Society Track: William Ryan, Grand Valley State University, Music, Theatre and Dance: “Contact Light: A Music Composition Celebrating Space"

The composer will discuss his composition Contact Light, a work inspired by space and its exploration. The entire composition process will be presented, from touring Houston’s Johnson Space Center, to combing through hours of NASA transmissions, to rehearsals and finally the premiere performance. Contact Light was commissioned by the Karen Stokes Dance Company in 2016 for their DEEP: Seaspace project, and scored for violin, bass clarinet, two marimbas, piano, and electronics.