NIU Today

Jazz stands among America’s greatest art forms, boasting roots in the African-American culture and a foundation in the African tradition. So says Ron Carter, director of jazz studies in the NIU School of Music. Carter, who was named an NIU Board of Trustees Professor in 2009, will host a Board of Trustees Professor Seminar at...

“When I sing, I have wings. I can fly!” says Moonja Jeong, music major in the College of Visual and Performing Arts. The gifted international student from Korea has certainly soared at NIU, capturing the community’s heart with her powerful voice and gentle spirit. “Voices that are that musical and that strong inspire everyone else...

NIU’s School of Music will host a concert of music by Sever Tipei at 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 2, in the Music Building Recital Hall. The concert is free and open to the public, and the recital hall is accessible to all. Born in 1943 in Bucharest, Romania, Tipei immigrated to the United States in...

NIU’s Avalon String Quartet will continue its complete Beethoven cycle at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 1, in the Boutell Memorial Concert Hall. The Avalon will perform Quartets Op. 18 No. 4, Op. 74 and Op. 132. The concert is free and open to the public, and the auditorium is accessible to all. For those unable...

Paul Bauer, director of NIU’s School of Music, has been elected by his peers as chair of the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM) Region 4. He will serve on the NASM Board of Directors for three years. Region 4 includes Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin. “My 18 years of experience as a director...

We all know it takes talent, sweat, and discipline to be an athlete, but have you ever stopped to think that it takes the same mettle to march in the band? Skeptics need only watch junior Zach Haas perform “Let’s Groove Tonight” on his 45-pound sousaphone during a Huskie halftime show to become believers. The...

NIU’s Avalon String Quartet will continue its complete Beethoven cycle at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 7, in the Boutell Memorial Concert Hall. The Avalon will perform quartets Op. 18, No. 2 in G Major, No. 5 in A Major and No. 1 in F major. The concert is free and open to the public, and...

Traditional holiday carols and a guest organist, pannist and soloists combine for the NIU School of Music’s 14th annual Holiday Concert at 3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 4. The concert will be held in the Boutell Memorial Concert Hall in the Music Building. Sold-out audiences in past years suggest that this event has become a holiday...

Two NIU world music ensembles are preparing to give their annual concert performances next week in NIU’s School of Music. Under the direction of Yung Hsin Chen, Chinese music artist-in-residence, members of the Chinese Music Ensemble will showcase authentic Chinese instruments in solo and ensemble settings at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 16, in the Recital...

NIU School of Music percussion professor Greg Beyer and his wife, flautist Erin Lesser, who collaborate musically as Due East, are about to release their second CD. New Amsterdam Records, whose name has become synonymous with the sweeping array of quality music across classical’s burgeoning independent scene, will issue the deeply expressive “drawn only once”...

The NIU School of Music’s New Music Ensemble, under the direction of Gregory Beyer, will be joined in November by New York City-based ensemble Yarn/Wire. The groups will present two programs of music by major composers of the 20th century. This multi-day event scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 1, and Wednesday, Nov. 2, will be the...

The NIU School of Music will host a concert of new music for piano featuring NIU alum Mabel Kwan. Her performance will take place at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 11, in the Music Building Recital Hall. The concert is free and open to the public, and the hall is accessible to all. Kwan’s program will...