November 5th, 2021 (Ann Arbor, MI) — Composer Michael Kropf spoke with the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra ahead of their performance of his work High Spirits at Hill Auditorium on November 12, 2021. Kropf’s composition joins Schumann’s Adventlied (‘Advent Song’) and Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition on the program, as conductor Jacob Joyce leads a first-rate cast of soloists and the combined forces of the A2SO and the UMS Choral Union.
Michael Kropf is a Connecticut-born composer who earned his Bachelor’s of Music from New York University, and his Master’s in Composition from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. He is currently working toward his doctoral degree in composition from the University of Michigan. His works have earned him first prizes in competitions such as the Highsmith Orchestral Composition Competition, the Bienial Art Song Composition Competition, and the Telegraph Quartet Composition Competition. He has worked with Marin Alsop, the Telegraph Quartet, the San Francisco Conservatory Orchestra, and the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble, and has composed for the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music.
Michael shared his thoughts on his featured work High Spirits, his composition process, and what he hopes the audience will experience at the upcoming concert:
In what ways does High Spirits articulate your vision as a composer?
I think that at the time I was writing High Spirits, I was curious about the different ways of making music sound “new.” One approach to “new music” is to create and imagine increasingly unusual and novel sounds, which some composers are very good at! For me, I was interested in a “less-is-more” approach: making smaller changes to more familiar styles of music that I love. Music is amazing in that the smallest details can have a huge impact. That’s why the piece begins in 11/8, with 11 beats in each measure. It’s 1 beat away from being a very familiar scherzo rhythm that you might hear in many styles of music, but that missing beat makes a big off-kilter kind of difference. I’d just moved to San Francisco when creating the piece, and I was really taken with the energy and vast vistas of the Bay Area. I think the piece is a snapshot of that point in time, when anything seemed possible.
How has your compositional approach developed over time?
When I arrived at the University of Michigan, I began studying with Prof. Kristin Kuster. One of the most helpful lessons Prof. Kuster taught me was how to be less “fussy” with my notation, and over time, I’ve realized the value in trying to express what I need to express with the clearest and most easily legible way. More simplicity can leave room for the musicians to add their interpretation to the music, which I find one of the most exciting and fun elements of creating music this way!
Has the pandemic affected your writing style, and if so in what ways?
I think the pandemic has helped me clarify the parts of music that I most enjoy, partially because it was easy to recognize what I missed the most when live music was taken away. I’ve become more simple and direct in my writing, partially because I’ve realized that, in a live experience, even a single beautiful note is enough for me. When I attended the Ann Arbor Symphony’s opening concert this year, it was the first time I’d attended a live orchestra concert since the pandemic began. When the orchestra performed Brahms’ second symphony, I kind of just sat there with my eyes closed for 40+ minutes and let the sounds of the orchestra wash over me. Something about being away from that kind of experience for such a long time has really highlighted the importance of the kind of subconscious and experiential sides of music; composers spend so much time engaging with the technical and the conceptual parts of what they’re doing, but there is something about being in a room with live musicians that is special in a way that is difficult to express.
What do you hope the audience will take away from High Spirits?
I hope that they come away from the performance feeling like they’ve had a shared experience that connects them, me, and the musicians. It is an honor for me to be included on this wonderful symphony’s 1st season returning to live music; I know that I’ve missed it.