Students

College of Music welcomes non-music majors

Mariefaith Lane — Tue, 22 Sep 2026 12:19:50 +0000

College of Music welcomes non-music majors Mariefaith Lane Tue, 09/22/2026 - 06:19

Kathryn Bistodeau

The ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� College of Music offers many opportunities for non-music majors to engage, perform and deepen their understanding of music: Here’s how to get started!

Courses
Any course with the prefix MUEL (music elective) is open to all students. Course titles include Introduction to Songwriting, Wild West Soundscapes, Music of the Rock Era, Making Electronic Music, Words and Music, Music and Global Health—and more.

Additional courses without that prefix are crosslisted in other departments. For example, a Gendering K-pop course is available to non-majors by registering through the Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations.

If you take enough music classes, or if you’re interested in more music instruction, explore our music minor comprising 19 credits of music classes, and requiring a basic music theory course and participation in at least one music ensemble. The college also offers a Certificate in Music Technology open to non-majors, and designed to provide a strong background in using technology to compose and produce music.

Ensembles
“In addition to courses for non-majors, the college also offers several cross-genre and world music ensembles,” says Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies + Enrollment Management Matthew Roeder—from our American Roots String Ensemble offered in the fall, and a blues ensemble with brass and rhythm section in the spring, to our African highlife ensemble, Japanese ensemble, Gamelan ensemble, Latin American ensemble and more. All music ensembles (EMUS) at the college are open to any ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� student, though some may require an audition to participate.

One of the largest ensembles open to non-majors is the college’s Golden Buffalo Marching Band (GBMB): More than 90% of the currently record-setting 270 members are non-music majors—and the GBMB represents nearly every school, college, student organization and major at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��.

“The College of Music is proud to offer multiple interdisciplinary offerings to students across the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� campus,” adds Roeder. We hope to welcome you to the college!

Explore non-major studies

The ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� College of Music offers many opportunities for non-music majors to engage, perform and deepen their understanding of music. Learn more + join us!

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Student Government Music Fair to showcase opportunities for engagement

Mariefaith Lane — Fri, 07 Aug 2026 18:36:04 +0000

Student Government Music Fair to showcase opportunities for engagement Mariefaith Lane Fri, 08/07/2026 - 12:36

Kathryn Bistodeau

On Aug. 21, our College of Music Student Government (CMSG) will kick off the fall semester with a brand-new event: the Music Fair.

A tailored iteration of the campuswide Be Involved Fair, the Music Fair will showcase music clubs, ensembles and programs, and offer ways for all students to mix, mingle and explore opportunities for engagement and belonging. Some 26 individual groups are slated to participate including Radio 1190, the Japanese Ensemble, the Golden Buffalo Marching Band, campus acapella groups and more.

Darcy Brydges (BME ’27), CMSG president, says the idea was born from noticing how many students across campus, even within the College of Music, aren’t fully aware of the range and diversity of opportunities available to them.

“The vision for the event is that people will come and learn about the different student organizations that are on campus. They can mingle with people who are playing in ensembles, or learn about adding a music minor to their degree plan,” she says. “We want people to find community in whatever way is meaningful to them.”

CMSG Vice President Zoey Guerra (BME ’27) says one of the missions of the council is to expand opportunities for engagement in music across the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� community—and this fair is a step in the right direction.

“My hope is that everyone who attends goes to at least one meeting of an ensemble or something else that interests them. That would make my heart so happy,” she says. “Just walk in and look around—you’ll definitely find something that piques your interest.”

Brydges also emphasizes the importance of non-majors in the college’s clubs and ensembles: All ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� students are welcome to attend the fair. The diversity of interests within the student body means a richer experience for all participants.

“I’ve been in choir every single year at CU because I have to, but there are other people who participate just because they want to and they’re so passionate about it. It’s their one time of day that they’re not in their business classes or their engineering classes—they get to just have fun,” Brydges says. “I truly believe that the non-music majors actually make our college so much livelier—they have a major impact on our community and make us flourish.”

