Online Classes
FALL 2023
ONLINE CLASSES
Dear Students,
FALL 2023 online Zoom courses are here soon! No homework… just two hours a week of dedicated fun study.
1) Orchestral Score Study: A Trip to France! A journey through two orchestral masterpieces: Gershwin’s An American in Paris and Debussy’s La Mer. Form, harmony, and orchestrational techniques will be looked at in-depth. You will be guided through my own harmonic reductions and and structure charts.
2) Chromatic Harmony is the study of the music of the Romantic composer of the 19th century. This course covers many of the basic components of harmonic techniques of the era…a must for all who wish to enrich their harmonic palette. The readers I have created contain all the theoretical explanations as well as many scores complete with analysis.
ENROLLMENT OPTIONS
1) Attend the classes in real time on Zoom
2) Watch the recorded classes later at your own pace
3) Any combination of the two!
REGISTER as soon as possible to reserve a space by clicking the button below.
If you know of others who might be interested in these courses, please feel free to pass this information along. I hope to see you soon!
Best,
Steve
ORCHESTRAL SCORE STUDIES
A TRIP TO FRANCE!
Gershwin’s “An American in Paris” and Debussy’s “La Mer”
SUNDAY MORNINGS
10am-12pm PACIFIC (October 8 to December 10)
live/or watch recorded video
Attend the Zoom sessions or watch the recorded classes on video–whatever fits your schedule!
Topics covered: * The basic fundamentals: How to approach an orchestral score * Form and Structure Charts * Harmony and Key Relations * Motivic/Thematic Development * Counterpoint * Orchestration * Rhythmic Usages * Registral Concerns * Historical context * Harmonic Reductions provided *
Fee: $400.00 USD (10 sessions)
ORCHESTRAL SCORE STUDIES
PETER AND THE WOLF
By Serge Prokofiev
THURSDAY MORNINGS
10am-12pm PACIFIC (October 5 to December 7)
live/or watch recorded video
Attend the Zoom sessions or watch the recorded classes on video–whatever fits your schedule!
Topics covered: * The basic fundamentals: How to approach an orchestral score * Form and Structure Charts * Harmony and Key Relations * Motivic/Thematic Development * Counterpoint * Orchestration * Rhythm * Registral Concerns * Historical Context * Harmonic Reductions provided *
Fee: $400.00 USD (10 sessions)
Other Courses offered Throughout the Year
These series of courses are designed to introduce students to the importance of orchestral score study and offers clear techniques to help guide you. All courses come with my own analysis of form and structure, harmonic reductions, and notes on orchestrational practices.
Topics covered in each course include: How to approach an orchestral score for study, Form and Structure, Harmony and Key Relations, Motivic/Thematic Development, Counterpoint, Orchestration/Texture/Spacing, Rhythmic Usages.
A TRIP TO FRANCE! – Gershwin’s “An American in Paris” and Debussy’s “La Mer”
TURN OF THE CENTURY MASTERS – THE MUSIC OF RAVEL AND STRAVINSKY
A ten-week course covering the music of Maurice Ravel’s masterpiece Mother Goose Suite and Igor Stravinsky’s Fireworks.
PROKOFIEV’S PETER AND THE WOLF
A ten-week course covering the music of Serge Prokofiev’s masterpiece Peter and the Wolf and and selections from his ballet Romeo and Juliet.
GUSTAV HOLST’S THE PLANETS
MASTERS OF FILM MUSIC—THE MUSIC OF JOHN WILLIAMS AND BERNARD HERRMANN
MASTERS THROUGH THE CENTURIES
- Bach Air on the G String
- Beethoven Symphony No. 5 (Movt 3)
- Tchaikovsky “Overture” to the Nutcracker Suite
- Rachmaninoff Vocalise
- Prokofiev Symphony No. 5 (Movt 3)
- Stravinsky The Rite of Spring (Dance of the Earth)
LOVE AND NATURE
CHROMATIC HARMONY OF THE ROMANTIC COMPOSERS
MASTERS OF HARMONY AND MODULATION
MUSIC THEORY

CHROMATIC HARMONY of the Romantic Composers
Topics covered include: Chromatic Non-Chord Tones, Modal Borrowing, Dominant 9th Chords, Neapolitan Chords, Augmented Sixth Chords (Italian, German, French), Secondary Augmented Sixth Chords (Tritone Substitution), Modulatory Sequencing, Chromatic Sliding Chords, Chromatic Modulation to Far Reaching Keys.

AURAL SKILLS 101
Topics covered include: Basics and importance of Sol Fegge, Sight Singing, Hearing Intervals, Chord Qualities, Hearing Chord Inversions, Recognizing Meters and Rhythmic Patterns, plus… “Be Your Own Mozart”…a special technique I created to help you practice on your own and excel.