School of Music Collage Concert

Illinois State University

Charles W. Bolen Faculty Recital: Cora Swenson Lee, cello and guest artist Soo Yeon Kim, violinist

Charles W. Bolen Faculty Recital: Igor Kalnin, violin

Jury Recognition Recital

School of Music Welcome Convocation Hour

Artists from MIOpera perform favorites from the Broadway and operatic stages.

Concert on the Quad: Singing Under the Stars

The lovely chanteuse performs songs and stories from the Great American Songbook.

Concerts on the Quad: Jodi Beach

Up-and-coming singer-songwriter Olivia Wexler makes her COTQ debut.

Concerts on the Quad: Olivia Wexler

Kick off the week and July 4th festivities with some Civil War-era music.

Concerts on the Quad: 33rd Illinois Volunteer Regiment Band

Event details: Dr. Karen Power is an Irish composer based in Cork, Ireland. Her compositions use two primary sources: acoustic instruments and everyday sound-objects/environmental soundscapes. Her creative output is diverse, both in its approach and delivery, seeking to capture and translate the essence of an idea through a variety of forms, media and methods of dissemination. Dr. Power will present a lecture about her works which will include improvised performance.

Dr. Karen Power, Composer: Lecture/Performance

ISU welcomes alumni members of the Wind Symphony, Symphonic Winds, and Symphonic Band back to campus for a weekend of music-making!

School of Music Alumni Concert Band Performance

Community School for the Arts Spring Recital

String Project Spring Concert

Senior Recital: Ryan White, tuba

Junior Recital: Joseph Rhykerd, euphonium

Senior Recital: Alec Jenkins, clarinet

Graduate Recital: Holly Peters, clarinet

The Saxophone Studio presents a varied program of soloists, saxophone quartets, and large saxophone ensemble.
For additional information contact Dr. Paul Nolen (309) 438-8872

Saxophone Studio Recital

Senior Recital: Emily Shelburne, piano

Junior Recital: Elli Ji, oboe

Graduate Recital: Laura Velez, string bass

Featuring British composer/conductor Jonathan Willcocks’ Magnificat, an energetic and rhythmically-driven work accompanied by Dr. Dennis Gotkowski, organ. Also featuring four choral arrangements of American-born Canadian composer Nicholas Ryan Kelly: You Speak Violets, Now Boarding, After The Wind and Clark Street Bridge (based on a poem of Carl Sandburg).

Civic Chorale Spring Concert

The ISU West African Drumming and Dance Ensemble (IWADDE) will perform multiple musical selections featuring singing, dancing, drumming, and storytelling from Ghana and Guinea.

African Music and Dance

Guest Artist Recital: Amy Krueger, horn

Jazz Combos

Bluegrass and Oldtime Ensemble

Cook Hall

University Band Concert

Collaborative Piano

Spring Student Chamber Music Recital

Performance Convocation Hour

The ISU Guitar Studio and Guitar Ensemble presents solo and quartet music by Carcassi, Sor, Brouwer, Thomas, Amelkina-Vera, and York. There may even be a sing-along at the end!

Guitar Studio & Ensemble Recital

This program will present the melodic, motivic and rhythmic weavings of Doppelgänger by Brian Mason, and Bloom by Michael McIntosh. Following a “spring” theme, the ensemble will also perform the subtle Apple Blossom by Peter Garland and the energetic The Whirlwind by Joe Green featuring soloist Sara Eckert. The program will conclude with the energizing Time Dilation by Francisco Perez.

Percussion Ensemble Concert

Dr. Gresham Clarinet Studio Recital

The ISU Jazz Ensembles performance will feature guest artist and trumpet virtuoso, Tito Carrillo.

Jazz Festival Concert II

Jazz Festival Concert I

Oboe Studio Recital

Graduate Recital: YounHee Choi, piano

Sophomore Recital: Carlos Felipe Leon Castro, viola

This program is a selection of opera scenes specially selected to highlight the talents of student artists in the Voice and Choral Area of the School of Music.

