Feb. 11, 2015
St. Louis Symphony to perform Stefan Freund’s “Cyrillic Dreams”
Original music from Mizzou will be heard once again next year at Powell Hall in St. Louis, as the St. Louis Symphony’s announcement last Tuesday of their 2015-16 season schedule included the news that they’ll perform Stefan Freund’s “Cyrillic Dreams” as part of a concert on Friday, April 29, 2016. Stefan Freund Freund is associate professor of composition and music theory at the University of Missouri and co-artistic director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative. The Memphis native also is a cellist and founding member of the new music ensemble Alarm Will Sound, and is…
Feb. 5, 2015
Missouri Composers Orchestra Project chooses works
by Zachary Cairns, Hans Heruth for performance on Saturday, March 7
The famous conductor James Levine once compared the orchestra to a “treasure chest,” but the relative scarcity of modern works on orchestral programs means that few contemporary composers ever get the chance to access those riches. Zachary Cairns Now, two more Missouri composers will receive that valuable opportunity, as the Columbia Civic Orchestra (CCO) and the Mizzou New Music Initiative have announced the selection of two orchestral works written by Missouri residents to be performed by the CCO at a concert on Saturday, March 7 in Columbia. The winning compositions were chosen in a statewide competition conducted under…
Dec. 4, 2014
Missouri Composers Orchestra Project
2015 entry deadline extended to Monday, December 15
The Missouri Composers Orchestra Project (MOCOP) deadline for 2015 submissions has been extended until Monday, December 15. Now in its fourth year, MOCOP is a collaborative effort of the Mizzou New Music Initiative, the Columbia Civic Orchestra (CCO), and the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation to bring attention to orchestral works written in the state of Missouri. By identifying composers of orchestral music and providing opportunities for the performance of their work, MOCOP strives to showcase the talent of Missouri and share it with the community Each year, works are selected through a competitive, blind judging process to…
Dec. 1, 2014
Mizzou New Music Ensemble to perform new works from Missouri composers
and more on Sunday, December 7 at Whitmore Recital Hall
The Mizzou New Music Ensemble will play their second concert of the academic year (and their final show of 2014) at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, December 7 in Whitmore Recital Hall, 135 Fine Arts Building on the University of Missouri campus. Admission is free for Mizzou students, $5 suggested donation for the general public. The program will feature a turn-of-the-century piece from a Pulitzer Prize and Grammy Award winning composer, plus four brand new works written right here in Missouri. The prizewinner in question is Jennifer Higdon (pictured), the acclaimed contemporary composer whose major awards include a Pulitzer…
Nov. 6, 2014
Mizzou composers, Stephens College choreographers
collaborating again for concerts on November 14, 15 & 16
Composers from the Mizzou New Music Initiative are working once again with choreographers and dancers from Stephens College to create original music for this year’s Senior Dance Concert at Stephens. The performances will take place at 7:30 p.m. Friday, November 14 and Saturday, November 15, and at 2:00 p.m. Sunday, November 16 at the Macklanburg Playhouse, 100 Willis Ave on the Stephens campus. Tickets are $8 for general admission, $6 for students and seniors, and can be purchased in advance at the Macklanburg Playhouse box office; by calling 573-876-7199; or at the door. Renewing the collaboration…
Oct. 13, 2014
Mizzou composer Trey Makler wins 2015 Sinquefield Composition Prize
Trey MaklerThe University of Missouri School of Music and the Mizzou New Music Initiative have awarded the 2015 Sinquefield Composition Prize to Trey Makler. Makler, a junior from Farmington, MO, is studying composition at Mizzou with W. Thomas McKenney and Stefan Freund. He submitted “Elysium,” a work for chamber ensemble, to the competition and was selected for the prize by a panel of independent judges. The adjudicators for the 2015 competition were Mara Gibson, associate teaching professor, UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance ; Eric Honour, professor of music and director of the Center for Music…
Oct. 10, 2014
Mizzou New Music Ensemble to perform collaborative concert
with Rich Pellegrin Quintet on Friday, October 24 at Whitmore Recital Hall
Rich PellegrinThe Mizzou New Music Ensemble will perform their first concert of the 2014-15 academic year at 7:30 p.m., Friday, October 24 in Whitmore Recital Hall, 135 Fine Arts Building on the University of Missouri campus. Admission is free for Mizzou students, $5 suggested donation for the general public. Presented in conjunction with the three-day Mizzou Improvisation Project conference happening that week, the program will feature a joint performance with the Rich Pellegrin Quintet. Pellegrin, a jazz pianist and composer, is an assistant professor of music theory at Mizzou. The two groups will collaborate on his 2012…
Sep. 26, 2014
MNMI helps create audio tours for community arts project in Lexington, MO
The Lexington Community Arts Pilot Project and the University of Missouri Extension Division will present the premiere of “Legends of Lexington,” four audio tours of the historic districts of Lexington, MO featuring music, sound and production by composers from the Mizzou New Music Initiative, at a reception this Friday, September 26 at Wentworth Military Academy in Lexington. The audio tours are part of a two-year program to help Lexington brand itself as a destination for tourists and artists. MNMI managing director William Lackey and Justin Pounds, who’s working on his master’s in composition at Mizzou, have spent the…