CMSG has many other exciting events on the horizon this academic year including their collaborations with the Musicians’ Wellness Program and the Entrepreneurship Center for Music.

“We’re here to support and uplift students,” Guerra says. “I think that’s the greatest thing about the CMSG.”

Join us at the Music Fair from 3-6 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 21 in the Imig Music Building, S134.

Explore College of Music Student Government

On Aug. 21, the College of Music Student Government will kick off the fall semester with a brand-new event: the Music Fair! The event will showcase music clubs, ensembles and programs, and offer ways for all students campuswide to mix, mingle and explore opportunities for engagement and belonging. Learn more and join us!

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Gems of the AMRC collections: The George Lynn Memorial Award and the Alex Craig and Christina Lynn-Craig Living Music Award continue with generous bequest

Mariefaith Lane — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 20:01:24 +0000

Gems of the AMRC collections: The George Lynn Memorial Award and the Alex Craig and Christina Lynn-Craig Living Music Award continue with generous bequest Mariefaith Lane Thu, 04/23/2026 - 14:01

Kathryn Bistodeau

Christina Lynn-Craig and her father George Lynn, 1984.

Christina Lynn-Craig (DMA ’94, voice + vocal pedagogy), a board member of the college’s American Music Research Center (AMRC), has had deep ties to ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� her whole life.

“Both my mother and father were on faculty here in the early 1950s,” she says. “They met in 1950, so they were still dating when they were teaching here. Then I met my husband in 1990 when I was a DMA candidate in voice. We were musical partners before we became life partners.”

Her father George Lynn and her late husband Alex Craig both have collections in the AMRC archives. Along with being a composer, Lynn was a nationally celebrated choral conductor and organist, and an assistant professor of music at the College of Music from 1950-52. Craig was a pianist, composer and staff accompanist at our college from 1976-2011.

AMRC Director Michael Uy notes, “our archives are full of many compositional treasures written by ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� faculty—it really is an incredible resource for student performers, researchers and teachers.”

Each of their collections, which contain a complete catalogue of their compositional scores, also has a biannual award that encourages students to research or perform a selection of the music and write about their experiences. The two awards—the George Lynn Memorial Award and the Alex Craig and Christina Lynn-Craig Living Music Award—are given to College of Music students on a rotating basis. This spring, the George Lynn award was granted to Glenda Luck and Grace Stringfellow.

Now, Lynn-Craig is making a generous donation in the form of a bequest, to ensure the continuation of the two awards. “We are beyond grateful for Christina’s gift which provides a permanent monetary incentive for our students to engage with the AMRC’s collections,” says Uy.

CONTINUE TO FULL STORY

Alumna Christina Lynn-Craig, a board member of the college’s American Music Research Center, is making a generous donation to ensure the continuation of the George Lynn Memorial Award and the Alex Craig and Christina Lynn-Craig Living Music Award. The two awards are given to College of Music students on a rotating basis. This spring, the George Lynn Memorial Award was granted to Glenda Luck and Grace Stringfellow.

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Meet Presser Scholar Holly McMahon

Mariefaith Lane — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 19:48:44 +0000

Meet Presser Scholar Holly McMahon Mariefaith Lane Thu, 04/23/2026 - 13:48

Kathryn Bistodeau

Holly McMahon describes music as her first love. When she chose ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��, it was important to her to study something that she enjoyed—and she has.

McMahon—set to graduate next month with a Bachelor of Music degree in composition and a Certificate in Music Technology—is the College of Music’s 2025-26 recipient of a Presser Undergraduate Scholar Award in recognition of her high level of musical and academic excellence, demonstrated leadership and service, and contributions to an inclusive community. Graduating with highest honors, McMahon was nominated for the $3,000 award by Associate Professor of Composition Annika Socolofsky.

“[Socolofsky] has been a huge advocate for me,” McMahon says. “That’s a really beautiful thing. One day, when I have the influence to do so, I’d like to lift others up in a similar fashion, and advocate for other young composers and artists.”

