March 15, 2022

Sinquefield Charitable Foundation renews support for Mizzou New music Initiative programming with $3.4 million gift

In a convocation held at the Sinquefield Music Center at the University of Missouri School of Music on Thursday, March 3, 2022, the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation renewed its commitment to support the Mizzou New Music Initative (MNMI) with a gift of $3.4 million dollars. That commitment will help continue the program over the next three years. With this recent gift, the Foundation has contributed a total of more than $10 million to MNMI since it was founded in 2006 to provide continued support for all its various programs. That support includes the costs of faculty…

March 8, 2022

Mizzou New Music Initiative announces winners in the 2022 Creating Original Music Project Competition

The winning composers in the 2022 Creating Original Music Project (COMP) have been announced by the Mizzou New Music Initiative. Now in its 17th 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…

Feb. 24, 2022

Mizzou New Music Ensemble continues 2021-22 season with live performance at Sinquefield Music Center on February 27, 2022

The Mizzou New Music Ensemble will continue its 2021-2022 concert series with a performance at 7:30 pm on Sunday, Feb. 27, 2022. The concert will take place on the University of Missouri Campus at the Sinquefield Music Center’s Sheryl Crow Hall. The concert is free and open to the public. For those unable to attend in person, the concert will be livestreamed on the MU School of Music YouTube channel. Members of the Mizzou New Music Ensemble, with Yoshiaki Onishi (third from front) and Stefan Freund (fifth from front) The Ensemble (pictured) will open the program…

Feb. 23, 2022

Jacob Gotlib accepts new position with Louisville Orchestra: Jason Thorpe Buchanan selected as Interim Managing Director of Mizzou New Music Initiative; Niko Schroeder chosen as Assistant Managing Director of MNMI

The University of Missouri School of Music has hired Jason Thorpe Buchanan as the interim Managing Director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative (MNMI). In addition, Niko Schroeder has been hired as the Assistant Managing Director of MNMI. Both Buchanan and Schroeder were chosen as resident composers for the Mizzou International Composers Festival – Buchanan in 2013 and Schroeder in 2020. Both began work in their new positions on February 7, 2022. Buchanan and Schroeder are replacing Jacob Gotlib, who has served as Managing Director of MNMI since August 15, 2016. During his tenure as Managing Director,…

Feb. 16, 2022

Dean Minderman Memorial Jazz & Blues Concert scheduled for Feb. 27, 2022 at Jazz St. Louis

St. Louis musicians, friends and family are coming together to honor the late Dean Minderman on Sunday, February 27, 2022 at Jazz St. Louis, 3536 Washington Ave in Grand Center. For the last 11 years before his passing in September 2021, Dean was the voice of the Mizzou New Music Initiative blog and Twitter profile. As part of Slay & Associates’ team, Dean worked tirelessly to promote MNMI’s activities. A graduate of Mizzou’s journalism program (BM 1979), Dean combined his love of writing with his musical talents. Dean wrote many articles for the St. Louis Riverfront…

Feb. 14, 2022

Composer Fred Onovwerosuoke residency at Mizzou scheduled Feb. 24 – 27, 2022

Composer Fred Onovwerosuoke (pronounced OH-NWEH-sehke) will be in residency at the University of Missouri from Thursday, February 24 through Sunday, February 27, 2022. The St. Louis-based, African-born composer’s visit will begin with a convocation presentation –“Cultural Programming Re-Imagined” –from  3 to 4 pm on February 24 at Whitmore Recital Hall. This is a free event. Fred Onovwerosuoke On Friday, February 25 at 3pm, Onovwerosuoke will lead a composition seminar for composition students. Two free concerts will take place over the weekend featuring his compositions. Saturday, February 26 at 7:30 pm at the Missouri Theater the Columbia Civic…

Feb. 4, 2022

St. Louis Symphony Orchestra to perform works by three Mizzou composers on February 16 at Powell Hall

Three University of Missouri student composers will have their works played at Powell Hall by musicians of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) at 7:30 pm Wednesday, February 16th, 2022 by SLSO musicians under the direction of SLSO Assistant Conductor Stephanie Childress. The performance is part of a joint educational venture between the SLSO and the Mizzou New Music Initiative that began in 2017. Here are the three composers and pieces that the SLSO will perform on Wednesday, Feb. 16: Holden Franklin, Club FOMO Daniel Fitzpatrick, Ritual and Sacrifice Oswald Huynh, Gia Đình Left to Right: Holden Franklin, Daniel Fitzpatrick,…

Feb. 3, 2022

[Switch~ Ensemble] residency at Mizzou from Feb. 11-16, 2022 will include presentation, coaching sessions and two concerts

The Mizzou New Music Initiative (MNMI) will once again bring the new music group [Switch~ Ensemble] to the University of Missouri Columbia for a residency from Feb. 11 – 16, 2022. Founded in 2012 at the Eastman School of Music, [Switch~ Ensemble] (pictured) is a group of ten instrumentalists and composers dedicated to performing high-level chamber music integrated with cutting-edge technology and supporting emerging and early career composers. In addition to a previous virtual residency in the spring of 2021, [Switch~ Ensemble] members have other relationships with MNMI and MU. Mizzou assistant professor Megan Arns…