Not one to mince words, College of Music alumnus gets right to the point: 鈥淚 want music to have a purpose,鈥� he says. But finding his purpose didn鈥檛 come right away.听
Fixmer earned a bachelor鈥檚 degree in music education in 2010 and went straight into teaching. Which was fine. Still, he admits, 鈥淚鈥檇 been composing my whole life. I was always noodling on some sort of piece.
鈥淔ive years ago, my mom showed my wife [alumna Sarah Off] and me a song I鈥檇 written many years ago. I guess I鈥檝e always been a composer.鈥�
But first things first: With an undergrad diploma from 麻豆免费版下载Boulder in hand, he spent a decade teaching in small Colorado towns such as Hotchkiss and Rifle, also serving as a counselor at the YMCA of the Rockies. Along the way, he earned a master鈥檚 in music education from Indiana University. Truth be told, Fixmer got his biggest kick out of time spent in Hotchkiss, population 875.
鈥淚 put together a little 8th-grade jazz band,鈥� he reminisces, somehow managing to keep a straight face as he listed the instrumentation: 鈥淲e had two tubas, a bass clarinet and drums. I played piano and there were some other instruments. But the best part was, they played my compositions.鈥�
Are we starting to see a pattern here? Fixmer, 35, recalls that, yes, while pursuing his degree at our College of Music, he studied composition and theory with noted Professor of Composition Carter Pann. Even as he pursued his graduate degree in music education and found work in the classroom, life as a composer continued to beckon. 鈥淚 was always going through textbooks on composing,鈥� says Fixmer, exemplifying the college鈥檚 universal musician mission. 鈥淚 wanted to expand my vocabulary.鈥�
And so it came to pass, in a big and meaningful way. Fixmer not only found life as a composer, but he found a way of writing music with a purpose. 鈥淚鈥檓 not sure I鈥檇 ever want to write a piece of absolute music,鈥� he admits, referring to a composition that is simply a collection of melodies with no storyline or subtext. Instead, Fixmer creates for a reason.
Consider his Violin Concerto, premiered by the Greeley Philharmonic in September 2022鈥攊n partnership with the Greeley Family House and other homelessness assistance organizations to increase support for the unhoused. This work has such an extraordinary backstory that it deserves a movie treatment. Off performed the premiere on an instrument once owned by Terri Sternberg鈥攁n accomplished musician who had fallen on hard times, became homeless and died in 2013. Learning her story propelled Fixmer to create a heartfelt concerto that generated critical raves, a radio broadcast on and eventually helped bring attention to the cause of homelessness as far away as London and Paris.听听
His deep concern about people goes beyond writing a thoughtful piece of music, he stresses. 鈥淚n Greeley, I鈥檓 on a homelessness task force. That鈥檚 part of my desire in identifying topics to write about鈥攐nes that focus on human connections.鈥澨�
Those connections now include some of Fixmer鈥檚 neighbors in Northern Colorado. Recently, another of his orchestral works was premiered by the Greeley Philharmonic where he now serves as composer-in-residence and where he鈥檚 created an impactful education outreach program. His 鈥溾�濃�攃ommissioned by the Greeley Philharmonic and the Weld Community Foundation鈥攚as unveiled in October at the Union Colony Civic Center. 鈥淚t鈥檚 for the people of Weld County,鈥� he says, 鈥渢o describe the experience of living here, of what brings people to this county.鈥�
There鈥檚 not enough space to cover all that the JW Pepper Editor鈥檚 Choice Award recipient has to offer. No space to discuss his children鈥檚 Spanish-language opera, 鈥淐lara y los Cuarto Caminos鈥� (鈥淐lara and the Four Ways鈥�). Nor to get around to his side career in a guitar-fiddle duo with his wife, appearing at folk festivals playing bluegrass and traditional foot-tapping Irish tunes. No time to write about a commissioned work aimed at increasing interest in mental illness.听
Once again, Fixmer鈥攚ith recent commissions and premieres under his belt from UC Health, Opera Guanajuato and the Crested Butte Music Festival, among others鈥攄oesn鈥檛 mince words. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to be typecast,鈥� he says.
