will celebrate the impact and influence of Associate Professor of Jazz Studies Paul McKee who retires this year. In the following tribute, Professor of Jazz Studies John Gunther—who directs our Thompson Jazz Studies Program—reflects on the remarkable career and contributions of the world-renowned jazz trombonist, arranger, composer and educator: 

For more than a decade, Paul’s contributions to the Thompson Jazz Studies Program and the College of Music have been of the highest caliber and his tenure at 91��ý caps a 33-year career in higher education that began in 1991. 

Paul possesses remarkable artistry in his performance and composition. As a jazz trombonist, he is regarded as one of the top performers in the world. His ability on the instrument shows a level of artistry rarely heard. He is simply a beautiful player with a gift for swing and expressive melodic improvisation. 

As a composer and arranger, Paul is equally regarded as one of the best. Paul’s specialty as an arranger is in the tradition of big band swing, having spent many years on the road with one of the great touring swing bands—the Woody Herman Orchestra. He can create an arrangement that captures the spirit of the tradition of the music while adding his own contemporary voice. Many of his arrangements are performed by high school and college bands across the country. Creating a jazz composition that is accessible to young musicians yet still retains the sound and excitement of the idiom is not easily accomplished, but it is a craft that Paul has mastered. 

Paul approaches all his classes and applied lessons with high expectations for his students, a sense of genuine care, and a dedication to their growth and learning. At 91��ý, he has directed the department's large and small jazz ensembles, taught applied jazz trombone lessons, and taught Jazz Composition + Arranging and Jazz Theory + Aural Skills—as well as advised and directed graduate students in individual composition study. Just recently, while attending a concert, I heard how much growth had occurred in one of the young jazz trombonists. He had a grasp of jazz improvisation at a level that I had not heard just a few months before. When I complimented the student, he grinned and said, “... it’s because I’m studying with Paul!” 

Paul has been an integral part of the growth and success of the College of Music’s jazz program. As department chair, I have always been able to rely on his steadfast commitment to his teaching and artistry. He will be greatly missed and leaves us with a legacy of great teaching and beautiful music making.

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A wealth of influences coexist in Enion Pelta-Tiller’s approach to music.

Classical components drawn from composers like Berlioz, Mahler, Bartok and Stravinsky; jazz violin echoes that summon the best work of Stephane Grappelli and other giants of the genre; folk and traditional elements that run the geographical gamut from Eastern Europe to Ireland to India—all of these ingredients figure into Pelta-Tiller’s ambitious and unique brand of fusion.

It’s no wonder, considering her consistent dedication to musical exploration which started with childhood and college classical music studies in San Francisco and continued after she moved to New York, connected with her future husband/musical collaborator David Tiller and eventually landed in Colorado.

“The Bay Area was a great place to grow up, musically speaking,” Pelta-Tiller recalls. “I became quite interested in experimenting with improvisation and often spent hours improvising music that sounded like what I was supposed to be practicing, or played along with Coltrane, Miles, TISQ, Jascha Heifetz and Ravi Shankar records. I was in this environment of classical, new acoustic and bluegrass-adjacent music, jazz and Indian music—and soaking it all up. 

“When I moved to New York after college, I got involved in playing new music, rock, Irish music and bluegrass.”

Combined, these influences helped carve out Pelta-Tiller’s unique niche in the local music scene, and show up in her work as a performer and an educator, as a composer and as a collaborator with musical luminaries from across the globe. She’s a founding member of the critically acclaimed indie-folk group  and directs our new Cross-Genre American Roots Strings Ensemble, roles that draw directly on her wide-ranging interests and skills. She’s also a master’s candidate in jazz performance and pedagogy at the College of Music, set to graduate in May.

Pelta-Tiller’s no-holds-barred musical approach is sure to figure in her upcoming show at  on March 11 with her group EnQuintet—a jazz ensemble that also features 91��ý faculty members John Gunther on winds/reeds and Victor Mestas on piano as well as Eric Thorin on bass and Kevin Mathews on drums. 

“This time, we’re mostly focusing on repertoire from members of the David Grisman Quintet because I’m interested in how that music—so inspired by both jazz and bluegrass—sounds when played by more traditional jazz instruments instead of in a string band setting,” she says. “For a couple tunes, we’ll add extra horns—Wil Swindler, Jonas Peterson and Cian Kruger—and give our pianist a rest.”