As a student here, McMahon was involved in the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Early Music Ensemble as well as our chamber groups and world music ensembles. “As a composer, being in the world music ensembles was such a blessing, diversifying the types of music I was exposed to,” she says. She also participated in our Persevering Legacy events including this spring’s concert, performing excerpts from a ballet she composed, “The Snow Queen.”

When McMahon reflects on her time at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��, she says she’s learned a lot about music—and about herself. “I’ve really come into myself as a person, not as a productivity machine,” she shares. “Now, so much of my worth comes from things that don’t have to do with what I’ve produced, and more just who I am and what I’ve learned about myself.

“I think that’s so important in my trajectory as a composer because it allows me to approach music in a way where I’m not projecting my insecurities onto it. It’s just me and I think that’s where the best music that I’ve written has come from.”

This fall, McMahon will pursue a master’s degree in composition at the University of Michigan: “I’m very, very excited about it!”

Congratulations to McMahon and to all of our 2025-26 graduates!

Explore composition at our College of Music

Set to graduate next month with a Bachelor of Music degree in composition and a Certificate in Music Technology, McMahon is the College of Music’s 2025-26 recipient of a Presser Undergraduate Scholar Award in recognition of her high level of musical and academic excellence, demonstrated leadership and service, and contributions to an inclusive community. Congratulations to McMahon who’s graduating with highest honors—and to all of our winter 2025 and spring 2026 graduates!

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Johnette M. Martin awarded Fulbright to study Indigenous musical sovereignty

Mariefaith Lane — Thu, 16 Apr 2026 20:17:55 +0000

Johnette M. Martin awarded Fulbright to study Indigenous musical sovereignty Mariefaith Lane Thu, 04/16/2026 - 14:17

College of Music

The College of Music is pleased to share that our very own Johnette M. Martin is the recipient of the 2026-27 Fulbright U.S. Student Award to Aotearoa New Zealand!

“I’m honored,” says Martin, who plans to graduate in 2028 with a PhD in music, specializing in indigenous ethnomusicology with a geographic focus on Oceania. “This opportunity feels both humbling and affirming—a recognition not only of my work but also of the communities, mentors and collaborators who have shaped how I listen, think and create.

“To me, the Fulbright represents a commitment to dialogue across difference—an invitation to engage music and sound as ways of building relationships, asking better questions and learning with and from others.”

The Fulbright is one of the most prestigious and competitive international exchange programs in the world, supporting exceptional scholars whose work demonstrates significant academic merit, cultural engagement and global impact. Among Fulbright applicants, New Zealand is widely regarded as one of the most sought-after and highly competitive placements, making this achievement especially distinguished.

Martin will conduct advanced research in Aotearoa, continuing her work on indigenous musical sovereignty and community-centered scholarship. “What excites me most is the chance to immerse myself in new sonic worlds while contributing meaningfully through research, collaboration and teaching,” Martin shares. “I’m especially looking forward to the unexpected moments—the conversations, rehearsals and everyday exchanges that challenge assumptions and open new directions for my work as a Kanaka Maoli Indigenous woman and scholar.”

She adds, “My time at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� College of Music has been central to this journey. The college’s universal musician approach—grounded in curiosity, versatility and a willingness to move across disciplines—has shaped how I approach music not just as an object of study but as a living, relational practice. That broadly-based training has prepared me to engage this next chapter with openness, rigor and care.

“I’m grateful for the guidance, support and aloha that made this possible and excited for what lies ahead.”

Congratulations, Johnette, on this extraordinary honor and on representing your communities and your university with such purpose!

Explore musicology at the College of Music

The College of Music is pleased to share that our very own Johnette M. Martin (PhD candidate, ethnomusicology) is the recipient of the 2026-27 Fulbright U.S. Student Award to Aotearoa New Zealand!

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Meet 2026 Outstanding Graduating Senior Luka Vezmar

Mariefaith Lane — Mon, 13 Apr 2026 21:48:27 +0000

Meet 2026 Outstanding Graduating Senior Luka Vezmar Mariefaith Lane Mon, 04/13/2026 - 15:48

Kathryn Bistodeau

Luka Vezmar experienced the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� College of Music to the fullest and advises incoming freshmen to “say yes, especially at the beginning, because that could set you up to be saying a lot of yeses to opportunities later, too.”

