Bill Klemm, the first Low-Residency Master of Music student, recently “arrived” at IU South Bend.
Klemm grew up near South Bend, but now lives in Anchorage, Alaska. He has a job in information technology. He also has a passion for composing classical music.
“When I was in kindergarten, I remember a small orchestra visiting our school for an assembly, and one of the kids was put on the podium with the baton and conducted the orchestra,” Klemm said in a press release. “That magic moment with the stick was burned into my core memories.”
Music lessons were beyond his family’s reach though. When he joined school bands, he had his first chance to play real instruments.
“I began to experiment with writing my own musical ideas down, but without any sort of knowledge about music theory, it was a frustrating experience trying to write the sounds I could hear in my head,” Klemm said.
After high school, Klemm enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps as a trombonist.
“I wanted to write more music, but my limited knowledge of the craft kept me in the lane as a performer,” he said.
Klemm eventually studied music at the University of Houston. He found steady work in IT though. His work took him to Alaska, where he also started teaching trombone at the University of Alaska.
Pursuing his composing at IU South Bend may seem implausible, but Klemm is a good fit for the university’s new Low-Residency Master of Music modality. Klemm will be able to continue living in Alaska, while working towards his master’s degree under the direction of Dr. Jorge Muñiz.
Klemm will be responsible for putting in as many hours of writing and editing his pieces as he can manage. He will communicate with Muñiz throughout the process.
For about a week each semester, Klemm will visit South Bend for a more intensive experience. In November, Klemm was on campus to consult with Muñiz and to prepare and conduct a performance of one of his original compositions, played by the IU South Bend Philharmonic. In Spring 2025, Klemm will return to work out the performance details of another composition.
“The flexibility of low residency allows people in my situation to learn and earn an advanced degree,” Klemm said. “I’m finally doing what I’ve postponed for a quarter century.”