The show will also be an occasion to experience Pelta-Tiller playing her six-string violin—also known as a fadolin—made by New York-based luthier Eric Aceto, offering the depth and tone of a baroque instrument. “It’s amazing for accompanying myself on voice and expanding my improvisational palette,” she notes.

Expanding her skill-set and pushing the boundaries of creative expression have long been a hallmark of Pelta-Tiller’s approach and her connections within the College of Music have only deepened that mission, especially as it aligns with the college’s universal musician approach to fulfilling its mission.

She speaks of the work she’s done with students in her cross-genre ensemble, taking part in fiddle flash mobs and collaborating with artists like Klezmer fiddler Alicia Svigals. She speaks of  working with jazz faculty members like Gunther, Mestas and composition professor Annika Socolofsky. It’s all been part of a musical evolution that began when Pelta-Tiller played musical call-and-response games with her father as an infant.

91��ý has been integral to that evolution and Pelta-Tiller looks forward to continuing the connection long after the upcoming Dazzle show and her time as a graduate student.

“In directing combos, my arranging and improvisation skills have been challenged,” she notes. “And in playing with my graduate colleagues in the jazz department, some of whom are doing really far out stuff, my concept of form and my musical imagination have been stretched further than I could have conceived.”

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Since 2019, the 91��ý College of Music’s annual Persevering Legacy events have showcased works by women composers, including those from historically marginalized groups. This year’s concert and master class are no different.

Student soloists and ensembles are encouraged to select works from the —housed in our American Music Research Center archives—comprising compositions by Black women composers.

This year, the concert will feature 11 different acts—including the 91��ý Chamber Singers led by Director of Choral Activities Coreen Duffy—presenting compositions by Connie Converse, Reena Esmail, Florence Price, B.E. Boykin and our previous Genevieve McVey Wisner lecturer Gabriela Lena Frank, among others. 

“Persevering Legacy is an opportunity for students to research composers or pieces that may be entirely new to them and then present those works, broadening their scope,” says Alexis McClain, director of community support + programming, who helps facilitate Persevering Legacy. “Our audiences also benefit, experiencing music that’s not often programmed.”

Alumnus  (DMA ’92, composition)—son of the late Helen Walker-Hill and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer George Walker—will lead a master class for Persevering Legacy participants, working through the pieces they’ve selected and offering his unique background, knowledge, insight and passion for the collection based on his directly personal connection.

“I’ve watched the collection unfold from close proximity for a number of years and love every aspect of the master class,” he says. “I love the music. I love getting in touch with the students who are discovering this music, often for the first time. And really, this keeps my mom alive for me because it’s not just my mother’s work, but a life’s work.” 

Walker says playing new and largely unfamiliar pieces is helpful to students in their music careers as it allows them to apply their creativity and artistry in perhaps unexpected ways. 

“We spend most of our music education studying the guys that are the Mount Rushmore of classical music. The thing is, there’s a lot of baggage that comes with this default—not only are you trying to nail the notes, but there are all these expectations that have been dictated by performers who preceded you,” says Walker who recently released a satirical new book, “.”

“So, if you’ve got these underrepresented composers, not only have you found them or are championing them, but you have to make these decisions,” he adds. “You have to develop your own internal tradition and use your creativity. It's more than you and impressing your audience that’s at stake, it's making a case for someone who could still be lost to history after you're done performing that night—and that is a really worthy challenge.”

Join us for the  on Thursday, March 6 at 7:30 p.m. and the preceding  with Gregory Walker on Tuesday, March 4 at 2 p.m., both in the Chamber Hall (S102), Imig Music Building.

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“Art is possibility, expression is potential.”

That’s according to , the Pulitzer Prize-winning Diné composer, musician and sound installation artist slated to deliver the 91��ý College of Music’s annual  Genevieve McVey Wisner lecture on Feb. 26. In his wide-ranging and ambitious oeuvre, Chacon—a member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico—has tackled themes ranging from colonization to displacement to questions of environmental stewardship and conservation.