Performance Convocation: Opera Stage Performance Workshop

Charles W. Bolen Faculty Recital: Sonneries

Graduate Recital: Zhiyuan Gao, horn

Senior Recital: Christian Rucinski, clarinet

ISU Viola Students perform works by Latin American and Spanish composers.

Viola Studio Recital

Cello Popper Concert

Junior Recital: Dyllan Bowering, euphonium

Bassoon Studio Recital

Senior Recital: Madelyn Adelman, voice

Senior Recital: Erin Brown, clarinet

Senior Recital: Allison Isely, voice

Senior Recital: Ethan Machamer, trombone

Senior Recital: Michael Schelinski, saxophone

Graduate Recital: Daniel Haan, viola

Senior Recital: Peyton Gray, trombone

Junior Recital: Chelsea Davis, flute

Junior Recital: Jennifer Budlong-Brewer, sax

ISU Jazz Combos

Coffeehouse in Uptown Normal

Charles W. Bolen Faculty Recital: Faculty String Quartet

Junior Recital: Lydia Cermak, horn

Senior Recital: Aneesah-Jemei Phillips, voice

Junior Recital: Ryan Daimid, clarinet

This recital was conceived in the inspiration to collaborate and share music for students by students, specifically with a focus on uplifting the voices of those that come from historically marginalized backgrounds. The performance will happen through means of education, as each performer will discuss their piece and the cultural/personal context behind it. We hope to showcase the music of our student body that doesn’t always have the representation it deserves in a classical setting, and we’re excited to celebrate with you!

“Diversity Recital: A Celebration of Us”

ISU faculty and students perform music by the RED NOTE New Music Festival guest composers Han Lash and Ted Hearne.

RED NOTE New Music Festival Concert 5 – Chamber Music of Han Lash and Ted Hearne

This event is sponsored by the Harold K. Sage Foundation and the Illinois State University Foundation Fund.

RED NOTE New Music Festival Concert 3 – Student Workshop World Premieres

Ensemble Dal Niente performs, develops, and sustains new and experimental music for small to large chamber ensemble. Dal Niente is dedicated to growing relationships with artists, composers, and listeners; advancing distinct and challenging musical voices; and sharing that work with Chicago, U.S., and international communities. This concert features contemporary music for oboe, viola, and harp, including a new work by ISU faculty composer Alex Stephenson.

RED NOTE Convocation Hour: Guest Artist Ensemble Dal Niente

HYPERCUBE is a NYC-based quartet that embraces the boundaries of chamber music, featuring cutting-edge works for saxophone, guitar, piano and percussion, while spanning electric and acoustic worlds. This concert features music by living American composers.

RED NOTE New Music Festival Concert 1 – HYPERCUBE (saxophone, guitar, piano, percussion)

ISU Symphony, Dr. Glenn Block, Music Director, will be presenting the world premiere of ISU music alum Steven Fox, conducting his EMOTICA for Symphony Orchestra with graduate student of voice SoHee Kim as soloist. Program will also include music by guest composer Maestro Claudio Alsuyet from Argentina and by Rimsky-Korsakov.

ISU Symphony Orchestra Concert

Junior Recital: Cian Martinez, clarinet

Graduate Recital: Jameel Stephens, percussion

Symphonic Winds Concert with Prairie Ridge High School

Trio des Éléments, featuring Sarah Manasreh-Decker, clarinet, Zachary Preucil, cello, and Katherine Petersen, piano, began working together in 2022. Described as “Fresh as a summer garden,” with performances that are “exciting” and “tightly controlled, ” they have performed for audiences all over the Midwest including the International Music Foundation’s Rush Hour Concert Series, and Mackinac Arts Council summer series. Trio des Éléments’ repertoire choices are diverse – breathing new life into the past, exploring music of the present, and looking to the future by engaging in collaborations and highlighting new compositions. This program includes works by Larkin Sanders, Robert Muczynski, Gwyneth Walker, and Beethoven’s Op. 11 ‘Gassenhauer’ Trio.

