In this brief video Philip DiTulio explains why the Schillinger System of music composition can make a dramatic difference for you.
Discover how to:
Our Free Registration entitles you to weekly notices of upcoming free lectures and participation in the Schillinger Community.
Phil DiTullio is a graduate of Northeastern University, alumnus of Berklee College of Music and a master of the Schillinger System.
He is the only teacher of the authentic Schillinger System.

The power of The Schillinger System of Music Composition was lost until it was re-assimilated by the Schillinger Society. The system essentially teaches the student the mathematical and stylistic techniques necessary to compose. The Schillinger System is a group of technical disciplines which enable the student to compose and arrange any conceivable type of music, with any desirable degree of originality and proficiency. See Joseph Schillinger's "Mathematical Basis of Music".
Our current members are learning how Schillinger's ideas are trail blazing new roads in all genres of music. Joseph Schillinger was one of the first pioneers of electronic music.
This method of composition is based in visualization and graphing, making it a seamless transition into your present Digital Audio Workstation.
Joining the Schillinger Society will give you access to the Reading Room where you can read Schillinger's master work, The Mathematical Basis of the Arts, and many other historic and technical articles that have been published over the years.
As someone who’s known about the system for over 25 years and struggled to make effective use of it, the class has been a musical game-changer. It’s a place to pick the brains of fellow travelers and get the clarity and answers I need to make progress.The Schillinger System is not a replacement for musical intuition and creativity. It’s a way to focus and channel the knowledge and ability you already have. It’s a musical toolkit to generate and organize the raw stuff of music: rhythm, melody, harmony,counterpoint, orchestration, in ways that transcend the boundaries and methods of traditional music education and styles. Use it to compose, arrange, or improvise, the only limits are your own imagination.
Frank Pergolizzi, Connecticut
Attending the Speaking Schillinger classes has had a very positive effect on the way I appreciate music. The techniques I have learned are offering me fresh insights into the way I approach improvisation,composition & arranging. Something that I lacked, even after many years of personal study. Classes are always enjoyable and informative. I will continue to study this highly underrated system of composition. Thanks to Phil and Lou! Great Teachers!
Rob Jones – England
It has only been about a month or so that I have been studying the system, and I can honestly say I am now a better and far more confident composer. I have been a student of music for at least forty-five years and it is mind boggling that this system has had so much contempt prior to investigation. After just a short time with this gift, you will begin to hear Schillinger concepts in many time tested compositions.
Frank Bozak , New York
I'd heard Schillinger mentioned while I attended the Berklee College of Music in the 70's, but only in hushed tones, as if he were an eccentric uncle no-one really like to talk about at family gatherings.Later on a friends father, who was a mathematician at IBM,loaned me a book with the daunting title of 'The Mathematical Basis of the Arts.' Years of staring blankly at the obtuse formulas and tables of permutations contained in the book led me to conclude I was just not ready for this grand unified theory of art. One year ago I noticed a group page about Schillinger on Facebook. I saw they had a free Thursday night online class so I signed up and sat in. Remembering little about Schillinger from my days at Berklee and poking at MathBart I was full of questions and intrigued with howI might apply Schillinger to my electro-acoustic compositions. Hooked,I began to study with Phil - learning about density groups, the theory of rhythm and melodic analysis. The great thing about Schillinger is that you can start to use it from the get go. In the past year I've used it to create a performance frame work for my emergent content workshop, a couple of percussion pieces, anedit decision list for a short film and structures my electro-acoustic compositions. I've always seen music as a branch of mathematics so the Schillinger System gives me a perfect set of tools with which to compose and organize music as I naturally understand it.
Kim Cascone, California
The Schillinger System of Musical Composition has given me a new way of seeing and understanding music. It’s a detailed, meticulous and complete system that gives a lot of tools (solutions) to face the mental blockings when writing a musical piece. The integral and scientific way of approaching music gives clarity and calmness, besides, the support and mentoring that is provided during the course makes you feel assertive and stimulated for continuous learning and composing.
Rodrigo Herrera, Santiago, Chile
After a very short acclimation period however, I realized working with the Schillinger Society lets you get very, very interesting results without studying for ages! I was floored by how quickly I was able to work with rhythms in interesting time signatures as a result of just scratching the surface of this system. That phrase is overused in my opinion, but I use it here without question that it is appropriate. I've intended to expand my options as far as being able to come of with rhythms in less common time
Balie Todd, Tennessee
“For years I have painstakingly developed my rhythm vocabulary by emulating and deciphering music from different cultures. By a lucky series of circumstances, I had the pleasure of discussing the Schillinger Society courses with Philip and Teresa DiTullio during their visit to Montreal and signed up for the Rhythm Engineering Course the following week. The following months saw my knowledge of rhythm families literally explode,influencing my work in ways I could not imagine, juggling with counterpoint and poly-rhythms as I never had before. This course has opened my mind and my ears to compositional capabilities I could only barely imagine. It has helped me get fleeting ideas down on paper with speed, as I now have a hands-on knowledge of how rhythms are related and interact between the different sound generators. Schillinger had the genius to teach music through the interaction and permutation of two fundamental denominators:pulse and pitch. I have always believed that any theory worth its salt should open doors onto new possibilities. Schillinger kicks the doors open and points to the Universe as playground to those who will have the imagination to do so.” Christopher has composed music for bands and ensembles, most recently as leader for The Crucible Electric Chamber Ensemble. His music has graced film, theatre, recordings and live radio.
Christopher Cousineau, Longueuil Canada
We are proud to announce! The extraordinary jazz pianist, Hal Galper has endorsed The Schillinger Society and the Practical Schillinger on his website. Visit him here
Hal Galper
As a former student of Joseph Schillinger’s, I am delighted to see the Schillinger Society beginning again to perpetuate his work”Theatre organist, composer and former student of the late Joseph Schillinger
Miss Rosa Rio
The work of Joseph Schillinger positions himself as one of a small handful of important music composition theorists of the twentieth century. Many of the seminal ideas in computer music are indebted to the Schillinger’s writings, although few theorists are aware of it. Schillinger and his ideas are not well known to musicians today. It is a great pleasure to me to see an effort by the wide audience of musicians. Phil DiTullio and the Society are to be commended for their efforts. Mr. Cohen studied composition with John Cage, Ernst Levy, Alan Kemler. He studied harpsichord and early music performance with John Gibbons. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
Lou Cohen
It is great to see that Schillinger's fascinating system is being kept alive. I look forward to learning more from others who have been influenced by his theories.
Bob James