The myriad media he’s chosen to explore these themes reflect a spirit of creative exploration. His Pulitzer Prize-winning work, “Voiceless Mass,” is an ensemble work composed specifically to be performed in any space of worship with high ceilings and pipe organ. “Sound Ladder” is a sound installation—debuted in 2024—that features a sequence of 16 pine planks hung from ceiling to floor; for this work, Chacon collaborated with members of the Bål Nango family, a Sámi family of reindeer herders and land guardians.

Chacon has built instruments and explored new ways to present sound. He’s paired his compositions with visual cues and physical components, and drawn upon the very land surrounding his compositions to convey his messages.

“I think art is there to show that we can all think in different ways, we can all dream in ways we didn’t know we could,” Chacon explains. “We’re in danger when we become narrow and exclude possibilities.” That philosophy is part of the lure of Chacon’s upcoming visit to Boulder. Working firsthand with students and offering novel perspectives about the possibilities of self-expression reconnects the artist to his own commitment to learning and growth; the chance to explore his work and style with developing musicians and artists holds its own unique appeal.

“Part of my interest in giving lectures and visiting universities is to share my work and offer music students insights into ways that music doesn’t have to be on the stage,” Chacon says, also reflecting the College of Music’s universal musician approach to achieving our mission. “It can be presented in different media—performance art, sound sculpture, as film or video. I am really interested in sharing my different tactics with students.”

The concept of place plays a large role in Chacon’s work and one of the pieces he’ll detail in his lecture is located in the United Arab Emirates in a “ghost village” that was originally assigned to a tribe of nomads by the government. “Being that they’re nomadic people, they did not move in. These houses are being taken by the desert,” Chacon explains. 

“I’ve collaborated with these individuals and musicians to record their songs,” he adds, noting that the ultimate effect of the installation is that “it sounds like their music is moving through these houses and into the desert.”

It’s an immediacy that Chacon stresses in his approach to music. While he’s a classically trained composer and musician, he’s careful not to undervalue the importance of the indefinable elements of the art form—the aspects of music that can’t necessarily be conveyed in a classroom, studio or textbook.

“I do feel like I’m continually learning,” says Chacon . I’m always seeking out the best media that an artwork should take. I’m constantly researching new technologies—experiencing exhibitions, artists and concerts. 

“I’m still a big fan of being able to see musicians play, even more so than listening to recordings. I think live music is not only an obligation or responsibility, but it’s something that is wonderful to do, as a member of an audience.”

Even as he tackles weighty questions in his work, Chacon also finds power and joy in the ability to create—a boon he looks forward to sharing during his residency. “No matter what our occupation or how we spend our daily lives, we should be conscious of the work we can do to improve upon justice and the way we treat each other.”
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Join us for the College of Music’s annual Genevieve McVey Wisner Lectureship* featuring Raven Chacon on Feb. 26 at 11:30 a.m., Chamber Hall (S102), Imig Music Building. On Feb. 27 at 9:30 a.m., Room NB185, Imig Music Building, Chacon will be part of a panel discussion, “Situating your soul’s work in a hegemonic sphere.” Both events are free and open to the public. 

Raven Chacon’s residency is made possible by the 91��ý American Music Research Center, the College of Music’s composition department and the college’s Diverse Musicians’ Alliance. 

*Having graduated from Western University in Kansas—an historically Black college—with her first bachelor’s degree in 1922, Genevieve McVey Wisner became the first Black graduate of the College of Music in 1940 with a bachelor’s degree in music education, followed by a master’s degree in 1944 at age 42.

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At the 91��ý College of Music, student ingenuity and creativity know no bounds. Recently, two graduate students—Nicholas Felder, a DMA student in music composition and Ian Gunnarschja, a master’s student in saxophone performance and pedagogy—received grants supporting their innovative projects.

Felder’s grant came from  with support from the 91��ý Office of the Provost and 91��ý University Libraries. Open CU shares educational resources across the four CU campuses and beyond; any content created is made publicly available.

“My project—Equitable Practices in Music—will be an open Canvas course focusing on topics such as personal and social identity, systems of power and oppression, and cultural humility,” Felder says, “to support my Basic Composition class as well as student musicians broadly.”

Along with developing this resource, he has been leading equity workshops at our College of Music to help students consider practices such as compassionate listening and open communication. “I would love to thank the open educational resource [OER] leads and the 91��ý Digital Accessibility Office for all their support and guidance during the development of this project,” Felder adds.

