Composition Institute

The music of Roshanne Etezady (she/her) music has been described in Fanfare magazine as “fresh, effusive, and immediately likable,” and she has been hailed by the Detroit Free Press as “a promising and confident composer.” Her music combines lyricism with rhythmic intensity and engages performers and audiences alike.

Etezady’s works have been commissioned by the Detroit Symphony, Albany Symphony, eighth blackbird, Music at the Anthology, and the PRISM Saxophone Quartet. She has been a fellow at the Aspen Music Festival, the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival and at the Atlantic Center for the Arts. Performers and ensembles including New Music Detroit, the American Composers’ Orchestra, Rêlache, Ensemble De Ereprijs, and the Dogs of Desire have performed Etezady’s music throughout the world. Her music has earned recognition from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Korean Society of 21st Century Music, the Jacob K. Javits Foundation, Meet the Composer, and ASCAP. Her music appears on the Naxos, innova, Cedille, Blue Griffin, Equilibrium, Summit, and Albany labels.

An enthusiastic educator, Etezady has taught at Northwestern University, University of Arizona, the Crane School of Music, and Interlochen Arts Camp.

Griffin Candey (b. 1988) is a Michigan-born composer whose works have been praised for their “charming and elaborate complexity” and their “lyricism and emotional depth.”

Running the gamut from solo works to art songs to operas to concerti, Candey’s music leans heavily into concepts of memory and place, especially as they intersect with the natural world. Recent collaborations include songs for Mirror Visions Ensemble, a TTBB work for Cantus Vocal Ensemble, solo instrumental works (Kid Gloves for saxophonist Dr. Timothy McAlister, Bury the Hatchet for violinist Dr. Matt Albert,) chamber pieces for NOW Ensemble and Black Moon Trio, and two concerti (Plein Air for viola, and Double Aviary for tenor saxophone.) Upcoming projects include several song collaborations (with Chelsea Helm, Lara Brooks, Ricardo Sepulveda, and Colin Levin,) a larger work for Cantus, a dance piece in collaboration with choreographer Jillian Hopper and New Music Detroit, a few album projects, a chamber opera (Phenomenal Cage) premiering with Boulder Opera Company, and more. Candey’s music has been performed at Tanglewood, Source Song Festival, the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, the TUTTI Festival, and more.

A fierce advocate for new vocal works, Candey served for several years as composer-in-residence with Cleveland Opera Theatre, who premiered his adaptation of Lorca’s The House of Bernarda Alba in June 2022. His first opera, Sweets by Kate, has been produced throughout the U.S. since its premiere in 2016, including at Boston University’s Fringe Fest, Fort Worth Opera’s Frontiers, Marble City Opera, the Ohio State University, and at New York City’s Stonewall Inn. Griffin also works closely with a wide selection of living writers, collaborating with poets like Ada Limón, Kaveh Akbar, Jane Hirshfield, Aiden Feltkamp, Richie Hofmann, Laura Attridge, Hieu Minh Nguyen, ​and Anastasia Pennington-Flax.

Candey earned his DMA at the University of Michigan, studying with Dr. Kristin Kuster, Dr. Evan Chambers, and Dr. Roshanne Etezady. He currently serves on the faculty of Tennessee Tech University as their Assistant Professor of Music Theory and Composition.