Nov. 16, 2020
Documentary scored by Mizzou alumni is a YouTube hit
Haley Myers, Tim Pilcher A science documentary with a musical score by two Mizzou alumni has proved to be a major hit with online viewers, this month passing one million views on YouTube. Living Soil, a documentary funded by the national not-for-profit Soil Health Institute, features music written by Haley Myers, a pianist and composer who graduated from Mizzou in 2016 with degrees in music and geography, plus additional works for solo guitar by Tim Pilcher, a musician and sound designer who earned his degree in Spanish at Mizzou. The film is something of a family affair,…
Oct. 2, 2020
Feature film scored by Mizzou alumnus Grant Fonda opening Friday, October 9
A feature film with a score composed by a Mizzou alumnus will open this month in movie theaters across the country. Pray: the Story of Patrick Peyton, directed by Jonathan Cipiti and scored by Grant Fonda, is set to hit theaters nationwide on Friday, October 9. The documentary tells the story of Patrick Peyton, an Irish immigrant who in 1928 came to the US in hopes of becoming a millionaire, and instead ended up joining the priesthood, championing the idea that “the family who prays together stays together.” Fonda (pictured), who earned his master’s degree in music from…
March 23, 2020
Mizzou New Music Initiative cancels or postpones
all public events through the end of May
Following the policies announced by the University of Missouri and the directives of local, state and federal officials, the Mizzou New Music Initiative has canceled or postponed all public events effective immediately and continuing through the end of May. The Student Composers Recital originally scheduled on Tuesday, April 14 and the Mizzou New Music Ensemble concert on Monday, April 27 are canceled and will not be rescheduled. The postponed events are: * Reading of Mizzou composers’ new works by the St. Louis Symphony on Sunday, March 29 at Powell Hall in St. Louis * Missouri Composers Project (MOCOP) concert…
Feb. 28, 2020
Mizzou New Music Ensemble to preview music from upcoming tour of South America and more on Monday, March 9 at Sinquefield Music Center
The Mizzou New Music Ensemble will present a preview of music from their upcoming tour of South America and more in a concert at 7:30 p.m. Monday, March 9 at the Sinquefield Music Center on the University of Missouri campus in Columbia. The concert is free and open to the public. For their first concert of 2020 and their first public performance at the new Sinquefield Music Center, the Ensemble (pictured) will play two new works written by Mizzou graduate composition students, “Cataretê” by Luis Hermano Bezerra and “Ancient Echoes” by Daniel Fitzpatrick. Both pieces were composed specifically for…
Feb. 27, 2020
Mizzou New Music Ensemble hitting the road in May
for concert in Texas, tour of South America
The Mizzou New Music Ensemble will hit the road this spring to perform a concert in Fort Worth, TX, followed by a tour of South America that will take them to Argentina, Brazil, Peru and Uruguay. The journey will begin with a performance at 3:00 p.m. Saturday, May 9 at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Ft. Worth, TX, where the Ensemble (pictured) will perform a program of new works created by Mizzou composition students in response to images from the museum’s collection. Junior composition major Ben Dawson’s piece is inspired by the Carter Museum’s…
Feb. 6, 2020
School of Music celebrates opening of Sinquefield Music Center
The University of Missouri School of Music celebrated the opening of its new building, the Sinquefield Music Center, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house on Saturday, February 1. The building (pictured) is named for lead donors Dr. Jeanne and Rex Sinquefield, who contributed $10 million toward the $24 million total cost of design and construction. Located in the heart of campus on University Avenue, the 47,000 square foot facility includes dedicated spaces for vocal and instrumental ensemble performances, 26 practice rooms, and a recording studio large enough to fit an 18-piece jazz big band. Attendees at the ceremony heard…
Oct. 31, 2019
Mizzou New Music Ensemble to perform works from Missouri, South America, and more on Sunday, November 17 at Whitmore Recital Hall
The Mizzou New Music Ensemble will offer new music from Missouri, South America, and more in concert at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, November 17 at Whitmore Recital Hall on the University of Missouri campus in Columbia. The concert is free and open to the public. From close to home, the Ensemble (pictured) will perform the two winning works written for the 2019 Missouri Association of Departments and Schools of Music (MADSM) Collegiate Composition Competition. “Cadencia” was composed by Truman State University student Samuel Tillman, the 2019 winner in the undergraduate category winner, and “Hitt Street Harangue” is by…
Oct. 22, 2019
Samuel Tillman, Daniel Vega chosen as winners
of the 2019 MADSM Collegiate Composition Competition
From left: Samuel Tillman, Daniel Vega The Missouri Association of Departments and Schools of Music (MADSM) and the Mizzou New Music Initiative (MNMI) have chosen the winners in the 2019 MADSM Collegiate Composition Competition. The winning work in the Undergraduate category is “Cadencia” by Samuel Tillman, a student at Truman State University, and the winner in the Graduate category is “Hitt St. Harangue” by Daniel Vega of the University of Missouri. The two winning compositions will be workshopped by the Mizzou New Music Ensemble with help from the composers; recorded; and then performed in concert next month on the…