About Understory
The layer that sustains the forest.
Understory Music Publishing is an independent sheet music publisher for underrepresented composers across every genre and tradition.
The Name
Why “Understory”
In a forest, the understory lives beneath the canopy. It gets less light and less attention, yet it holds the whole ecosystem together.
Concert halls and classrooms work the same way. Some of the most vital music being written today comes from composers who never had the spotlight. Understory exists to give that music a home, and to make it easy for the people who program music to find it.
understory (n.)
/ˈəndərˌstôrē/
The layer of vegetation beneath the main forest canopy. Overlooked, essential, and quietly sustaining everything above it.
Who We Serve
Built for everyone in the room
01
Directors and educators
Fresh repertoire, instant PDF delivery, classroom licensing, and pages that run cleanly through any school copier.
02
Composers
Non-exclusive terms and 70% of every sale, with a royalty floor that never drops.
03
The music
Every genre and tradition is in scope. The only test is the music itself.
From the Founder
Great music was never the problem. Getting it in front of the people who would play it was.
Understory was founded by Jesse Colter, a percussionist and composer based in Georgia, who kept meeting music that deserved a wider audience and never found a publisher. Understory is the home he wanted those composers to have.
Find your next piece, or share your own.
Explore the catalog or submit your music for review.