by Jason Smith

Pin everything down. Then let it fly.

llen Anderson has something to give you—something personal.

“I want my music to be received,” he says. “I don’t want it to be left onstage. I’m trying to send it out to the individual listener as something personal, and I hope it’s received that way.”

Just don’t expect to be lulled to sleep. Anderson doesn’t write background music.

“I like a certain amount of guts to my music,” explains the composer and associate professor of composition. “I want the listener to grab the side of his seat, to confront the piece in some way. There’s this thing going on—pay attention to it!”

Next: "that's what the regime says."
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