The Alliance of MSU Composers was conceived in 1997, and has organized fall, spring, and summer concerts. In 1999, the group produced a professional recording, "Riot: a Compositional Device", which was distributed to over 100 colleges and universities across the United States. In the spring of 2000, several MSU composers and cellists traveled to Huntington College to participate in workshops and masterclasses with Madeline Shapiro, avant-garde cellist and founder of New York's Modernworks! ensemble.