Feb. 3, 2026
Alarm Will Sound, Featuring University of Missouri School of Music Faculty Stefan Freund and Bill Kalinkos, Wins 2026 Grammy Award
Two University of Missouri School of Music faculty members were recognized as winners at the 2026 Grammy Awards on February 1 in Los Angeles. Stefan Freund and Bill Kalinkos are founding members of Alarm Will Sound, whose album Land of Winter won the Grammy for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance. Alarm Will Sound is the ensemble-in-residence for the Mizzou New Music Initiative (MNMI). Alarm Will Sound at the 2026 Grammy Awards (photo by Paul Melnikow) Freund is a Professor of Music Composition, Co-founder and the Artistic Director of the …
Feb. 2, 2026
MNMI in the news
Here is some recent media coverage of the Mizzou New Music Initiative, its faculty, and students. Trent Fitzsimmons, whose composition Equinox Serenade, will receive its world premiere at the Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis on Thursday, February 5, was interviewed on the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra‘s St. Louis Stories blog. You can read the interview here: Five Questions with Mizzou Composer Trent Fitzsimmons Mizzou’s Maneater wrote about two University of Missouri Music Department faculty members, Stefan…
Jan. 16, 2026
MICF Resident Ensemble Alarm Will Sound Releases New Work by Composer Matt Smith on its YouTube Channel
Contemporary music ensemble Alarm Will Sound has released As Brightness is to Time, a new work by composer Matt Smith on its YouTube channel. Smith was one of eight composers selected to participate in the 2025 Mizzou International Composers Festival. The piece was recorded at Columbia’s Missouri Theatre during its world premiere performance in July, as part of the 2025 MICF. Alarm Will Sound is the MICF Resident Ensemble and includes two University of Missouri School of Music faculty members, Stefan Freund and Bill Kalinkos. Freund is a Professor of Music Composition, the Artistic Director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative, and Director…
Jan. 16, 2026
MICF Resident Ensemble Alarm Will Sound Releases New Work by Composer Geli Li on its YouTube Channel
Contemporary music ensemble Alarm Will Sound has released The Smell of Sunshine, a new work by composer Geli Li on its YouTube channel. Li was one of eight composers selected to participate in the 2025 Mizzou International Composers Festival. The piece was recorded at Columbia’s Missouri Theatre during its world premiere performance in July, as part of the 2025 MICF. Alarm Will Sound is the MICF Resident Ensemble and includes two University of Missouri School of Music faculty members, Stefan Freund and Bill Kalinkos. Freund is a Professor of Music Composition, the Artistic Director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative, and Director of…
Jan. 16, 2026
MICF Resident Ensemble Alarm Will Sound Releases New Work by Composer Seda Balci on its YouTube Channel
Contemporary music ensemble Alarm Will Sound has released Riffscape, a new work by composer Seda Balci on its YouTube channel. Balci was one of eight composers selected to participate in the 2025 Mizzou International Composers Festival. The piece was recorded at Columbia’s Missouri Theatre during its world premiere performance in July, as part of the 2025 MICF. Alarm Will Sound is the MICF Resident Ensemble and includes two University of Missouri School of Music faculty members, Stefan Freund and Bill Kalinkos. Freund is a Professor of Music Composition, the Artistic Director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative, and Director of the Mizzou New Music Ensemble.
Jan. 13, 2026
EIGHT MISSOURI COMPOSERS RECOGNIZED IN STATEWIDE COMPETITION FOR BEST NEW CHORAL AND ORCHESTRAL MUSIC; WINNING COMPOSITIONS TO BE PERFORMED IN COLUMBIA CONCERT ON MARCH 8
Four composers from Missouri have won the 2026 Missouri Composers Project (MOCOP) statewide competition for best new choral and orchestral musical compositions, and four additional composers have been recognized with honorable mentions. Sponsored by the Mizzou New Music Initiative and the University of Missouri School of Music, composers from across Missouri are invited to submit their original orchestral and choral works, with winners selected by blind judging in two age categories: “open” and “high school.” The Columbia Civic Orchestra and Premiere Vocal Artists, conducted by Jeremy Paladino,…
Jan. 3, 2026
2026 GRAMMY-NOMINATED CHAMBER MUSIC ENSEMBLE ALARM WILL SOUND TO PERFORM WORKS BY THREE ACCLAIMED CONTEMPORARY COMPOSERS IN COLUMBIA ON JANUARY 20
The 2026 Grammy Award-nominated chamber music ensemble Alarm Will Sound will present an evening of groundbreaking contemporary classical music including a world premiere performance in Columbia on Tuesday, January 20, 2026. University of Missouri School of Music faculty members Stefan Freund and Bill Kalinkos are founding members of New York-based Alarm Will Sound and will perform in the concert, to be held at the Sinquefield Music Center beginning at 7:30 pm. This concert will take the audience on a unique musical journey from the poetic minimalism of…
Dec. 17, 2025
School of Music Student Seda Balci and MNMI Associate Director Tiffany Skidmore to Participate in Vienna Contemporary Composers Festival
University of Missouri School of Music student Seda Balci has been accepted to participate in the Vienna Contemporary Composers Festival, scheduled for July 3-16, 2026. Mizzou New Music Initiative Associate Director Tiffany Skidmore will serve as one of the Festival’s faculty members. The Vienna Contemporary Composers Festival is designed for composers looking to refine their craft, receive professional performances of their works, and immerse themselves in the rich musical culture of Vienna, Austria. Each selected composer will have their new work performed during the festival. Participants…