While the College of Music is fortunate to have DEI Director Alexis McClain on staff, other colleges and schools of music across the country don’t have their own diversity, equity and inclusion resources or staff. “They rely on university programming to implement equitable practices,” Felder explains. “I’m looking forward to sharing this content with students in the College of Music and music schools nationwide.”

Gunnarschja’s grant came from the 91��ý Center for Humanities & the Arts' MFA/MM Excellence in Creative Research Microgrant which supports the creative practice of master’s students—e.g., equipment, space, materials and honoraria that are not otherwise covered.

“The grant supports my development of an accessible website that supports neurodiverse musicians in their pursuit of wellness,” Gunnarschja says. “This resource will focus on practices such as the Alexander Technique, Body Mapping and Dalcroze, alongside a curated selection of general resources that are beneficial to the neurodivergent community.”

More specifically, the CHA grant will help fund the website domain, allow Gunnarschja to interview experts and increase accessibility on the website.

“This website represents a novel approach to a master’s thesis by prioritizing an accessible, user-friendly and lasting format,” Gunnarschja adds. “I aim to foster a thriving community where musicians of varying neurodiversity can connect, support one another and access wellness resources that meet their unique needs.

“I look forward to creating a space where I can curate resources that I would have benefited from as a neurodiverse musician.”

Congratulations to Felder and Gunnarschja for their meaningful achievements!

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With support from a $15K 91��ý Center for Humanities & the Arts (CHA) grant, the Chicago-based returned to the College of Music earlier this month as guest artists in our Faculty Tuesdays series and SoundWorks series.

“The composition department has been bringing ~Nois to campus for the last six or seven years,” says Carter Pann, chair of the composition department. “This is the first year that two studios hosted the quartet—composition and saxophone. The plan was for ~Nois to work with our student and faculty composers, and with students in [Assistant Professor of Saxophone] Nathan Mertens' saxophone studio.”

Indeed, the five-day residency was packed—in addition to Faculty Tuesdays and SoundWorks concerts, ~Nois also presented a master class, a guest lecture in the Department of Theatre & Dance and more. College of Music students had the opportunity to rehearse with members of the quartet, ask questions, and get feedback on performances and compositions.

CHA grants support projects that amplify the arts and humanities, and create community around campus. The College of Music's composition and saxophone departments were awarded more than they applied for, allowing for an extra house concert in a donor’s home.

“I believe that the application meets all criteria and that it is far ranging,” wrote CHA Director Jennifer Ho. “This is one reason I’ve increased the award—so that you may be able to think even more capaciously in creating programs that will involve multiple community members within the College of Music and across campus.”

The College of Music’s relationship with the quartet began with Pann’s musical connection with a family member of one of the musicians. “One of the ~Nois members, Jordan Lulloff, is the son of a very good friend of mine whom I have written lots of saxophone music for,” shares Pann. “A lightbulb went off and I realized that Jordan was in this new quartet of Northwestern University grads.

“It’s really useful and it’s a great opportunity for young composers to write for saxophone quartet. It’s a very enterprising endeavor because saxophonists in general clamor for new music.”

Through the years, ~Nois has become familiar on campus, and created even more and deeper connections. “They’re just game when they’re here,” adds Pann. “They end up seeing donors, seeing the dean, working with students, coming to classes…”

Pann hopes the residency inspired creativity among our students. “When students work closely with them, the ~Nois boys are so professional. They don’t skimp on anything. They will crash open the door to rehearse more with these students. They’re constantly teaching them what their instruments can do.

“These guys increase the learning horizon tenfold. When you see somebody that’s kind of close to your age breaking into this professional realm—it’s really inspiring to our students.”

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Smiley, who teaches a large 370-student jazz history class as well as a jazz combo, plans to use the fellowship to advance his compositional goals. His primary focus during this time will be composing a suite of octet music—a significant leap in scope from his usual compositions for smaller groups like trios, quartets and quintets. He’s looking ahead to spring 2025 when he hopes to record his new compositions with both Colorado musicians and other collaborators from across the country.

As a composer, Smiley’s work sits at the intersection of jazz and contemporary classical music, drawing on improvisational techniques that challenge the conventions of both genres. “The music I write is always too improvisational for the contemporary classical world but utilizes modern compositional techniques that are still foreign to most of the jazz world,” he explains. Smiley is inspired by composers such as Christian Wolff, known for creating compositions meant to be performed in different ways with varying orchestrations, ensuring that no performance is ever the same. This flexible, open form of composition has become a hallmark of Smiley’s approach which he’s excited to explore further. 

