Midwest Composers' Symposium this weekend

This weekend, Oberlin will host the fiftieth annual Midwest Composers' Symposium. The Symposium was established in 1947 by Northwestern University; it originally comprised a consortium of six schools, including Indiana University, the University of Illinois, the University of Iowa, the University of Michigan, and Oberlin as well as Northwestern.

While Northwestern is no longer a member school, the symposium has been held every year since, with a different institution hosting each year.

Music by composition students at each of the represented institutions will be performed at the four concerts scheduled for Friday and Saturday. Friday's concert will feature large ensemble pieces performed by the Oberlin Contemporary Music Ensemble and the Oberlin College Choir.

The concert will include a work for choir and two marimbas by junior composition major Bill Stevens, and a composition for piano and small orchestra by senior composition major Erik Spangler, in addition to works by students from Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, and Michigan.

There will be three concerts of small-ensemble music on Saturday, featuring music by senior composition major Andrew Shapiro, junior composition major Pushkar (Riccardo Carlotto), sophomore composition major Yvan Greenberg, senior TIMARA major Ray Sweeten, and sophomore composition major Ruo Huang.

These concerts will begin at 10 a.m., 3:30 p.m., and 8 p.m. All Saturday concerts will take place in Warner Concert Hall in the Conservatory. There will also be an informal discussion at 1:30 p.m. in Talcott lounge.