John Adams, Leonard Benstein, Elliott Carter, Tom Lehrer, Yo-Yo Ma, Bonnie Raitt, Pete Seeger and Virgil Thomson—all graduates of Harvard who have gone on to influence the world of music. Composition courses, new studios and performance groups like the Harvard Group for New Music support and nurture young composers by providing instruction, mentoring, and opportunities for creators to hear their work. Creativity can be found throughout the music department's offerings: in classes on Adams Operas to Orfeo to the Music of Mali, in collaborations that bring leading musicians like the Silk Road Project or Alfred Brendel to campus to work with small groups of students, or in working one-on-one with faculty to develop unique thesis proposals, research and fieldwork that support students' individual creative vision.

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"Composition and teaching can mutually benefit each other. In order to teach
in a deep way, which I always try to do,
you have to see the score almost
as if it was a person."

--Chaya Czernowin, Walter Bigelow Rosen Professor

39-speaker HYDRA sound diffusion system.