While Smiley is accustomed to composing for small ensembles of musicians with whom he regularly collaborates, the MacDowell Fellowship offers an opportunity to expand his creative work to larger ensembles and broader collaborations—a challenge he’s ready to embrace while maintaining the intimacy and improvisational spirit of his works for smaller ensembles.

Smiley’s path to the MacDowell Fellowship was marked by persistence and inspiration from peers.  (BM ’11, MM ’20)—a 91��ý College of Music alumna and a successful local composer, pianist, educator and entrepreneur—encouraged him to apply for composition residencies. “I have never had planned time off from teaching, performing and working to sit down and focus solely on writing music,” Smiley notes. “I have a lot of goals to accomplish while I’m there.”

Especially, Smiley is eager to develop new compositions that embrace the unpredictability of improvisation while utilizing advanced compositional techniques. His work will undoubtedly continue to challenge the boundaries of both the jazz and contemporary classical music worlds—bringing fresh perspectives to both genres.

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At the 91��ý Entrepreneurship Center for Music (ECM), students can find the skills and tools they need for their music careers. Most recently, the ECM awarded $5,820 in artist assistance grants to support eight student-led professional development and community engagement projects including:

Josie Arnett
“I’m really picky about which pieces I release on streaming platforms because I’m 20 and need to be able to write really bad music … and then release the things that I really love,” says Josie Arnett, an undergraduate composition student. 

“Last fall, I got the opportunity to write a saxophone quartet piece for a group that travels all over the United States. I was really happy with the piece and really proud of it, so I reached out to a faculty member who set me up with the 91��ý graduate saxophone quartet.”

Working with the Sanitas Saxophone Quartet, College of Music Recording Engineer Kevin Harbison and a mixing artist, Arnett recorded the piece for projected release on streaming platforms this summer. The ECM grant helped pay the artists and distribution fee.

Arnett says she learned a lot about how to interact in a professional recording setting and enjoyed collaborating within the College of Music. “It’s been fun to work with people that have a lot of energy, positive attitudes and are just really excited about what they do,” she shares.

Alice Del Simone
At the end of May, DMA student in voice performance and pedagogy Alice Del Simone was part of a workshop presentation at the Voice Foundation Symposium in Philadelphia titled “Legato Then and Now, Vibrato Edition: A Close-Up of What Happens Between the Pitches in the Classical Bel Canto Tradition.” 

“The workshop offered a toolbox of exercises for how to teach the type of legato singing that was happening at the end of the 1800s, beginning of the 1900s when we started to have recordings available,” Del Simone says.

“It was my very first time presenting at a conference where there are often hurdles for a young academic to get an invitation to present. I’ve been lucky that I’ve been able to work with a group of people who are more prominent in the community than myself.”

During the symposium, Del Simone stayed at the conference hotel, partially funded by her ECM grant. 

Zachary Howarth
Zachary Howarth, a DMA student in jazz studies, will go on the road this summer to record music in studios in Reno and South Lake Tahoe. Howarth also hopes to perform this music live in venues across Colorado and Nevada. 

The project will involve a contemporary jazz quartet—trumpet, piano, bass, drums—writing and recording the music. The ECM grant will help the project get off the ground by assisting with studio fees, production costs and travel expenses. 

“The opportunity to write, record and play music with such high-level artists is invaluable to my collaborative research in compositional tendencies in contemporary jazz mediums and fully improvised music,” Howarth says. 

SeaJun Kwon
SeaJun Kwon, also a DMA student in jazz studies, likes writing compositions that push the boundaries of jazz music including “Avant Shorts”—10 etudes exploring micro tonalities and rhythmic concepts that aren’t commonly used in jazz compositions. 

Kwon plans to compose these etudes and begin recording them over the summer, using a microphone setup funded by an ECM grant. 

“I thought I’d write a bunch of super short compositions that focus on different ideas to develop myself and provide my community with these resources,” Kwon says. 

By keeping them brief, he hopes to make the compositions more accessible and useful for his community. 

