April 8, 2025
Song composed for Creating Original Music Project creates a win for student as well as a small Missouri community
For evidence of how the Mizzou New Music Initiative’s Creating Original Music Project can impact not just an aspiring songwriter/composer, but also a teacher, a school, and even a community, look no further than Galena, Missouri’s Brendan Rieth and his song “Pretty,” which earned second place in COMP’s High School Acoustic category. Galena – population 455 as of the 2020 census – “is like, your picture-perfect definition of a rural small town,” says Drew Tate, the Music Director at Galena High School, the student body of which numbers around 200. “It’s very close-knit. So…
Sep. 10, 2024
Five Fall Concerts in Columbia to Showcase Mizzou New Music Initiative Performers and Composers; Applications for Programs Announced
The Mizzou New Music Initiative (MNMI) will present five concerts this fall in Columbia to showcase the program’s newest musical groups and composers. MNMI is also seeking applications from original music composers locally and nationwide toparticipate in three of its programs. MNMI is a diverse array of programs that position the University of Missouri School of Music as a leading center for the composition and performance of new music. The initiative is supported by the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation, led by Dr. Jeanne and Rex Sinquefield. Their vision is to create an incubator for the composition and performance of new music and…
April 8, 2024
Mizzou New Music Initiative announces winners in the 2024 Creating Original Music Project Competition
The winning composers in the 2024 Creating Original Music Project (COMP) have been announced by the Mizzou New Music Initiative. Now in its 19th year, COMP is an annual statewide competition sponsored by the University of Missouri School of Music and the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation. COMP showcases new, original music from Missouri student composers and songwriters in grades K-12, offering positive recognition, prizes, performances, educational opportunities, and more. For the competition, students in grades K-5 submit compositions in two categories: Instrumental Music and Songs with Words. For grades 6-8, the categories are Notated Music, Popular Genres, Acoustic, and Popular…
Oct. 17, 2023
The Mizzou New Music Initiative announces its fall semester schedule of Columbia, MO, events and other important dates
Today, the Mizzou New Music Initiative (MNMI) announced its fall semester schedule of events occurring in Columbia, MO, as well as other important dates. The Mizzou New Music Initiative is a diverse array of programs that position the University of Missouri School of Music as a leading center for the composition and performance of new music. The initiative is supported by the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation, led by Dr. Jeanne and Rex Sinquefield. Their vision is to create an incubator for the composition and performance of new music and to showcase Missouri as a center…
April 18, 2023
Mizzou New Music Initiative announces winners in the 2023 Creating Original Music Project Competition
April 19, 2023 The winning composers in the 2023 Creating Original Music Project (COMP) have been announced by the Mizzou New Music Initiative. Now in its 18th year, COMP is an annual statewide competition sponsored by the University of Missouri School of Music and the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation. COMP showcases new, original music from Missouri student composers and songwriters in grades K-12, offering positive recognition, prizes, performances, educational opportunities, and more. For the competition, students in grades K-5 submit compositions in two categories, Songs With Words and Instrumental. For grades 6-8, the categories are Fine Art Music and Popular…
Sep. 21, 2022
2023 Creating Original Music Project (COMP) offers awards, cash prizes for Missouri student composers
The Mizzou New Music Initiative is inviting young composers from all across Missouri to take part in the 2023 Creating Original Music Project (COMP). Now in its 18th year, COMP is an annual statewide competition sponsored by the University of Missouri School of Music and the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation. COMP showcases new, original music from Missouri student composers and songwriters in grades K-12, offering positive recognition, cash prizes, performance and educational opportunities, and more. Since 2006, 345 pieces of music by K-12 Missouri composers have been performed at the Creating Original Music Project Festival concerts.
July 7, 2022
2022 Missouri Summer Composition Institute Overview
From June 11th through the 18th, the 2022 Missouri Summer Composition Institute brought together 16 young Missouri composers for a full week of work creating new music on the University of Missouri campus. Above: Mizzou Postdoctoral Fellow in Composition Dr. Yoshiaki Onishi discusses notation with the students. Below: Mizzou percussion professor Dr. Megan Arns demonstrates the marimba. Working with MU School of Music faculty members and guest instructors, each student composed a new work of music that was workshopped, then performed and recorded at the end of the week by an ensemble of…
July 5, 2022
Resident Composer Spotlight: Pascal Le Boeuf
Pascal Le Boeuf is one of eight Resident Composers selected for the 2022 Mizzou International Composers Festival from a total of 532 applicants from 49 countries. Pascal Le Boeuf Photo credit: Shervin Lainez Described as “sleek, new” and “hyper-fluent” by the New York Times, Pascal Le Boeuf is a Grammy-nominated composer, jazz pianist, and electronic artist whose works range from modern improvised music to hybridizing chamber music with production-based technology. Recent projects include commercial recordings and videos with JACK Quartet, Friction Quartet, Nu Deco Ensemble, Akropolis Reed Quintet, Christian Euman, Hub New Music,…