Columbia University’s Miller Theatre has found a successful format. “In most classical concerts, if listeners hear any music by contemporary composers, it’s in small doses, which may be for the best. In a mixed program, a composer’s style must quickly declare itself, both on its own terms and in relation to the styles of the other composers on the bill. The problem is that a composer discovered in a mixed program may not turn up again for months or even years. Single-composer concerts allow for a better assessment, but they are risky. A composer can be like a cat with a spool of yarn. Having found an intriguing idea, he or she may explore it from different perspectives through a dozen works or a dozen years. How well a handful of pieces based on the same notion — a rhythmic device, say, or a way of changing harmony — will work depends on the composer’s inventiveness.”