Composing for Arrangers

An arranger can make every line playable and still miss the point. This class is for arrangers who want to stop being technicians and start being storytellers. I reframe arranging as composition: melody as the story, harmony as emotional context, and orchestration as the way that intent reaches the ensemble. I’ll walk you through purposeful reharmonization, voice leading, range discipline, and rhythmic conversation. We also get into the moment where a piano sketch stops being a blueprint and becomes an interpretation. Once you stop worrying about what fits and start asking what feels right, everything about your writing changes.

What I actually cover

• Why I treat melody as the story
• Reharmonizing an idea without losing its identity
• Voice leading and range discipline that preserve clarity
• Building rhythmic conversation across the entire ensemble
• Where a piano sketch becomes an actual interpretation