Orchestrating the 21st Century: Composer & Poet Workshop

Led by Grammy-nominated composer Christopher Theofanidis, poet and librettist Melissa Studdard, and Albany Symphony Music Director David Alan Miller, this intensive residency brings together emerging composers and poets for a week of artistic exploration during the Albany Symphony's American Music Festival. Participants engage in masterclasses, score and text study, professional development sessions, rehearsals, performances, and collaborative creative work with faculty and guest artists. Composers and poets work together to develop new pieces that explore the relationship between music, language, song, and spoken word. The residency culminates in the First Draughts Reading Session, where newly created works are performed and professionally recorded by Albany Symphony musicians, providing participants with valuable artistic feedback and a high-quality archival recording.