Kristin Kuster

Biography

Kuster was born Kristin Peterson in Raleigh, North Carolina and grew up in Boulder, Colorado. She received her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Michigan, where she studied with William Bolcom, Michael Daugherty, Evan Chambers, and William Albright. She was awarded the Charles Ives Fellowship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the Underwood Emerging Composer Commission from American Composers Orchestra. Kuster is an Associate Professor of Composition at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance. She lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She was married to Andrew Kuster from 1997 to 2011.

Style

Kuster "writes commandingly for the orchestra," and her music "has an invitingly tart edge" (The New York Times). Kuster's colorfully enthralling compositions take inspiration from architectural space, the weather, and mythology. Her orchestral music "unquestionably demonstrates her expertise in crafting unique timbres" (Steve Smith, Night after Night).

Works

Orchestra and orchestra with voices

Opera and musical theatre

Wind ensemble

Chamber ensemble

Vocal ensemble

Vocal solo