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Peter Meyer and his Solo Composition Debut

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at DePauw chapter.

Peter Meyer, a Junior DePauw music student recently beat his way into percussion history, composing and performing an original piece on the all new electronic ‘wave drum’ at his solo winter term project recital.
 
To create one of the first pieces ever made for the unique instrument, Peter Meyer collaborated with famous Swedish percussionist, Anders Astrand and one of the founders of the Percussive Arts Society, James Sewrey.
 
“When we got together it turned into a jam session,” Meyer said of their relationship, “there was this constant motion of inspiration between each other.”
 
The wave drum is a new piece of electronic percussion equipment that uses the vibration of impact with a drumstick to create its sound. Meyers said his challenge was figuring out how to incorporate the electronic instrument while still sounding natural.
 
Dr. Pare, Meyer’s advisor on the four-week project says that it was mission accomplished. “Bringing an original piece to fruition is, for any composer, a rewarding experience in seeing and hearing their personal creation come to life.  I am very proud of Peter.”
 
Meyer decided to go home to Wisconsin during winter term to really focus on this project. He set up a schedule and kept a daily journal. “You can really tell that he stayed disciplined,” Jenna Bauer, a school of music peer said of Meyer, “it takes a lot to come up with something that intricate in such a short period of time.”
 
Pare also commented on Meyer’s focus, saying that the amount of experimentation Peter put into the piece helped refine his abundance of compositional ideas.
 
“I’m a big jazz guy,” Meyer said of his taste in music, “and the wave drum allowed me to stay structured while still having the ability to branch out a bit.”
 
There were 79 people in attendance at his recital in late February. Bauer doesn’t remember seeing so many people at one recital in all of her four years at DePauw.
 
“In a way I found myself through this music,” Meyer’s said of his successful performance, “this is really just my voice.”

Katie Tangri is a senior at DePauw University, class of 2011, studying Communication and Sociology. She is a member of the Alpha chapter of Kappa Alpha Theta, a speaking and listening consultant and the Vice President of Program for Panhellenic Council. Her interests include shopping, baking and reading. She hopes to get a job at a non-profit organization upon graduation.