UB Department of Music

UB Department of Music The latest news about activities and opportunities at the University at Buffalo Department of Music

We are a department of music with a unique and committed focus on contemporary classical music, building on a long and distinguished institutional history. We offer comprehensive instruction across four traditional musical disciplines: performance, composition, musicology, and music theory, granting undergraduate and graduate degrees. We sponsor and present dozens of student, faculty and in-house

professional, and visiting-artist concerts each year. The department boasts a core performance faculty of seven full-time individuals in the areas of clarinet, trumpet, piano, percussion, voice, violin/viola and violoncello -- all versatile, virtuoso musicians with broad interests, but sharing a deep and central focus on the music of our time. Beyond this core performance faculty, the department features an excellent part-time faculty filling out the instrumental complement, and also including such non-traditionally orchestral instruments as classical and electric guitar, organ and harpsichord, electric bass, classical and jazz saxophone, jazz piano, and more. The Center for 21st Century Music provides a framework for new musical creation and presentation, while the Ph.D. program in music composition has evolved to become one of the most internationally competitive and renowned. A generous endowment established by Frederick and Alice Slee sponsors a remarkable annual cycle of all the Beethoven string quartets, while supporting the historical and continuing excellence of the Music Theory program, including its newly founded Slee Institute for Tonal Harmony.

Coming up this June! Composers, please consider applying!
01/09/2025

Coming up this June! Composers, please consider applying!

**The application deadline for June in Buffalo 2025 has been extended to February 1, 2025.**

We are excited to announce that applications for the 2025 June in Buffalo Festival are open! The Festival will be held at the University at Buffalo from Sunday, June 1 through Saturday, June 7, and will feature lectures and masterclasses led by highly distinguished senior composers Carola Bauckholt (https://www.carolabauckholt.de), George Lewis (https://music.columbia.edu/bios/george-e-lewis), David Sanford (https://www.davidsanford.org), and University at Buffalo Birge-Cary Chair of Composition Ming Tsao (https://www.mingtsao.net).

Each participant composer will have an opportunity to present their work to and receive feedback from each of the senior composers, as well as have a work publicly performed by one of the resident ensembles: Meridian Arts Ensemble (https://www.meridianartsensemble.com), the Slee Sinfonietta (https://arts-sciences.buffalo.edu/music21c/slee-sinfonietta.html), or [Switch~ Ensemble] (https://www.switchensemble.com). To apply, one must propose a work for any of the ensembles or a subset thereof. However, the proposed work does not need to be complete in order to apply. Incomplete drafts are welcome.

June in Buffalo seeks to create a welcoming environment for a diverse and inclusive cadre of emerging composers, and also one which represents a wide range of aesthetic positions under the rubric of new music. Multimedia, electronic, electroacoustic, and purely acoustic works will all be considered.

For full application instructions and to pay the $25 application fee, visit https://arts-sciences.buffalo.edu/music21c/june-in-buffalo/apply.html. Thanks to support from grantor organizations, full tuition is only $800 ($400 to audit), with a $650 optional on-campus housing fee (8 nights).
Questions? Please contact Executive Director Jonathan Golove ([email protected]).

UB Chamber Singers have just released their first album on Spotify, iTunes, and other digital music platforms as well as...
01/08/2025

UB Chamber Singers have just released their first album on Spotify, iTunes, and other digital music platforms as well as in CD form, "When the Earth Stands Still." The album, directed by Associate Teaching Professor and director of UB choirs, Claudia Brown, was recorded and produced by Chris Jacobs, the Department of Music's sound engineer. "When the Earth Stands Still" was recorded by 12 student singers and features a ca****la works by contemporary and Renaissance composers. Renaissance composers on the album include Tomas Luis de Victoria, Hans Leo Hassler, Orlando di Lasso, and John Dowland. Also included are contemporary works for choir by John Tavener, Don MacDonald, Dan Forrest, Eric Whitacre, and holiday works arranged by Reginald Jacques, Charles Wood, and Gustav Holst. The final piece on the album, "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas," was arranged by UB Department of Music alum Sam Kessler. The album can be found on online digital music platforms or a hard copy of the CD can be requested from the Department of Music. Congratulations, UB Chamber Singers!

Link to the Spotify album here: University at Buffalo Chamber Singers - Album by University at Buffalo Chamber Singers | Spotify https://open.spotify.com/artist/68bIct4YRToTvpNJ2bC8Pz?si=wAPw-2gmTkeqJ3O-iUuEKg

Some photos from Monday night’s terrific composition studio concert at Hallwalls in downtown Buffalo. In order: PhD comp...
12/11/2024

Some photos from Monday night’s terrific composition studio concert at Hallwalls in downtown Buffalo.
In order: PhD composition students Lihuen Sirvent, Will
Brobston, Sohwa Lee, and Associate Professor Tom Kolor and our wonderful audience!

