By:Ashton Newton Entertainment Editor
Western hosted the 13th annual Composers Workshop with guest speaker Dave Metzger on April 28. Metzger is an award winning composer and orchestrator who has worked on feature films such as “Frozen,” “Moana,” “The Avengers” and “X-Men: First Class.” He also orchestrated the music for the “Lion King” broadway musical.
Originally from Corvallis, Metzger found his passion for music at a very young age. In middle school, he began writing music and, after seeing “Star Wars” in 1977, decided that he wanted to become a composer. 
Metzger started the workshop by talking about how he entered the entertainment industry. He made a point to note that his success partly came from the friends that he made in the industry.
“I can trace my entire professional career back to one trombone player in college,” joked Metzger.
With a room packed full of student and non-student guests alike, many of whom were in Western’s film composing class, Metzger’s expertise on the subject was met with many questions and a great amount of enthusiasm. Members of the audience asked questions about his connections in the industry and what it was like working with different composers.
One member of the participants asked if working for months at a time in New York and Los Angeles was tough on his family. Metzger made a point that living in Oregon has definitely helped his family life, but on projects like “Lion King” where he’s gone for six months, it can be difficult.
The most recent project that Metzger worked on was “Moana,” so he brought in a sample of the song “We Know the Way” and talked about working alongside Lin-Manuel Miranda to compose it, recounting the experience as a positive one.
Questions from the audience then shifted toward the technical side of composing. Metzger brought in pictures of his setup from home and gave recommendations on equipment and software to buy. Metzger mainly works on film scores from home, video chatting with colleagues in other parts of the country, so having up to date technology and an efficient workspace is important.
Many participants asked about their specific equipment and how to better their setups, especially while being on a college budget. Metzger gave advice on the best equipment and software to buy for maximum efficiency while composing.
Metzger ended the talk with some stories from working on “Frozen.” He first joined the project when he had a single day to create a mockup for the song “For the First Time in Forever” using only the rough draft animation. Impressed by his work, Disney offered him the job to work on every song in the film.
Western’s Composers Workshop offered a great look into the life of a composer and gave guests and students a plethora of tips and inspiration.
Contact the author at journalentertainment@wou.edu
