Composition Matters

So, firing the parting shots, as it were, I would like to extend my thanks and appreciation to Drew and each panelist for including me in this conversation. Though I work closely with composers and musicians, I am not a professional in the trenches as you all are, and this has been an enlightening week of ideas that I hope to carry forward in my writing and advocacy work for the new music field.

That said, I bet we all feel anxious to see our talk within these virtual pages bare some fruit on the concert stage, and with that in mind I have been asking myself, “What can I offer to help make that happen?” I suspect that much of the burden at this point is disproportionately on the musicians. Composers can carry a more “we” instead of “me” perspective into their interactions with the orchestra world, but the musicians have the real power in terms of scope within an orchestra’s ecology. My hope, however, is that this dovetails nicely with the expressed desire for more artistic control so that everyone feels they are working in their own best interest as well as on behalf of others’.

For my part, I would like to offer you all the knowledge, access, and connections I can to help link composers with the musicians who want to play their work. I have a uniquely cool job–I talk, write, and think with composers about the music they are writing today for a living. So call me, email me, check in with NewMusicBox when you can. Tell me what you need, and I will do my best to help. And if I don’t know, I will find someone who does.

It’s been a true pleasure to share this space with all of you. Thank you for offering your thoughts so openly and generously. I leave this discussion feeling very optimistic indeed.