
July 15, 2016
Composers Festival spotlight: Mary Kouyoumdjian
Although composer Mary Kouyoumdjian was born in the USA, her music definitely is informed by perspectives from beyond its’ borders. As a first generation Armenian-American from a family directly affected by the Lebanese civil war and Armenian genocide, Kouyoumdjian uses a sonic palette that, in her words, “draws on her heritage, interest in music as documentary, and background in experimental composition to progressively blend the old with the new.” Based in Brooklyn, New York, Kouyoumdjian (pictured) is one of the eight resident composers for the 2016 Mizzou International Composers Festival, for which she’s written a…

July 13, 2016
2016 Mizzou International Composers Festival
schedule of events and ticket information
Here’s the complete schedule of events and information on how to get tickets for the 2016 Mizzou International Composers Festival. The 2016 MICF begins on Monday, July 25 and continues through Saturday, July 30. Festival events will be held at the Fine Arts Building and Loeb Hall on the University of Missouri campus and at the Missouri Theatre in downtown Columbia, including: Monday, July 25 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Matthew Browne, Resident Composer Presentation Fine Arts Building Room 145 on the MU campus Open to the Public 11:00 a.m. – 12:00…

July 12, 2016
Composers Festival spotlight: Matthew Browne
It’s been a busy year for Matthew Browne. Even before coming to Columbia as one of the eight resident composers for the Mizzou International Composers Festival, he’s already been one of seven young composers attending the 13th annual Composer Institute sponsored by the Minnesota Orchestra in conjunction with the American Composers Forum. Not only that, just before his visit to Missouri, he’ll be taking part in the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra’s 2016 Edward T. Cone Composition Institute at Princeton University. Born in Burlington, Vermont and raised in Colorado, Browne (pictured) currently is working on a…

July 11, 2016
Composers Festival spotlight: Takuma Itoh
As preparations continue for the official start of the Mizzou International Composers Festival on Monday, July 25, this will be the first of a series of brief profiles of the resident composers, distinguished guest composers, and musicians taking part in this year’s MICF, including (whenever possible) samples of their music. Born in Japan, raised in Northern California, and now living in Hawaiʻi, where since 2012 he has been a faculty member at the University of Hawaiʻi at Manoa, Takuma Itoh brings a well-traveled perspective to his turn as a resident composer at this year’s festival.

July 7, 2016
If you’re coming to Columbia
If you’re planning on coming to Columbia for the 2016 Mizzou International Composers Festival, you can get advance tickets online for all three concerts, which are being presented again this year at the Missouri Theatre: Thursday, July 28: Alarm Will Sound Friday, July 29: Mizzou New Music Saturday, July 30: Eight World Premieres with Alarm Will Sound Also, you may find these links useful for planning and/or during your visit: Visitors information Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau University of Missouri Visitors Guide Columbia Regional Airport…

June 15, 2016
Mizzou New Music Initiative awards postdoctoral fellowship to Phillip Sink
The Mizzou New Music Initiative and the University of Missouri School of Music have awarded the Initiative’s first-ever postdoctoral fellowship to composer Phillip Sink. Starting with the Fall 2016 semester, Sink (pictured) will teach classes in composition and electronic music at Mizzou, and also will begin a major research project to be completed during the two years of his fellowship. “We’re delighted to have Phillip as our first postdoctoral fellow,” said Stefan Freund, associate professor of composition at Mizzou and artistic director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative. “He’s an accomplished composer who has a lot of experience…

June 9, 2016
Mizzou New Music Initiative seeks new managing director
The University of Missouri School of Music is looking for a new managing director for the Mizzou New Music Initiative (MNMI). The managing director is responsible for administering all of MNMI’s various programs, which include the Mizzou International Composers Festival, the Creating Original Music Project (COMP), the Missouri Composers Orchestra Project (MOCOP), and more. The job begins on August 1, 2016, and offers a competitive salary and full benefits package. It is a full-time, 12-month faculty position with at least 75% administrative duties and potential for up to 25% teaching, depending on the applicant’s area of specialty.

May 26, 2016
Tickets for 2016 Mizzou International Composers Festival go on sale Friday, June 3
Alarm Will SoundTickets for the 2016 Mizzou International Composers Festival (MICF) will go on sale at 10:00 a.m. CDT on Friday, June 3. Hailed as “a vibrant inferno of creative energy” by the internationally syndicated radio program “Relevant Tones,” and praised for offering “kinetic excitement” by the hometown Columbia Daily Tribune, the MICF will take place this year from Monday, July 25 through Saturday, July 30 in Columbia, and will include three public concerts of new music by living composers. Returning for the seventh year as the festival’s resident ensemble, Alarm Will Sound will begin…