Each of the works you’ll find here has been specially composed and edited to  ensure suitability for  younger orchestras, from advanced high school groups through college aged performers.

The composers of these works are all prior winners of ACO’s EarShot Readings competition and represent the amazing breadth and depth of the next great generation of American composers.

Because we know that many younger musicians have had limited exposure to contemporary composers and their music, we’ve also created Education Modules to accompany each work. 

Conductor’s Performance Modules are designed to provide conductors and teachers with all of the essential entry points for engaging with the composers and their works. These guides provide a deep reimagining of the ways that we approach learning a new piece of music, placing the composer and their ideas at the center of the process, and helping students connect to the work through identity-based inquiry.

The Conductor’s Performance Modules are:

• a great time saver for Educators, Conductors and Students alike 
• an introduction to and exploration of  the composers, their ideas, and the ways they come together and are expressed in their music.
• a guide to technical and practical skills necessary for a successful performance

You will also find a Classroom Listening Guide for each piece. These listening guides are designed to engage students in the concepts (musical, academic and social) that students will encounter in a performance of these works.

The Classroom Listening Guides will:

• Prepare students for attending a performance of the work
• Connect them with both the composer and social/historical contexts.
• Use identity based inquiry to cultivate a deeper sense of self and community
• Provide easy links to academic subjects

Series Editor - Kevin James, ACO Education Director

Curriculum Developers - JL Marlor, ACO Education Coordinator, and Leila Ramagopal Pertl, Lawrence University