“People are really busy, there are so many things that you have to do and also so many distractions,” Kwon says. “I think these short compositions put less pressure on people—they can work on them for 10 minutes and still learn from them.” 

Er-Hsuan Li
Er-Hsuan Li graduated from the College of Music in May with a DMA in piano performance. In April, he held a concert featuring the world premiere of John Clay Allen’s “” concerto for piano and strings along with Dmitri Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No. 1.

“It was a very fun event,” Li says. “Even though it was off-campus, it was really CU that made this possible because that’s how we connected.”

Many 91��ý musicians participated including conductor and Associate Director of Orchestras Renee Gilliland, composition alumnus John Clay Allen, Anna Kallinikos—who’s majoring in trumpet performance and minoring in business—and the majority of the 18-member orchestra. The ECM grant assisted Li with compensating the performers and renting the venue.

“I had performed in front of an orchestra only once before when I was a high schooler,” Li recalls. “So it was really special for me that—after 13 years—I got to do this again professionally. And I would like to think that I am a better musician now compared to then!”

Ethan Stahl
When Ethan Stahl discovered Nkeiru Okoye’s music, he knew he’d found something special. “I loved her music so much that I began working on it for one of my degree recitals,” he says. “Eventually, it became evident that I had enough material to create a lecture recital.”

To prepare, Stahl—who’s pursuing a DMA in piano performance—interviewed Okoye about her music. “We talked on the phone for a few hours and in that conversation, she proposed the idea of writing a piece for me to add to one of the sets of piano pieces that I was studying.” The ECM grant helped fund Okoye’s contribution.

Okoye’s music is already part of the American Music Research Center’s Helen Walker-Hill Collection; her upcoming composition will be added to the collection.

“Okoye is extremely novel in the world of piano composition,” Stahl adds. “I’ve never heard piano music that is similar stylistically to hers.” 

Natalie Trejo
Artist Diploma student Natalie Trejo competed in the finals for the Austin Flute Society’s Young Artist Competition in April—and the ECM grant helped her get there. 

“I submitted the preliminary recordings back in January. From there, they selected three finalists to perform in the live final round in Austin, Texas,” Trejo says. “It went really well. I ended up getting third but I was very happy with how I played and I was not nervous at all.”

Trejo performed Chen Yi’s “Memory” for solo flute and Frank Martin’s “Ballade” for flute and piano. 

“I love doing competitions because I get to learn new repertoire, meet new flutists, make connections and get to know the other finalists—it’s very important and humbling, but still encouraging,” Trejo says.

Jonathon Winter
Another spring 2024 graduate, Jonathon Winter—who earned a DMA in violin performance—recorded four pieces to be compiled into an album titled “Origin: Music by Women of the Americas.” The pieces are “ko’u inoa” by Leilehua Lanzilotti, “Scratch the Surface” by Dana Kaufman, “String Poetic” by Jennifer Higdon and “Sueños de Chambi” by Gabriel Lena Frank.

“I picked some fiendishly difficult music to play but it was so worth it,” Winter says. “I learned so much about preparing for recordings and what that actually entails.”

Winter worked with pianist and Postdoctoral Lecturer Barbara Noyes, as well as Kevin Harbison to record all four pieces over the course of seven months. Winter will continue the project over the summer with the goal of finding a label to disseminate the recordings.

Congratulations to all grant recipients and our thanks to this year’s adjudicators: College of Music staff member Kathryn Bistodeau, Music Advisory Board member Laurie Hathorn and University of Denver entrepreneurship faculty member Neil Pollard. 

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It’s an old cliché, but the image of great oaks-from-little acorns really does apply to CU NOW, the 91��ý College of Music’s successful summer opera workshop that launched its 14th season on our campus this week running through June 16.

First, we should spell out its full title: New Opera Workshop. It’s a unique program that began with a modest, acorn-like suggestion in 2009, recalls founder/artistic director Leigh Holman.

“I was at an opera conference here [Boulder] and was visiting with composer Hershel Garfein,” says Holman, who also directs the college’s Eklund Opera Program. “He suggested the idea of young artists working on new works with their composers. It turns out young singers just loved sampling new music. I knew it would also be a wonderful experience for the composers since they could be here to work on their music.”