By faculty vote, Vezmar was named the college’s 2026 Outstanding Graduating Senior based on his strong record of scholarship, musicianship and an emerging record of service and/or leadership. Majoring in both composition and oboe performance, Vezmar was doubly engaged.

Since his freshman year, he’s been part of the Bar Before Quintet, a wind ensemble also including Corva Graham (flute), Nikhila Narayana (clarinet), Nathan Bonin (horn) and David Guy (bassoon). “We got into two national competitions this year—the Coltman Chamber Competition and the Music Teachers National Association [MTNA] Competition—winning third place at MTNA which was really awesome,” he says.

Through the college’s Chamber Music Program, he also met Associate Professor of Violin Harumi Rhodes and eventually composed a piece for her Faculty Tuesdays concert in September 2025, with Rhodes on violin and himself on accordion. “That was probably my favorite commission because we got to have so much fun and we incorporated staging which made the music come alive,” Vezmar says. He further composed pieces for the College of Music Chamber Winds as well as commissions for Chase the Music, bringing inspiration to children battling critical illnesses with music written and performed just for them.

Vezmar also worked three years as an usher under the supervision of CU Presents Front of House Director Rojana Savoye. “She’s the best boss ever and I got to still be close to music by listening to the concerts I was working,” he says.

In addition to giving a speech at the College of Music’s recognition ceremony on May 2, Vezmar is performing in the Colorado Symphony’s “The Rite of Spring” concerts, May 1-3. “It’s crazy, but very wonderful.”

“I'm very thankful for all of the experiences I’ve had here and for all of my professors, getting me to where I am today,” he adds. “Being named Outstanding Senior is a wonderful end to my time at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��—it’s nice to know that what I did is appreciated and that I made an impact.”

This fall, Vezmar will continue his studies at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, pursuing a master’s in composition.

Congratulations to Vezmar and all of our 2026 outstanding students!

Outstanding Graduating Senior—Luka Vezmar, composition + oboe performance
Outstanding Junior—Corva Graham, flute performance
Outstanding Sophomore—David Guy, music education (instrumental band) + bassoon performance
Outstanding Freshman—Eliot BeVier Dill, musicology

Learn more about the college’s 2026 recognition ceremony!

College of Music faculty name Luka Vezmar the 2026 Outstanding Graduating Senior: Selection is based on a strong record of scholarship, musicianship and an emerging record of service and/or leadership. Congratulations!

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2026 Concerto Competition winners announced

Mariefaith Lane — Thu, 02 Apr 2026 20:02:56 +0000

2026 Concerto Competition winners announced Mariefaith Lane Thu, 04/02/2026 - 14:02

Kathryn Bistodeau

Congratulations to the winners of the College of Music’s 2025-26 Concerto Competition! On March 29 in Grusin Music Hall, the competition finals showcased the college’s remarkable graduate and undergraduate students competing for a chance to perform with the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Symphony Orchestra this fall. Undergraduate flutist Corva Graham and graduate cellist Sam Moore won that honor and will appear as soloists with the orchestra during its 2026-27 season.*

Undergraduate competition winner
Corva Graham, a third-year undergraduate studying flute performance and statistics & data science, won the undergraduate competition performing Hisatada Otaka’s Concerto for Flute and Orchestra, Op. 30b accompanied by Associate Teaching Professor of Collaborative Piano Hsiao-Ling Lin. Graham is a student of Professor of Flute Christina Jennings, Brook Ferguson and Rachelle Crowell.

“Winning this competition is incredibly meaningful to me and I’m so excited to share the Otaka concerto later this year,” she says. “Though not widely known, it’s one of my favorite works. The concerto blends Eastern musical ideas with late-Romantic influences. It contains post-World War II gravity paired with a persistent sense of resilience and hope.

