At the end of a performance, 
an 
audience’s 
applause 
is 
usually 
directed 
toward 
the 
performers 
on 
stage. 
Often times audiences aren’t 
thinking, 
however, 
of 
the 
individuals behind the scenes: 
the composers. The Student 
Composers’ Concert at the 
School of Music, Theatre & 
Dance aims to do the opposite, 
by showing off new works from 
different student composers at 
the University.
This will be the second of five 
different composer showcases 
put on by the Composition 
Department this school year. 
Each concert features new 
works from various students in 
the Composition Department, 
each one different from the 
last. Douglas Hertz, a second-
year Master’s student in SMTD 
said “every single concert is a 
whole new experience.”
With 
an 
abundance 
of 
concerts at the music school, 
there’s usually some sort of 
central theme or consistent 
type of instrumentation. These 
recitals, however, differ from 
these as they contain pieces 
of varying themes and with 
a wide variety of different 
instrumentations.
“Everyone is exploring new 
styles all the time,” Hertz said. 
“It’s kind of hard to stylistically 
pigeonhole any of the concerts, 
or any of the composers for that 
matter.” Often, composers use 
these concerts to show off new 
works they’ve been writing.
SMTD is known throughout 
the world for its distinguished 
composition 
program. 
Graduates of the program have 
had works played by countless 
major 
symphony 
orchestras 
and have won awards from 
major organizations, including 
several Grammys. However, 
even with all of this legacy, 
the department is constantly 
exploring different ways to 

create new music.
The relationship between 
composer and performer is 
especially strong at the School 
of Music. With many strong 
departments 
of 
performers 
at their disposal, composers 
often take advantage of the 
notoriously 
talented players 
at the School of 
Music — and the 
relationship 
is 
mutual.
“People seem 
to really respect 
and 
appreciate 
composers 
and 
new music in a 
way 
that 
feels 
really 
genuine 
and 
inspiring,” 
Hertz said. “And 
I 
think 
that’s 
part of the lifeblood of being a 
composer here, is that you have 
such collaborative enterprises 
with instrumentalists, in a way 
that might not exist at other 
schools.”
Seeing this collaboration is a 

really unique experience, and 
it’s something that often leads 
to some truly magical moments. 
The school is proud to be a 
promoter of fresh music, and 
these collaborations between 
composer and performer are 
no better example of that. 
The School of 
Music, 
among 
other things, is 
known 
for 
its 
promotion 
of 
new music, and 
the Composition 
Department is at 
the forefront of 
this movement. 
Hertz said that 
performers 
are 
“hungry for new 
music,” and the 
Composition 
Department 
is 
happy to deliver.
The program consists of a 
diverse group of pieces, written 
over an expansive period of 
time.
“We 
don’t 
limit 
when 
the piece has to have been 

composed,” 
Hertz 
said. 
“However, 
they 
have 
to 
be shared with their [the 
composer’s] studio teacher… so 
sometimes people will put on 
a piece from a few years back; 
pieces that they might have 
revised and are premiering 
a new interaction — it’s very 
open.”
For composers, hearing their 
work realized can be an even 
more incredible experience. 
Hearing a digital recording 
of 
their 
piece 
performed 
by 
electronic, 
or 
MIDI, 
instruments can only do so 
much.
“MIDI only goes so far,” 
Hertz said. “It takes live 
performers to really take a 
piece to that next level.”
The 
Student 
Composers’ 
Concert is an opportunity to 
see new music be realized. It’s 
a transformative experience 
for composers and audiences 
alike. 
Hearing 
performers 
put expression into different 
composers’ work is an amazing 
experience.

Fall 2018 — 5E
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Legends King Crimson 

play Michigan Theater

I don’t think King Crimson 
has ever been a band that’s 
influenced by the times, as 
in, I think it’s its own thing. I 
don’t think it’s trying to follow 
anybody else or trying to do 
something that fits in,” said 
Jeremy Stacey, one of King 
Crimson’s three drummers, in 
an interview with The Daily. 
“It’s its own beast, as it were.”
Jumping in early on the 
progressive 
rock 
movement 
of the ‘70s, King Crimson was 
formed in London in 1968. 
Currently an eight-piece lineup, 
2017’s King Crimson includes 
founding 
member 
Robert 
Fripp (guitarist, composer and 
producer), Tony Levin (bass), 
Jakko Jakszyk (vocals, guitar), 
Mel Collins (flute, saxophone), 
Gavin 
Harrison 
(drummer, 
multi-instrumentalist), 
Pat 
Mastelotto 
(drummer, 
multi-instrumentalist), 
Bill 
Rieflin 
(drummer, 
multi-
instrumentalist) and Stacey.
In ‘69, they opened for The 
Rolling Stones in London. In 
the ‘80s, they toured under a 
different name (“Discipline”) 
after a brief disbanding. Now, 
King Crimson is coming to the 
Michigan Theater in the final 
leg of their North American Fall 
Tour.
King Crimson is, and always 
has 
been, 
a 
collection 
of 
incredibly impressive musicians: 
Fripp played guitar on David 
Bowie’s “Heroes,” (a tune which 
the group covered in Berlin in 
2016). Bassist Tony Levin has 
played with the likes of Peter 
Gabriel and Paul Simon. Stacey, 
who joined the group in 2016, 
has worked with an unbelievable 
diversity of artists, including 
Noel Gallagher, Eurythmics and 
Joe Cocker.
“[King Crimson is] the most 
different thing I’ve ever done,” 

Stacey noted, most likening his 
experiences with the band to 
working with jazz in his 20s.
“I was always doing lots of 
things with lots of different 
people. I think the thing about 
jazz is that you improvise,” he 
said. “To improvise, you have 
to understand how the form 
of the piece goes, otherwise 
you get lost. It was very good 
for listening, which I think is 
the most important thing [as a 
musician].”
Unconstrained in his work, 
Stacey is the epitome of King 
Crimson’s charm: A bit nostalgic, 
a bit novel and just restless 
enough to be fearless.
“For me, my whole life has 
been musical,” Stacey explained. 
“I always feel like I’m on a 
journey. I’m very interested 
in doing extremely different 
things, and the more extremely 
different, the better… I don’t 
want to be typecast in any way.”
A fan of the simpler tracks, 
Stacey’s favorite song to play live 
is “Starless,” from the group’s 
1974 album Red.
“It’s one of my favorite pieces 
by King Crimson. I also get to 
play drums and keyboard [on it],” 
Stacey said. “There’s a freedom 
to playing whatever I feel on the 
night. I think (it’s) my favorite 
moment of the gig, normally.”
This 
autonomy 
Stacey 
mentions is laced throughout 
King Crimson’s work: Each 
piece is malleable to the group’s 
interpretation.
“I feel that I’m involved in 
it more than I’ve been in other 
projects,” Stacey said. “It’s not 
like doing a job. There is input, 
and it’s a very in the moment 
form of input on stage … I can’t 
compare it to anything.”
The 
experience 
often 
transcends description.

ARYA NAIDU
Senior Arts Editor

SMTD’s ‘Student Composer Showcase’ debuts

RYAN COX
Daily Arts Writer

It’s a 
transformative 
experience for 
composers and 
audiences alike.

Read more at 
MichiganDaily.com