Bio:

Sawyer Gage (b. 1998) is a composer, music educator, and coffee enthusiast based in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. His works cover a variety of ensembles from solo, to chamber ensembles, and wind ensemble. He is influenced by a variety of composers such as Debussy and Joseph Schwantner, and inspired by the stories he reads, the art he enjoys, and their power to transport a person to a wide range of places, both real and imagined. Sawyer aims for his music to have this same effect of taking the listener on a journey or even to enable them to sit in a space and experience a world or idea in a way they might not have already. Through a multifaceted use of harmony and timbre he creates blends of color to evoke the worlds and changing imagery of his pieces.

Originally from the panhandle of Florida, Sawyer attended Troy University and earned a BA in Music with a Minor in Education, studying under Dr. Traci Mendel (Composition) and Dr. Robert Pendergast (Euphonium). He then went on to receive his master’s degree in composition in 2025 from James Madison University, where he studied under Dr. Eric Guinivan and Dr. Jason Haney. He currently serves as adjunct faculty at James Madison University