“I'd like to thank Professor Christina Jennings and Brook Ferguson as well as the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Fludio [flute studio] for their support. I'm also feeling especially grateful to Dr. Hsiao-Ling Lin for her inspiration and collaboration.”

Graduate competition winner
First-year master’s student in cello performance Sam Moore performed Dmitri Kabalevsky’s Cello Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 77 accompanied by Will Shi, lecturer, collaborative piano. Moore is currently studying with Associate Professor of Cello David Requiro.

“I feel very grateful for all of my mentors, especially Professor Requiro, for their guidance,” he says. “I'd also like to thank my collaborator, Dr. William Shi, for all his work. I'm excited to perform this incredible concerto with the orchestra next year!”

Honorable mention
Congratulations also to Spencer Cox, saxophone—a student of Assistant Professor of Saxophone Nathan Mertens—who performed Ingolf Dahl’s Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Orchestra earning an honorable mention.

Congratulations to all who competed this year!

Undergraduate finalists:
Corva Graham, flute
Keegan Arnsmeier, trumpet
Willem Rohwer, double bass

Graduate finalists:
Sam Moore, cello
Spencer Cox, saxophone (honorable mention)
Hannah Benson, mezzo-soprano
Conner Johnson, trumpet
Andrew Konopak, baritone
Katharine Nelson, violin
John Petefish, clarinet
Warner Nûñez Solano, piano
Jordan Spivack, horn

This year, the judging panel for the finals included Co-chair, Voice + Opera + Musical Theatre and Associate Professor of Vocal Coaching Jeremy Reger, Assistant Teaching Professor of Music Education and Associate Director of Orchestras Renee Gilliland, Assistant Professor of Conducting + Music Education and Associate Director of Bands Logan Sorey and guest judge Natasha Kislenko—piano/collaborative piano faculty at the University of California, Santa Barbara and Music Academy of the West, and principal pianist of the Santa Barbara Symphony.

*Check cupresents.org to catch the winners’ performances this fall!

Left to right: Reger, Kislenko, Graham, Gilliland, Sorey.

Left to right: Sorey, Gilliland, Moore, Cox, Kislenko, Reger.

Explore our awards + competitions

On March 29, undergraduate flutist Corva Graham and graduate cellist Sam Moore won first prizes in the annual College of Music Concerto Competition: They will perform with the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Symphony Orchestra this fall. Congratulations to all finalists, also including Spencer Cox, saxophone, who earned an honorable mention!

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SSCI grant to examine singing at altitude

Mariefaith Lane — Mon, 23 Mar 2026 16:56:55 +0000

SSCI grant to examine singing at altitude Mariefaith Lane Mon, 03/23/2026 - 10:56

College of Music

Nicholas Perna, associate professor of voice + director of vocal pedagogy—along with students Whitney Robinson (DMA ’28) and Alice Del Simone (DMA ’26)—demonstrates how the RespTrak system measures abdominal and rib cage movement.

The ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� College of Music is pleased to share that Associate Professor of Voice + Director of Vocal Pedagogy Nicholas Perna—and a team of collaborators including Jen Walentas Lewon (��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences), and Mona Abaza and Blair Whiteside (CU Anschutz Department of Otolaryngology)—were awarded a $10K grant from the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Division of Social Sciences (SSCI).

SSCI grants support initiatives focused on equity, interdisciplinarity, student success and staff/faculty support. This newly funded collaboration is a multiyear initiative that will examine why it's difficult to adapt to singing here in Colorado, and provide best practices for singers who tour through or move to our state “to keep their voices healthy and adapt to singing at altitude with efficiency,” says Perna, who directs the college’s vocal pedagogy program.

To start, a new RespTrak system—purchased with support from Perna’s ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Arts & Sciences grant last year and housed in the Berton Coffin Voice Lab—will measure abdominal and rib cage movement as singers adapt respiratory strategies upon arriving at altitude over several months. The SSCI grant funds a stroboscope system housed in the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences (SHLS). “This is the first stroboscopic system on the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� campus,” notes Perna. “This system will allow us to take high-definition pictures and videos of the vocal folds of a singer to determine function, normality and health of vocal fold anatomy.”

