Karl Stefans (b. 1995) holds a Master’s degree in Music Composition from Arizona State University, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Tuba Performance from Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

 

He began studying composition as an undergraduate in 2015 with Mark Petering. Since then, Karl has studied with James DeMars, Rodney Rogers, Kotoka Suzuki, and Alex Temple. His music has received international performances in Hungary, Slovenia, Italy, and Austria as well as numerous performances within the United States. One of his most recent projects was a work for chamber choir and percussion ensemble based on a text from Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet.

 

Inspiration for Karl’s music often comes from poetry, visual art, nature, and human emotion. He is interested in using music to create narratives which serve to reflect on the human experience. Influenced by his background as a metal guitarist and composer, his musical style involves the use of rich, extended harmonies, and the interplay of large and small-scale rhythmic and metric patterns. Often starkly impassioned in presentation, his music expresses a longing for and struggling toward peace, stability, and unity.   

 

Stefans has a great interest in creating music which provides opportunities for musicians of all backgrounds to work and perform together. He believes that music’s most valuable function is its ability to unite creators, performers, and listeners through shared experience.