Stefan Freund

Dr. Stefan Freund

April 2, 2026

Webster-Kirkwood Times spotlights MNMI Artistic Director Stefan Freund’s “How Mr. Silver Stole the Show,” set for May 17 in University City

The Webster-Kirkwood Times recently featured Mizzou New Music Initiative Artistic Director Dr. Stefan Freund‘s composition How Mr. Silver Stole the Show, which is set for a May 17 performance by the Metropolitan Orchestra of St. Louis at the 560 Music Center in University City, Missouri. You can read the article here. Tickets may be purchased on the day of the concert at the venue or online in advance from Eventbrite.com. For more information, see moslmusic.org. To…

MNMI student Mon Ieong Cheok Kai

April 2, 2026

School of Music Student Mon Ieong Cheok Kai to Participate in Vienna Contemporary Composers Festival

University of Missouri School of Music student Mon Ieong Cheok Kai has been accepted to participate in the Vienna Contemporary Composers Festival, scheduled for July 3-16, 2026 in Vienna, Austria. He will join University of Missouri School of Music graduate Seda Balci, who was previously accepted, and Mizzou New Music Initiative Associate Director Tiffany M. Skidmore, who 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…

Alarm Will Sound at the 2026 Grammy Awards

Feb. 2, 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). Freund is a Professor of Music Composition, Co-founder and the Artistic Director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative, and Director of…

Feb. 1, 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,…

Alarm Will Sound Photo by Carl Socolow

Jan. 15, 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,…

Alarm Will Sound Photo by Carl Socolow

Jan. 15, 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…

Alarm Will Sound Photo by Carl Socolow

Jan. 15, 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…

Alarm Will Sound Photo by Carl Socolow

Jan. 2, 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…