Compositiona

Compositiona is a term used in some scholarly texts to denote the study and practice of how discrete parts come together to form a coherent whole across disciplines such as music, literature, visual arts, and software design. It is not an established field with a single consensus definition, and its usage varies among authors.

The word appears to be a neo-Latin formation derived from the idea of composition, with the termination -a used to form a substantive noun. Because it is not standardized, there is no universally accepted syllabus or methodology associated with compositiona.

In practice, proponents describe compositiona as a set of guiding principles that promote cohesion and intelligibility. In music, it may concern the arrangement of melodies, harmonies, and rhythm to create unity; in visual arts, the placement and relationship of forms; in literature, the organization of plots and narrative voice; and in software design, the composition of objects and modules to build robust systems.

Some critics view compositiona as overlapping with established terms such as composition, compositionality, or design theory, while others use it as an umbrella for cross-disciplinary discussion. Due to its informal status, references to compositiona should be evaluated in context to avoid ambiguity.

Related concepts include composition, compositionality, layout design, and system design principles.