Do composer writing groups exist?

Question

I was listening to a lecture series aimed at young (university-level) writers. The instructor, who was himself a successful, well-known, published author, gave real-world advice to his students both about the craft of writing and the business of getting noticed and marketing their books. In particular, he speaks frequently of his "writing group."

The writing group is a collection of 4-5 colleagues who agree to meet regularly, I gather about every 6-8 weeks. The inner workings of the group vary, but each writer is expected to both generate new material to share with the group and give thoughtful feedback to the group on the work of others.

As a composer I've always wanted to find a group just like this. I'd certainly be willing to give directed feedback to a colleague in exchange for his/her opinions of my work. Before I reinvent the wheel and try to cobble something together, is there already a community of composers who function in a similar way?

Note that I'm not interested in student writing groups, rather groups aimed at practicing professional composers.

Answer 1

No, they don't, although other approaches could potentially yield results. It might seem obvious, but have you tried meetup? I'm not sure if it's still the hive of activity it once was, but there's a fair number of active groups on there.

https://www.meetup.com/topics/composers/

I'm assuming you're in the states, so it might be worth checking this list of composer associations and perhaps getting in touch to see what's available in your area:

https://composersforum.org/resources/organizations-supporting-composers-new-music/

There's also the National Association of Composers:

https://www.music-usa.org/nacusa/