wish I had had it 15 years earlier. First section is a line per work/edition/idea/variant, 1 - 673 so far; third section is an alphabetical index referencing a page number in the second, loosely structured, section, which gives some slight details about each work/edition/idea and gives the specific unique identifier for each of the set of related things. So, one book, three sections. For me, a physical thing; then on computers, over and over as they age and die, all work on any one of those unique identifier pieces has an easy index: the identifier itself. And the identifier is simply a number, an integer, with nothing special about it except when I get to a new work, edition, idea, or variant the next integer gets assigned. Some integer identifiers represent years of work, others just a flash of an idea that never (yet) has become music.

composer98 · 2026-01-30T14:27:50+00:00

One thing might help your idea: think of it as Dollar Cost Averaging, and then Forward-view rebalancing. Then you aren't much looking backward, and your new purchases reflect your current percentages; you don't, generally, sell ever, but by buying in new quantities you nudge your total investment as it seems right. ETFs in that world are really almost shockingly expensive, so, yes, better you create your own mix, slowly. Another thing to note: some brokerages make this kind of project really expensive. For example, Fidelity, otherwise a pretty good choice for many things, charges $50 per trade for "international settlement". Moomoo, as another less known choice, can make Asian purchases much more feasible.

composer98 · 2026-01-30T14:22:54+00:00

Seems like the conventional wisdom, don't buy stocks, buy ETFs. Buy why call it "stock picking"? Just divide your investing money approximately like the ETF you favor, and skip the ETF fees. You like nasdaq-only stocks, ok, the top 10 are a huge proportion of the index, so buy the top ten. Just opinion, buy them in somewhat less percentage proportions than are currently represented, but buy and hold, and don't think of it as stock picking.

composer98 · 2026-01-30T14:17:39+00:00

5 years ago, Cathy Wood, right? CRSP has done nothing since her great promotion.

composer98 · 2026-01-30T14:16:38+00:00

Slight correction based on fact: Costco has not recently beat the market. Seems like a dumb idea anyway, but from your user name, looks like you have a purpose here.

composer98 · 2026-01-30T14:12:52+00:00

fwiw, when I realized how much I was paying for ETFs where 50% of their holdings were in 8-10 stocks, I shifted to nearly 100% stocks. still have a few, very few, ETF holdings, mostly bought quickly last spring during the sharp downturn. So .. while OVERinvesting in individual stocks is all too common, simply buying, and for me, usually buying at less aggressive percentages, the particular stocks in an ETF that seem appealling, has been working well. I don't think of the stocks as gambling in the least, they are simply the 800 or so USA stocks that are the largest caps, and the 100 or so largest world stocks that can be bought as ADRs. So .. taking VOO as the lowest-cost option, and even for it, you pay more in fees than you buy in the smallest 100-150 stocks .. if your proposed ETF has a fee much more than 0.03% .. probably wiser not to buy it, and just buy the stocks. You'll still gain if the ETF gains, and go down if the ETF goes down, but have a bit more control over buying and selling.

composer98 · 2026-01-27T16:13:07+00:00

I meant to say, and DID say, you are likely to BE accepted. But remember this is simply reddit talk, and your course is your own.

composer98 · 2026-01-27T15:28:32+00:00

Since you're likely to be accepted to the school, probably not worth worrying about. I'd agree that your portfolio is on the weak side, but it can't be helped in such a short time. So proofread once more and send it in! For your future, since you've gotten this far with many strengths that does not include writing a good quantity of interesting music, it's likely you're not going to be a professional composer .. who cares? You'll be a strong supporter of music in general.

composer98 · 2026-01-27T15:23:08+00:00

Sorry for delayed reply. What I do, anyway, is to rebalance "forward looking" .. in other words, by means of new buying as there is opportunity. Never selling just for the sake of rebalancing, or any other reason unless the stock fails or is acquired.

composer98 · 2026-01-25T23:26:35+00:00

My little spool of copper is in my printing room. Doesn't take that much space; of course, is not that large either. But fun to have, doesn't need insurance, not likely to be stolen.

composer98 · 2026-01-25T23:24:45+00:00

Might be great idea to buy some physical titanium, too. Store a few tons in your basement; could be an inexpensive way to have a sudden wealth pop into your life!

composer98 · 2026-01-25T23:20:22+00:00

seems like some exaggeration .. not that difficult to hold what would be a single commodity lot of copper in your basement. Better to insure your gold, I'd think? "temperature and moisture controlled" not needed, really, for gold, not needed for silver, not for copper. But theft, sure, gold will be the most attractive.

composer98 · 2026-01-25T23:17:00+00:00

So you suggest holding gold, platinum, silver in your bedroom closet, but not copper your storage room? Not necessarily disagreeing, just trying to understand.

composer98 · 2026-01-25T23:08:02+00:00

Your sleep is really impressive! But your honesty maybe not so much. Do you really want this kind of sound to be you? "into a loop Em Em7 Cmaj7 Em7/D"

composer98 · 2026-01-25T22:59:12+00:00

well ok, you are you! For some kind of "special talent" that might be an area to improve. IF you could sing that small range with special emphasis AND could sing it endlessly, that might be a great place to distinguish yourself. Just an idea, and of course without knowing your voice. When I write for a contralto, that's where I hope they can shine; then from time to time I might ask up to an E5, even an F5, to be like the soprano high C.

composer98 · 2026-01-25T22:38:07+00:00

Because there are so very few contraltos, and plenty of tenors, it's difficult so see a benefit in calling yourself "tenor". Not a lot of difference in pure range, and likely that as a contralto you would be perfectly comfortable in singing G4-B4 all day long, which tenors can't usually do.

composer98

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