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Composition Master Class: Compose Yourself! Project
March 2 @ 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm
The HB Compose Yourself! Project is Hoff-Barthelson’s annual composition Master Class for young composers, directed by HBMS faculty member Derek Cooper and produced in collaboration with Copland House.
The HB Compose Yourself! Project provides a rare opportunity for students to receive feedback from renowned, award-winning composers on works that they have written. This year’s guest composers are Reiko Füting (pictured) and Alyssa Weinberg, Copland House Fellow.
Master Classes are open to the public to observe free of charge, but reservations are required.
Reiko Füting, born in East Germany in 1970, is a versatile composer, educator, and Dean at Manhattan School of Music. His studies took him to diverse institutions, including Dresden, Houston, New York, and Seoul, under influential mentors like Jörg Herchet and Nils Vigeland.
Reiko joined the Manhattan School of Music’s theory faculty in 2000 and later became Chair of the Theory Department, expanding to the Composition Department and now serving as Dean. His teaching experience spans the globe, from Germany to China, Colombia, Italy, and beyond.
As a composer, Reiko has received numerous accolades and commissions. His works have resonated across Europe, the Americas, and Asia, often with a focus on vocal ensembles and period instruments. His opera on mystic nun Mechthild von Magdeburg premiered in Magdeburg in 2022, and he’s currently Composer-in-Residence at Gesellschaftshaus Magdeburg for the 2023/2024 season.
Dr. Alyssa Weinberg, composer of emotionally charged music, subverts expectations to create surreal, multidisciplinary works.
Notable 2023/24 season premieres include “ISOLA” and “Drift,” exploring themes of time, mental health, motherhood, migration, and climate change. Her acclaimed compositions have been performed worldwide, from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra to innovative ensembles. Weinberg’s inventive use of color and performance techniques, such as “Table Talk,” has garnered global recognition.
As an educator, she imparts her knowledge at esteemed institutions and is the founding director of the Composers Institute at the Lake George Music Festival. Dr. Weinberg holds a PhD in composition from Princeton University, with degrees from Vanderbilt, Manhattan School of Music, and the Curtis Institute of Music.