12/11/2024

We’re looking forward to this very special event at UB’s Center for the Arts coming up this Tuesday Dec. 17th!

Music Education is back as an important addition to our undergraduate program. The combined 5 yr degree leads to a MusB...
11/22/2024

Music Education is back as an important addition to our undergraduate program. The combined 5 yr degree leads to a MusB performance degree and Masters in Education. Students interested in applying should audition for our MusB performance program.

The Department of Music, in collaboration with the Graduate School of Education, offers an innovative five-year combined Bachelor’s and Master’s program in Music Education. This streamlined pathway allows students to earn New York State certification in music education while bu...

We’re pleased to make available the following PhD TA lines and student scholarships for students applying to our graduat...
11/22/2024

We’re pleased to make available the following PhD TA lines and student scholarships for students applying to our graduate and undergraduate programs. Please see the link below for additional information!

The Department of Music is thrilled to offer an array of scholarships and financial support for incoming students to its undergraduate and graduate degree programs.

Prof. Jon Nelson’s Meridian Arts Ensemble has a new CD out today of recent works by Sanborn and Grabois as well as the g...
11/16/2024

Prof. Jon Nelson’s Meridian Arts Ensemble has a new CD out today of recent works by Sanborn and Grabois as well as the group’s arrangements of Barber, Haydn and Stravinsky

Join us tomorrow evening (WED) at 7:30pm in Baird 250 for this wonderful program of Korean art songs with special guest ...
11/13/2024

Join us tomorrow evening (WED) at 7:30pm in Baird 250 for this wonderful program of Korean art songs with special guest Professor Min Jin from Towson University along with UB guitar professor Sungmin Shin and pianist Haeyeun Jeun.

Students in Prof. Caldwell’s Jazz ensemble perform for members of the Mingus Dynasty Septet this morning at a workshop i...
11/02/2024

Students in Prof. Caldwell’s Jazz ensemble perform for members of the Mingus Dynasty Septet this morning at a workshop in Slee Hall.

11/02/2024

The Mingus Dynasty Septet in Slee Hall tonight (David Kikoski, piano) tearing up our new Bösendorfer.

Fun fact: Charles Mingus was Slee Visiting Professor in 1971. It was a thrill to feature his music and legacy in Buffalo.

Congratulations to PhD in Composition student James Falzone on his new CD from New World Records.
10/29/2024

Congratulations to PhD in Composition student James Falzone on his new CD from New World Records.

The University at Buffalo Department of Music and Graduate School of Education are pleased to announce the planned formation of a new five-year combined Bachelor's and Master's program in Music Education.

Art in the Open is tonight from 5-8pm at the Center for the Arts. Professors Leanne Darling (viola), Sabu Adeyola (doub...
10/29/2024

Art in the Open is tonight from 5-8pm at the Center for the Arts. Professors Leanne Darling (viola), Sabu Adeyola (double bass), George Caldwell (piano), and Sungmin Shin (guitar) will be performing. Please join us!

Celebrate 30 years of memorable experiences with Art in the Open, a free event that invites the community to explore UB’s vibrant arts scene and experience how art is made at UB.

The Talea Ensemble completed a series of student composer readings in preparation for their return to UB on March 14th w...
10/24/2024

The Talea Ensemble completed a series of student composer readings in preparation for their return to UB on March 14th where they will perform a full program of works composed by six of our PhD student composers. Here they are yesterday with composer Francisco Corthey (foreground).

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The Mingus Dynasty Septet in Slee Hall tonight (David Kikoski, piano) tearing up our new Bösendorfer. Fun fact: Charles Mingus was Slee Visiting Professor in 1971. It was a thrill to feature his music and legacy in Buffalo.

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We are a department of music with a unique and committed focus on contemporary classical music, building on a long and distinguished institutional history. We offer comprehensive instruction across four traditional musical disciplines: performance, composition, musicology, and music theory, granting undergraduate and graduate degrees. We sponsor and present dozens of student, faculty and in-house professional, and visiting-artist concerts each year. The department boasts a core performance faculty of seven full-time individuals in the areas of clarinet, trumpet, piano, percussion, voice, violin/viola and violoncello -- all versatile, virtuoso musicians with broad interests, but sharing a deep and central focus on the music of our time. Beyond this core performance faculty, the department features an excellent part-time faculty filling out the instrumental complement, and also including such non-traditionally orchestral instruments as classical and electric guitar, organ and harpsichord, electric bass, classical and jazz saxophone, jazz piano, and more. The Center for 21st Century Music provides a framework for new musical creation and presentation, while the Ph.D. program in music composition has evolved to become one of the most internationally competitive and renowned. A generous endowment established by Frederick and Alice Slee sponsors a remarkable annual cycle of all the Beethoven string quartets, while supporting the historical and continuing excellence of the Music Theory program, including its newly founded Slee Institute for Tonal Harmony.