Guest Artist Recital: Trio des Éléments

Freshmen Flute Studio Recital

Graduate Recital: Sara Eckert, percussion

Joint Saxophone Recital: Chloe West & Caitlin Fallert

Junior Recital: Darius Botley, saxophone

Charles W. Bolen Faculty Recital: Jillian Kouzel, oboe & Midori Samson, bassoon

Ama Oforiwaa Aduonum (Nana), an award-winning and nationally recognized playwright and performer, is a professor of music who teaches classes in ethnomusicology and Black music and directs the African Music and Dance Ensemble.

MuKyia Poetics: Excavating Africa’s Rich Intellectual Musical Traditions

Symphonic Band Concert with University High School

Repertoire includes two world premiere performances of works by Shanyse Stickland and Emma Gregan, as well as music by Gina Gillie, Antonio Rosetti, and Hugh Nash.

Charles W. Bolen Faculty Recital: Rachel Hockenberry, horn

Afternoon of Brass

The final concert of the 2024 Mid-America Guitar Ensemble Festival features ensembles from the following schools: Millikin University, Knox College, Lincoln-Way West High School, Lincoln-Way Central High School, plus the Chicago Community Guitar Ensemble. The highlight of the concert will be a performance by the Festival Guitar Orchestra performing Andrew York’s Intergalactic Express.

Mid America Guitar Ensemble Festival Closing concert

Recital Celebrating Women’s History Month

Formed in the summer of 2023, MAGIQ performed its debut concert at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, followed by a concert at Carl Sandburg College in Galesburg. They are scheduled to perform at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale and will be guest soloists with the Edwardsville Symphony in May 2024.

Mid America Guitar Ensemble Festival Guest Artist: MAGIQuartet

The opening concert of the Mid-America Guitar Ensemble Festival will feature ensembles from the following schools: Illinois State University, Childbloom Guitar Program of Bloomington-Normal, Grace College (IN), Illinois Central College, Grand Rapids Community College (MI), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and Purdue University at Fort Wayne (IN).

Mid America Guitar Ensemble Festival Opening Concert

Philharmonia String Orchestra – Dr. Glenn Block, Music Director, with Dr. Katherine Lewis, viola soloist. Music by Holst, Hindemith and George Walker.

Philharmonia Orchestra Concert

Trombone Studio Recital

Concert Choir will be joined by Normal Community High School Chamber Choir as they present “Old and New.”

Concert Choir with Normal Community High School Chamber Choir

Jazz Ensemble I & II Concert

Hailed as “exceedingly interesting” (New York Concert Review) and “kaleidoscopic”(San Francisco Classical Voice), pianist Eunmi Ko concertizes as a recitalist and chamber musician throughout Asia, Europe, and the Americas.

Guest Artist Recital: Eunmi Ko, piano

Wind Symphony Concert with Morton High School

Symphonic Winds Concert

ISU Symphony presents it Valentine’s Day concert for “LOVERS AND OTHER STRANGERS”. Featuring guest conductor MAestro Javier MAs from Argentina. Music by Tchaikovksy, Prokofiev, Bernstein, Lloyd Webber and Carlos Gardel.

ISU Symphony Orchestra Valentine’s Day Concert

Treble Choir, University Glee, and Belle Voix presents a variety of choral music.

University Glee, Treble Choir, and Belle Voix Concert

Dr. Cora Swenson Lee performs works for solo cello by Imogen Holst, Chen Yi, and Gaspar Cassado. She will be joined by pianist Dr. Geoffrey Duce for Chopin’s Sonata for Cello and Piano.

Illinois State University School of Music

Sep 22 - Nov 10, 2024

Symphony Orchestra Concert

Sep 27 - Nov 15, 2024

Jazz Ensemble I & II

Sep 29 - Nov 17, 2024

Wind Symphony Concert

Oct 1, 2024

Charles W. Bolen Faculty Recital: Jillian Kouzel, oboe

Oct 2, 2024

Philharmonia Orchestra Concert

Sep 15, 2024

School of Music Collage Concert

Sep 10, 2024

Charles W. Bolen Faculty Recital: Cora Swenson Lee, cello and guest artist Soo Yeon Kim, violinist

Illinois State University School of Music