CU NOW debuted in 2010, becoming the nation’s first such program based at an academic institution, designed to bring together student singers and renowned composers in rehearsing and performing a new opera—all in three weeks. Since then, the likes of composers Mark Adamo, Jake Heggie, Gene Scheer, Libby Larsen, Mark Campbell, Garfein and Tom Cipullo have participated.  

This year’s workshop brings together Gene Scheer—returning to CU NOW as guest composer, alongside collaborating librettist Bill Van Horn—and 14 auditioned 91��ý graduate student singers, plus a trio of grad and undergrad composers as well as Eklund Opera Program staff. Emmy Award winner Gary Fry—arranger for “Polly Peachum”—will be in residence during the final week of the workshop as a resource for both our voice and composition students.

“Gene wrote it with Bill about a decade ago and they recently reworked it,” explains Holman. The story concerns the creation of that old tale of London street life and lists characters such as Mr. Gay and historical figures Jonathan Swift, Alexander Pope, Robert Walpole—and Ms. Peachum herself. 

“Our work is underway,” says CU NOW Music Director Nicholas Carthy of the new opera with old characters, staged in less than a month. The British-born conductor—music director of the Eklund Opera Program—joined CU NOW in 2023. He notes that he anticipates only “a few tiny adjustments” will be made to the score once Scheer and Van Horn observe rehearsals. 

For the student singers, this marks their first true professional operatic experience. And for Carthy? “I’m prepared for whatever.”

But wait, there’s more to CU NOW: Running simultaneously with “Polly Peachum” is the Composers’ Fellow Initiative (CFI) which occurs every other year alongside CU NOW. Three student composers who had expressed interest in writing opera were chosen to participate in the program, directed by Bud Coleman. The trio—Alan Mackwell, Holly McMahon and Joshua Maynard—have been working with New York-based composer Tom Cipullo, creating music and librettos for 10-minute opera scenes that are being rehearsed, staged and costumed for a performance on June 15.

Holman said plans have already been made for CU NOW 2025: Mark Adamo will return with “Sarah,” a new work about famed Boston-based opera conductor Sarah Caldwell. 

“Polly Peachum” will be performed at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, June 14 and 2 p.m. on Sunday, June 16. Scenes by the Composer Fellows’ Initiative will be presented at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 15. Free and open to the public, all performances will be held in our Music Theatre. .

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Historically, minority groups have been overlooked in classical music performance. Since 2019, the College of Music’s Persevering Legacy project—with support from the —aims to bring such underrepresented artists into the spotlight.

On March 7, will showcase the talents of more than a dozen undergraduate and graduate students in a celebration of women-identifying composers from around the world. Selected from more than 20 submissions, the program will include works for bassoon, saxophone, French horn, trombone, violin, viola, piano, voice and electronic sounds in various combinations and featuring a range of musical styles. 

Professor of Piano Pedagogy Alejandro Cremaschi has been coordinating the annual Persevering Legacy event and chairing the selection committee for the last six years. “I’ve always been interested in promoting and disseminating works by composers in underrepresented groups in the classical music field,” he says. 

Cremaschi and Assistant Professor of Composition Annika Socolofsky comprised this year’s Persevering Legacy selection committee.

Many of the works to be performed come from the American Music Research Center’s including music by Black women composers such as Avril Coleridge-Taylor, Margaret Bonds, Florence Price and Mary Watkins, according to Cremaschi. “The program also includes a solo piano work by undergraduate composer Josie Arnett, to be performed by another undergraduate, Holly McMahon,” he adds. 

Cremaschi further notes his excitement to discover how many students are interested in performing often neglected works. “The Persevering Legacy project is among the most successful DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion] initiatives of the College of Music, creating awareness, excitement and engagement among our students and faculty for exploring amazing works that would otherwise be collecting dust,” he says. “Persevering Legacy concerts also create support around the women and women-identifying musicians and composers in our college.”

As part of this year’s Persevering Legacy event, alumnus Gregory Walker—son of the composer George Walker and Helen Walker-Hill, a pianist and musicologist who specialized in the music of Black women—will present a master class on March 5, 10:50 a.m.-12:20 p.m. (C125). Walker—a violinist, composer and American Academy of Arts and Letters Fellowship recipient, among other distinctions—is professor of music and entertainment studies at CU Denver.

for Persevering Legacy on March 7 at 7:30 p.m. in the Imig Music Building, Chamber Hall (S102).

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