Instrumental Ensembles
University Symphony Orchestra
The ßÙßÇÂþ» Symphony is a symphonic orchestra composed of music majors, minors and dedicated non-majors drawn from throughout the student body. The ensemble presents at least four major concerts each season in a wide range of genres from contemporary works back to the Renaissance.
Auditions for all seats are held during the first week of classes; Students can fulfill their A designation with 4 credits of ensembles.
Director: Jingqi Zhu
Required weekly rehearsals in FA 111
Monday & Wednesday 7:00-9:30 p.m. (1 credit)
University Wind Symphony
A traditional wind band that performs works ranging from standard classic repertoire to new works with a particular focus on music that represents a diverse range of composers and styles. Membership is by audition and is open to all students regardless of their major. The Wind Symphony performs at least four concerts each academic year, collaborating with student, faculty, and guest artists. The group also travels periodically to perform at conferences and other special events. Auditions for all students are held in the first week of classes; . Students can fulfill their A designation with 4 credits of ensembles.
Director: Jennifer L. R. Greene
Required weekly rehearsals in FA 111
Monday & Wednesday 4:40-6:05 p.m. (1 credit)
Harpur Jazz Ensemble
The Harpur Jazz Ensemble studies and performs big-band repertoire and appears frequently on and off campus. Guests who have appeared in concert with this popular ensemble include, among others, Clark Terry, "Slam" Stewart, Manny Albam, Urbie Green, Frank Wess, Phil Woods, Jimmy Owens, Marian McPartland, Steve Brown, Mel Lewis, Slide Hampton, Peter Appleyard, John Faddis, Rufus Reid, Danny D'Imperio, Houston Person, Rob McConnell, Dave Stryker, Chris Washburne, Ron Vincent, Eddie Allen, Bruce Johnstone, Cynthia Scott, Bill Easley, Tia Fuller, Steve Davis, Harry Allen, Walter White, John McNeil, Sherrie Maricle, and Jennifer Leitham.
Director: Greg Evans
Required weekly rehearsals in FA 24
Tuesday 7:00-10:00 p.m. and Thursday 6:00-7:30 p.m. (1 credit)
Harpur Studio Jazz Band
Harpur Studio Jazz Band is a dynamic and versatile student ensemble with a vision to explore repertoire largely derived from the post-bop era of the 1960’s and beyond, with an emphasis on funk, fusion, contemporary and Latin Jazz. In addition to its on-campus performances, the group has been featured on television for the long-running community arts showcase WSKG Expressions, and also makes frequent appearances at Atomic Tom’s in downtown ßÙßÇÂþ». Harpur Studio Jazz Band functions as a performance-based course, and holds auditions at the beginning of each semester.
Director: Laurence Elder
Required weekly rehearsals in FA 24
Wednesday 7:00-10:00 p.m. (1 credit)
Nukporfe African Dance and Drumming Ensemble
The Nukporfe African Dance-Drumming Ensemble comprises singers, dancers, and drummers who have taken introductory courses in African Drumming and Dance in the Departments of Music , Africana Studies, and Theatre, or who have significant previous experience in African music or dance. We give between 4–5 major performances each year at BU as well as throughout the Tri-Cities community, and we often participate in inter-collegiate music festivals and other cultural activities within the area.
Director: James Burns
Required weekly rehearsals in FA 93A
Tuesday 6:00-8:00 p.m. (2 credits)
Chamber Music
Qualified students may be placed in a variety of chamber music ensembles (trios, quartets, quintets, etc.) and receive faculty coaching and University credit. Rehearsals are arranged with a faculty coach.
Small Ensembles
The department offers a variety of small ensembles (e.g., Percussion, Steel Drum, Low Brass, Guitar, Laptop Orchestra, Collegium Musicum) with faculty directors when students, admitted to the major ensemble program have sufficient numbers and interest. The groups rehearse weekly and present a concert each term. Times are arranged to meet students schedules and credit is available.
Choral Groups
Harpur Chorale
ßÙßÇÂþ»'s large inclusive mixed choral ensemble, the Harpur Chorale is an auditioned choral ensemble which performs a wide variety of choral music from multiple genres, styles, time periods, and languages, while still rooted in the Western tradition. Membership includes not only music majors but also as many talented and promising non-major singers as possible who come from strong high school choral music programs and want to continue that experience in college. The Harpur Chorale performs both on campus and in the community, including in collaboration with both ßÙßÇÂþ» University Symphony Orchestra and the ßÙßÇÂþ» Philharmonic.
Director: William Culverhouse
Required weekly rehearsals in FA 27
Tuesday & Thursday 4:25-6:25 p.m. (1 credit)
- Recent Repertoire
Lamma bada yatathanna (Abu-Khader), Make Our Garden Grow (Bernstein), O schöne Nacht (Brahms), Ezekul Saw de Wheel (Dawson), Mo Ghile Mear (Earley), Stars (Ešenvalds), Tuttarana (Esmail), All Too Soon (Hatfield), Wana Baraka (Kirchner), Midwinter Songs, Nocturnes, and Prayer (Lauridsen), ( Hark I Hear the Harps Eternal (Parker), Augu Nakti (Puce), Priiditye Poklonimsya (Rachmaninoff), Canciones por Las Américas (Robinovitch), Let My Love Be Heard (Runestad), Adonai Roi (Shatin), When Dawn Shines (Surti), Rockin' Jerusalem (Thomas), Songs of Renewal (Todd),, Every Night when the Sun Goes Down (Walker).
