Nov. 11, 2025
Internationally Acclaimed Composer/ Conductor/Choral Director Dr. André Thomas to Lead Performance of His Gospel Compositions by Mizzou Choruses and Symphony Orchestra on November 20
Internationally acclaimed composer, conductor, choral director, and author Dr. André Thomas will be in residence November 16-21 at the University of Missouri School of Music, where he will provide composition lessons, lead choral conducting masterclasses, and rehearse Mizzou’s choirs and orchestra in preparation for a major concert on November 20 by the Choral Union Symphonic Chorus, University Singers, Concert Chorale, and the University Symphony Orchestra. The concert is sponsored in part by the Mizzou New Music Initiative. Dr.
Nov. 11, 2025
University of Missouri Wind Ensemble Presents World Premiere of Dr. Stefan Freund’s Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Ensemble on November 17
The University of Missouri Wind Ensemble will present the world premiere of Dr. Stefan Freund’s SAS Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Ensemble at 7 p.m. Monday, November 17 at the Missouri Theatre. Freund is the Artistic Director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative and Music Director of the Columbia Civic Orchestra. The piece will be performed by guest faculty soloist Leo Saguiguit and conducted by Dr. Brian A. Silvey. It was written by Freund in honor of Saguiguit’s…
Nov. 11, 2025
Two University of Missouri School of Music Faculty Members nominated for a 2026 Grammy Award as Part of New Music Ensemble Alarm Will Sound.
Two University of Missouri School of Music faculty members are among the nominees for the 2026 Grammy Awards. Stefan Freund and Bill Kalinkos are founding members of Alarm Will Sound, whose album Land of Winter was nominated for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance. The piece itself was also nominated for Best Contemporary Classical Composition. Freund is a Professor of Music Composition, the Artistic Director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative, and Director of the Mizzou New Music Ensemble. Kalinkos…
Oct. 7, 2025
Residency of New York Composer Katherine Balch October 3-5 to Include Performance of Her Acclaimed speckled the green and blue by Mizzou New Music Ensemble
Internationally acclaimed composer Katherine Balch will be in residence October 3-5, 2025 for the first time at the Mizzou New Music Initiative. She will give composition lessons and a lecture to students and attend the public performance of her acclaimed composition speckled the green and blue by the Mizzou New Music Ensemble. Katherine Balch Katherine’s works have been commissioned and performed by leading ensembles including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the New York Philharmonic, the London Sinfonietta, Ensemble Modern, and the symphony orchestras of Pittsburgh, Dallas, Minnesota, Oregon, Albany, Indianapolis,…
July 3, 2025
Mizzou International Composers Festival Spotlight: Distinguished Guest Composer Judd Greenstein
The Mizzou New Music Initiative is pleased to welcome Judd Greenstein as one of two Distinguished Guest Composers for the 2025 Mizzou International Composers Festival. The Festival, which takes place from Wednesday, July 23 through Saturday, July 26 on the campus of the University of Missouri and at the Missouri Theatre, will also welcome Distinguished Guest Composer Hilda Paredes. Greenstein will have private meetings with the Resident Composers, work with groups who will be performing his music at the Festival, and make…
July 3, 2025
Mizzou International Composers Festival Spotlight: Distinguished Guest Composer Hilda Paredes
The Mizzou New Music Initiative is pleased to welcome Hilda Paredes as one of two Distinguished Guest Composers for the 2025 Mizzou International Composers Festival. The Festival, which takes place from Wednesday, July 23 through Saturday, July 26 on the campus of the University of Missouri and at the Missouri Theatre, will also welcome Distinguished Guest Composer Judd Greenstein. Paredes will have private meetings with the Resident Composers, work with groups who will be performing her music at the Festival, and make…
July 3, 2025
World Premieres of Eight Musical Works by Internationally Acclaimed Composers to be Performed by Alarm Will Sound at the Mizzou International Composers Festival Concert on Saturday, July 26 at Missouri Theatre in Columbia
New musical works by eight internationally acclaimed composers from four countries will be performed publicly for the first time in concert at the Missouri Theatre in Columbia on Saturday, July 26 at 7:30 pm as part of the 2025 Mizzou International Composers Festival (MICF). Critically acclaimed new music ensemble Alarm Will Sound, conducted by artistic director Alan Pierson, will perform all eight compositions during this dynamic public concert presented by the Mizzou New Music Initiative. The concert will cap six days of musical workshops and…
June 17, 2025
Mizzou New Music Ensemble Completes 12-Day South American Tour Featuring Concerts and Readings of Local Composers’ Works
The Mizzou New Music Ensemble has completed a two-week South American tour that featured four public concert performances of eight local composers’ works as well as readings of local students’ works and conducting/composition classes in Lima, Peru, and Medellín and Bogotá, Colombia. This was the MNME’s second South American tour; the first was held in 2023. The seven-piece ensemble, led by conductor and director Dr. Stefan Freund, performed on May 15 at Lima’s Universidad Nacional de Música and on May 16 at Pontificia Universidad Catolica del Peru, with readings of Lima students’ works on…