– The lead commissioner(s) recruit members. Each member pays their part of the commission fee, to the lead commissioner.

– The maximum number of members is reached (by a pre-determined deadline) and half of the commission fee is paid to the composer. The other half is held by the lead commissioner.

– The final piece is delivered on or before the final deadline and the last half of the commission fee is paid to the composer.

With a regular one-person/ensemble commission, half of the commission fee is due upon signing the agreement and second half is due once the piece is delivered. However, I’ve done things a few different ways with consortium commissions. I’ve found that the best way to do this is to set the first payment deadline to coincide with the deadline for new consortium members to join. The final payment and delivery deadline is the same as a standard commission. Lastly, getting the full portion of each member’s fee to the lead commissioner when they join saves a lot of headache down the road. That way, you’re not trying to get a second payment from each person when the final deadline approaches.

Typically, the lead commissioner has exclusive rights to the official world premiere and consortium members have exclusive rights to perform the piece for one year after the premiere date. In most consortiums that I’ve been a part of, the lead commissioner chips in a larger amount of money than the members. (Typically 2 or 3X the amount of the other members) Aside from world premiere rights, the lead commissioner is listed as such in the score and his or her name is at the top of the list of commissioners.

I like keeping performers involved in the composition process. Maintaining a private blog for commissions has proven to be very effective. Here’s a link to one I maintained for a consortium commission a few years ago. In addition to keeping consortium members engaged during the composition process, it’s a great way for me pose questions about extended techniques, notation, etc and quickly get a variety of perspectives.