Treble Chorus
ßÙßÇÂþ»'s distinctive choral ensemble for upper voices, the Treble Chorus is an auditioned choral ensemble which performs a wide variety of choral music from across the centuries and around the globe. The ensemble has a particular specialization in music by women and gender-expansive composers. They explore repertoire of complexity and artistic challenge, while still offering a thorough grounding in healthy vocal technique and musicianship skills. The ensemble performs both on campus and in the community, including on tour in the region.
Director: Megan Burrell
Required weekly rehearsals in FA 27
Monday & Wednesday 7:00-9:00 p.m. (1 credit)
- Recent Repertoire
Joy (Allen), Warrior (Baryluk), Ave Maria (Biebl), Stardust (Boykin), Ain’t No Grave (Caldwell and Ivory), Zion's Walls (Copland), Reel à Bouche (Dalglish), The Dawn Is Not Distant and The Grail Bird (Donkin), Wild Embers (Dunphy), At the Edge of Great Quiet (Folio), Tundra (Gjeilo), Moon Goddess (Hagen), Las Amarillas (Hatfield), O Virtus Sapientiae (Hildegard), El Vito (Jensen), Sicut Cervus (Powell), She Lingers On (Robles), Two Sacred Songs (Schleuse), Psalm 23 (Schubert), The Silver Apples of the Moon (Walker), Five Hebrew Love Songs (Whitacre).
Chamber Singers
ßÙßÇÂþ»'s most selective choral ensemble, the Chamber Singers are a highly skilled vocal ensemble whose 16 members are selected based on sight reading ability and vocal quality and versatility. They prepare and present challenging repertoire chosen from multiple styles, time periods, and cultural contexts. The Chamber Singers perform multiple concerts each academic year, both on and off campus. Singing in Chamber Singers is intended to be as pre-professional a choral experience as possible. These singers work on developing the choral skills that will win professional choral auditions, and they prepare and perform rep that is as close as possible to what they might encounter as professional choral singers in a major metropolitan area. The Chamber Singers served as the demonstration choir for the New York ACDA conducting master class at the 2018 NYSSMA Winter Conference. They have performed on tour in the region, and were invited to collaborate with the ßÙßÇÂþ» Philharmonic and the Southern Tier Singers' Collective in their recent performance of Mozart's Requiem.
Director: William Culverhouse
Required weekly rehearsals in FA 21
Tuesday & Thursday 7:00-9:00 p.m. (1 credit)
- Recent Repertoire
Tal'a min bayt abuha (Abu-Khader), Afternoon on a Hill and Jenny Kiss'd Me (Barnum), Im Herbst (Brahms), Non vos relinquam orphanos (Byrd), I Am the Great Sun (Chydenius), Glow (Joyce), Fire Songs (Lauridsen), Requiem in D minor (Mozart), Sicut cervus (Palestrina), Salve Regina and Un soir de neige (Poulenc), Entarisi ala benziyor (Sun), Light of Late November, Perhaps, and Threads of Joy (Trumbore), Three Flower Songs (Whitacre).
Opera Workshop
The Opera Workshop at ßÙßÇÂþ» is a performance course where students can hone their stage presence, interpretive skills, and character development through stage movement, acting exercises, discussion and staged performances, preparing them for their continued artistic growth. The course is unique in that it is open to graduate and undergraduate voice students facilitating valuable mentorship opportunities between younger and older participants who work together in the class and audition for roles in opera productions. The focus of the workshop class centers around four performances of a one act opera in the Fall semester for both local school children and the public. In the spring, there is a larger scale work with chamber orchestra and an opera scenes program. Past opera productions have included: Die Zauberflöte, Dido and Aeneas, Postcard from Morocco, L'enfant et les sortilèges and L'incoronazione di Poppea.
Opera Workshop is open to BMus and MM Vocal performance majors and to non- majors by competitive audition at the beginning of the Fall semester.
Director: David Carl Toulson
Required weekly rehearsals in FA 21
Monday 9:40-11:50 a.m. and Wednesday 6:45-9:00 p.m. (1 credit)
Studio Lessons
Private studio instruction is available to students in voice and for the following instruments: piano, organ, harpsichord, violin, viola, violoncello, string bass, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, saxophone, trumpet, horn, trombone, euphonium, baritone, tuba, percussion, guitar (classical, jazz), jazz piano, digital instrument (1–2 credits). A fee of $75 (instrumentalists) or $125 (vocalists) is assessed for the semester. Students must audition for private studio lessons during the first week of classes.
Our Facilities
The Department presents nearly 100 concerts yearly including solo recitals and ensemble concerts by students, faculty and guest artists. Many of these events are free for students and take place in the Anderson Center Concert Theater (1170 seats), the Chamber Hall (425 seats), Watters Theater (558 seats), and Casadesus Recital Hall (225 seats).
Please visit the Anderson Center's Theaters page for more information.