Episode 101

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Published on:

28th Apr 2026

3.12 Evan VanDoren

Evan VanDoren is an in-demand music composer regularly commissioned to create engaging & award-winning music for marching bands and concert ensembles at all skill levels. Evan’s music is regularly performed around the country, including premiere performances at the Texas Music Educators Association Convention and the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic. In 2025, Evan was recognized as a National Finalist for The American Prize in Composition for his works, Luminosities & Prophetic Dances.

Evan serves as the brass composer & arranger for the Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps, based in Santa Clara, California. Additionally, Evan is an active clinician and has presented for Drum Corps International, the Music Educators National Convention, the Texas Bandmasters Association, the Texas Music Educators Association, and Music for All. He regularly consults with music programs nationwide.

Before devoting his life to creating music, Evan was a band director at Cedar Park High School in Cedar Park, Texas. During that time, the band was awarded multiple marching state championships and national recognition. He received a Bachelor's in Music Education with Honors from Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana. Currently, he lives in Cedar Park, Texas, with his wife, Katie, daughters Anna & Sara, and their dog, Cooper.

https://www.evanvandoren.com

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About the Podcast

Composer Chats
Composer Chat is a podcast where we talk a little bit about music, a little bit about life, and a whole lot about whatever we feel like at the moment! Each episode I am joined by a special guest composer and we will chat about their pathway towards success in their musical career!

About your host

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Jason Nitsch

Jason Nitsch’s music is equally at home on the concert stage, in outdoor venues, and streaming online, reaching the broadest audience of musicians, performers, and music enthusiasts possible. As a composer dedicated to the exploration of new ideas, his music has evolved over a 25-year career to incorporate more and more non-traditional elements, such as effect tracks, sound drops, and enveloping electroacoustic works combining live and pre-recorded elements. Much of his work is rooted in a large ensemble context; his wind ensemble works have received thousands of performances throughout the US including at Midwest, State Music Conferences including Texas, Colorado, and Kentucky Music Educators Associations, Colleges and Universities like Baylor University, the University of North Texas, and Syracuse University, and at other regional music festivals (ITEA).

In recent years Jason has focused on more intimate chamber musical settings, including collaborations with solo musicians such as trumpeter Kate Amrine , Cellist Carolyn Regula (The Cello Doll) and vocalist Michaela Catapano, as well as chamber groups across the US (Chicago Brass Choir), while continuing expand his sizable catalog of works for larger instrumental forces.

Jason is well known for his work as an educator, dedicated to providing young promising musicians with the foundational experiences on which a lifetime of music-making can be built, and is pursuing research into the ways that music students process their experiences as learners and performers.

Combining his long career in music with a deep love of science fiction and a natural talent for storytelling, Jason recently launched his first podcast, “Beyond the Belt: Adventures from the Outer Rim.” “Beyond the Belt” is a collection of 8 original dramatic science fiction episodes for which he served as writer, producer, and composer. It tells the story of a scientific research experiment gone horribly wrong. With Zombies (of course!).

Jason has released three digital albums in recent years, including the Season One Soundtrack from the Beyond the Belt podcast, “1000 Steps to Nowhere", a collection of chamber music compositions, and most recently “The Dead Teach the Living,” featuring nine vocal collaborations ranging from solo works to Orchestral compositions.

Jason is a lover of dogs, video games, and all things Star Wars (yes, even the prequels). He is also a husband, father of two budding musicians, and a patron of art forms that stretch traditional boundaries.

He currently lives in Waxhachie, TX with his family. He can occasionally be sighted lurking at select music conferences.