The screenings will provide SLHS graduate students with supervised experience performing stroboscopic exams on singers. Participating College of Music singers will benefit from the opportunity to have a baseline stroboscopic screening upon their arrival at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� and near the conclusion of their first year.

Congratulations to all awardees!

An innovative, ‘multiplistic’ approach to vocal pedagogy

A newly funded interdisciplinary collaboration will examine why it’s difficult to adapt to singing here in Colorado, and provide best practices for singers who tour through or move to our state “to keep their voices healthy and adapt to singing at altitude with efficiency,” says Nicholas Perna, associate professor of voice + director of vocal pedagogy.

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2026 Persevering Legacy—meet the performers

Mariefaith Lane — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 13:08:54 +0000

2026 Persevering Legacy—meet the performers Mariefaith Lane Thu, 03/12/2026 - 07:08

Kathryn Bistodeau

On March 26, the annual College of Music Persevering Legacy event will celebrate women composers including those from historically marginalized groups. Undergraduate and graduate students have the opportunity to choose compositions from the Helen Walker-Hill collection housed in our very own American Music Research Center, or contribute their own discoveries: This year, seven acts from across the College of Music will present pieces from Jessie Montgomery to Dolores White and more.

Holly McMahon

Senior composition student Holly McMahon describes the event as “music you’ve probably never heard before and a lot of students excited to share pieces that are uniquely interesting to them.”

McMahon is part of an ensemble performing excerpts from a ballet she wrote—“The Snow Queen”—, a rendition of a story by Hans Christian Anderson. McMahon will play piano alongside Katherine Fornshell (cello), Caden Craig (clarinet) and Elijah Pouliot (violin).

McMahon has performed in previous Persevering Legacy events and has been attending them since her first year at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��. “It was a really nice concert for me to go to when I was a freshman,” she says. “I didn’t know that much about female composers and it’s inspiring to see yourself in composers on a program. This year, I wanted to give back and add to the concert.”

She was commissioned by a local dance studio to compose “The Snow Queen” which was performed in full, with dancers, in December. McMahon herself danced seven years before beginning her undergraduate degree. “There’s so much joy that can come from writing music meant for movement,” she says. “It feels very me to have written this ballet.

“I really love the music that I wrote and the group that I’m playing with.”

Lucy O’Byrne

This is also the first year that the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Thompson Jazz Studies Program will be represented in the event with a sextet performing Esperanza Spalding’s “Mela.” Lucy O’Byrne, a sophomore in jazz saxophone performance, says that only makes sense: “Jazz is a very male dominated music and I’m not saying that classical music isn’t,” she says. “Just historically, women have not been safe or welcomed to perform in a lot of the spaces where jazz is welcome.”

O’Byrne jumped at the chance to perform a more difficult piece, diving in and working hard to prepare. “The music we’re playing is really challenging. We’re having a total of five or six rehearsals,” she says. “We really want to put time and effort into making it sound super good.”

The ensemble will also feature sophomores Bella Lanier (voice), Avi Bergman (trumpet), Gabe Hazleton (piano) and Gavin Hulse (drums), and freshman Mateo Perez (bass). While the ensemble wasn’t assigned by the department, the students have played together before.

“A really awesome thing about the jazz department—which I’m glad that we’re able to feature on this concert—is that all of us have a lot of experience playing with each other. The department’s small and we’re all friends who play together often,” adds O’Byrne.

Shai Wexler

Shai Wexler—a first-year master’s student in violin performance—will perform a piece for solo violin, “T’filah” (“Prayer”) by Lera Auerbach.

“It’s very meaningful to me because it’s a piece by a female Jewish composer on Jewish themes and that I feel very connected to because I’m Jewish,” she says.

For Wexler, there are parts of the piece that portray anxiety and unease about the world, and the ability to use music and prayer to express that. “This piece uses a lot of musical language from Jewish prayers and the violin really mimics the human voice,” she explains. “It sounds a lot like a cantor singing in synagogue which I think is really special.”

