Collaborating with Graduate Colloquium Program, Honors College, Asian American Resource Center and Asian American Studies, the School of Music is excited to welcome performing artist, award-winning musician, dancer, and storyteller Jen Shyu to NIU for an interdisciplinary residence program. In this three-day program, Jen Shyu will interact with NIU students to experience the power of performing arts in social activism. All events are free and open to the public. Audience participation is encouraged as well.  For more information, please contact Dr. Jui-Ching Wang. Nov. 29: “‘This Isn’t a ..read more

Critically acclaimed, award-winning composer Shawn E. Okpebholo is working with the NIU School of Music for the world premiere of his new composition, “Gale and Zephyr” at a joint concert featuring the Wind Ensemble and Wind Symphony, Tuesday, November 28 at 7 p.m. in the School of Music’s Boutell Memorial Concert Hall. Okpebholo will be on campus, Thursday, October 26 to participate in an all-school convocation at 11 a.m., and he will attend the Wind Ensemble’s rehearsal that day at 2 p.m. A Grammy-nominated artist, Okpebholo’s music has been featured on PBS Newshour and radio broadcasts acro ..read more

NIU’s Golden Hour Showcase series opens Oct. 12 at the Epiphany Center for the Arts Join the Northern Illinois University School of Music for the first of their performances at Chicago’s Epiphany Center for the Arts Golden Hour Concert Series, Thursday, October 12 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Admission is free of charge, and there is a cash bar and appetizers for purchase available at the venue. The lineup for the October 12 concert features: 5 p.m. – World Music Adventure Yang Wei, pipa Chih-I Hsiao, erhu Jack Holston, daruan Suwan Choi, Korean percussion Chamni Sriprarm, Thai/Laos music Alex Y ..read more

Once again, NIU will present a series of recitals featuring some of the most talented guitarists in the world. The 2023-2024 Northern Illinois University International Guitar Series begins, Sunday, September 24 with Waller and Maxwell Guitar Duo, at 3 p.m. in the Recital Hall in the NIU Music Building. Mark Maxwell and Ann Waller are a husband and wife duo who are both faculty members of the Northwestern University School of Music. They have toured together for more than 30 years. The Waller and Maxwell Guitar Duo has explored the repertoire for two guitars and contributed to it through their ..read more

Three members of the NIU School of Music were honored with 2023 Artist Fellowship Awards from the Illinois Arts Council Agency. Liam Teague, NIU Board of Trustees Professor, Presidential Research, Scholarship and Artistry Professor and Head of Steelpan Studies and Robert Chappell, Distinguished Teaching Professor and Professor Emeritus were jointly awarded a $15,000 fellowship for music improvisation, and Bobby Broom, Associate Professor of Jazz Guitar and Jazz Studies also received a $15,000 fellowship for music improvisation. Liam Teague Robert Chappell Bobby Broom In all ..read more

Marybeth Kurnat A chance encounter with another choral composer in southern Ohio set off a chain of events that will result in School of Music alumna Marybeth Kurnat’s new piece debuting at the PREMIER|Project Festival in Irvine, California, June 27-June 30. Kurnat earned her degree in music education from NIU. She is a vocal and instrumental music educator in the DeKalb school district. “I learned about the festival while I was chaperoning a trip to the ACDA (American Choral Directors Association) National Conference in Cincinnati, because DeKalb had nine students in the Honor choirs,” Kurn ..read more

Congratulations to all of our graduates. We look forward to seeing all of the great things you do. This profile on Kirby Fellis, who earned his MFA in Jazz Performance from the NIU School of Music was featured during commencement ceremonies over the weekend.   The post Graduate Profile: Kirby Fellis, MFA in Jazz Performance appeared first on NIU Arts Blog ..read more

The NIU Philharmonic Orchestra will perform selections from Igor Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring” at their spring concert and they will be joined for those selections by students from the NIU School of Theatre and Dance. The concert is Wednesday, April 26 at 7 p.m. in the Boutell Memorial Concert Hall in NIU’s Music Building. It offers an exciting opportunity to see the dancers from the School of Dance perform with a live orchestra. The concert also features “Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun” by Claude Debussy. Tickets are available online. The NIU Philharmonic Orchestra is conducted by Wi ..read more

Brian Penkrot, instructor of music theory, aural skills and composition in the NIU School of Music performed at the Mission Creek Festival in Iowa City, Iowa, April 6-8. The festival annually brings together authors, publishers and musicians from across the nation. Penkrot’s group, BCJsPs (pronounced “bee-see-jays-peas”) had their debut performance at the festival. He appeared on Iowa Public Radio with band mate Justin K. Comer to preview the performance. BCJsPs is an avant-garde soundscape trio who met while they were earning graduate degrees in composition from the University of Iowa. The in ..read more

The NIU School of Music is collaborating with the NIU Division of Academic Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; Asian American Certificate Program; Latino Resource Center; and Asian American Resource Center to put together the 2023 World Music Festival, Many Voices, One Community Celebrations of Music and Cultures in Our Time that will take place from April 10 to April 15. A series of five concerts showcasing musical cultures of Southeast Asia, East Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa will be presented by NIU students and featured guest performers, which include an elementary school ..read more