Hello!
Brandon Scott Rumsey (they/them) is a queer, nonbinary multidisciplinary artist and teacher based in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Their original music, characterized by its distinctive harmonic palette and Brandon’s imaginative orchestration, has been enjoyed in theaters and concert venues worldwide since 2008. Brandon’s catalog includes dozens of works for soloists, chamber ensembles, voices, and large ensembles commissioned by performers and ensembles of international acclaim.
Brandon has taught graduate and undergraduate courses in music theory, composition, and performance studies at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance (Ann Arbor, MI) and Madonna University (Livonia, MI). From 2016 to 2021, Brandon taught in Detroit, Chicago, Haiti, and virtually with the Trade Wind Ensemble. Passionate about teaching and mentoring other composers, they have taught composition, songwriting, and orchestration privately since 2013.
Beyond their musical pursuits, Brandon explores the inherent beauty of the human body and promotes the destigmatization of queer sexuality through their writing and photography. Once a hobby, Brandon is also a fiber artist who has knit professionally for well-respected designers, writes knitting and crochet patterns, and teaches classes in knitting and crochet.
Brandon holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Composition, with cognates in Music Theory, Musicology, and Bassoon Performance, and a Graduate Certificate in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Studies from the University of Michigan. They hold master’s and bachelor’s degrees in Composition from The University of Texas at Austin and the University of Oregon, respectively.
Brandon’s influential teachers include Evan Chambers, Kristin Kuster, Dean Hubbs, Jeffrey Lyman, Gabriela Cruz, Kristin Wolfe Jensen, Robert Hatten, Steve Vacchi, and Idit Shner. Brandon credits their instructors from Lane Community College, Hisao Watanabe, Barbara Myrick, Matthew Svoboda, and Ron Bertucci, high school band director Dr. Wesley McKenzie, middle school band directors Cindy Craft and Patricia Hudson, and their first piano teacher, Betty Jane Cummins for nurturing their earliest impulses to be noisy.
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