Wexler is also looking forward to the freedom the piece offers—it’s an unmetered work, meaning the performing musician can choose the rhythm and pacing. “That’s a really exciting opportunity for me because I haven’t played a lot of works like that,” she says.

“In classical music a lot of the time, we’re trained to play what’s on the page exactly as the composer intended. It’s been really meaningful to have this opportunity to break out of that a little bit and present my own unique interpretation of this piece.”

The participating students’ excitement and anticipation is palpable. They’re eager to work with the other students on the program and experience something new: “I’m really looking forward to being educated on artists and composers from other genres that are also underrepresented in this music,” O’Byrne says. “I’m looking forward to learning and hearing what other people have to say.”

Complementing the Persevering Legacy event on March 26, 7:30 p.m., Chamber Hall (S102), Imig Music Building, alumnus Gregory Walker (DMA ’92, composition)—son of the late Helen Walker-Hill and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer George Walker—will lead a master class for students on March 24, 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (N180D).

Discover the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Diverse Musicians’ Alliance

The ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Diverse Musicians’ Alliance presents its annual Persevering Legacy event celebrating women composers including those from historically marginalized groups. Meet some of the student performers, learn about their chosen works and join us on March 26!

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Nathan Mertens awarded NEA GAP grant

Mariefaith Lane — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 00:52:24 +0000

Nathan Mertens awarded NEA GAP grant Mariefaith Lane Tue, 02/17/2026 - 17:52

College of Music

The University of Colorado Boulder College of Music is proud to announce that Assistant Professor of Saxophone Nathan Mertens received a National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Grants for Arts Projects (GAP) award valued at more than $35K. This is the College of Music’s first NEA GAP grant representing an important step forward for ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� in national arts funding.

The funded initiative—“American Saxophone Concertos New Voices and Visions”—is part of the NEA’s Celebrating America’s 250th Anniversary highlighting American composition and performance. The project centers on the professional recording of four saxophone concertos by living American composers, culminating in a commercial CD release.

A newly commissioned concerto by Anthony R. Green sits at the heart of the project. Written for Mertens—to be premiered with the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Wind Symphony in fall 2026—this work is funded by the Bixler Family Foundation and a ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Research & Innovation Office Arts & Humanities Grant. In addition to Green’s concerto, Mertens will record another concerto with the Wind Symphony conducted by the College of Music’s Director of Bands Shanti Simon; as well as two concertos with the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Symphony Orchestra under our Director of Orchestral Studies Gary Lewis (details forthcoming). All recordings will be engineered by the college’s Kevin Harbison.

“This is an exciting and important milestone for our college, in keeping with our universal musician approach to achieving our mission,” says John Davis, Dean of the College of Music. “Nathan’s work supports American composition at the highest level and offers many of our students access to a significant creative project from development to recording.” Students will work directly with composers in rehearsals and recording sessions and appear on the final album, earning a rare professional credit while still in training. Through collaboration with visiting composers and participation in professional sessions, the project prepares them for real-world performance and artistic collaboration.

“I am thankful to the College of Music and the University of Colorado Boulder for the support that made this possible. This was far from a solo effort and I’m very lucky to have colleagues at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� who turn complicated processes into something possible,” says Mertens. “I especially want to thank Donna Axel, Associate Director of Research Development at the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Research & Innovation Office (RIO), for her guidance and encouragement throughout this process; and Tessa Brandt, Proposal Analyst in RIO’s Office of Contracts and Grants, for her budgetary wizardry!

“Grants are often associated with big, shiny ideas—but they really begin in the details, in offices and email threads. I’m excited to turn all these details into reality … and some fun!”

Congratulations!

Recording sessions will take place throughout 2026 and 2027 in ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Macky Auditorium.

Meet Nathan Mertens—NEA GAP grant recipient

Assistant Professor of Saxophone Nathan Mertens was awarded a National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Grants for Arts Projects (GAP) grant! This is the College of Music’s first NEA GAP award representing an important milestone for ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� in national arts funding.

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