CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The University of Northern Iowa School of Music will hold its fourth annual New Music Festival Feb. 23-24. The festival will feature visiting ensemble F-PLUS, guest composers Jeremy Beck and George Tsontakis, and UNI faculty and student performers. 

The festival will offer two concerts: Saturday, Feb. 24 at 3 p.m., and Saturday, Feb. 24 at 8 p.m. Both events will be held in Davis Hall at the Gallagher Bluedorn. This year’s festival is poised to be a remarkable celebration of contemporary music, bringing together distinguished composers and performers in a showcase of innovation and creativity. Join us for this inspiring event, where the future of music unfolds in the heart of the UNI campus. Both festival concerts are free and open to the public.

The festival is being coordinated by UNI faculty artists Daniel Swilley, Hannah Porter-Occeña, Josh Graham and Erik Rohde. Reflecting on the featured guest artists at this year’s festival, Swilley said, “We're excited to welcome F-PLUS to our New Music Festival, a group that embodies the best of contemporary music. Their exceptional performances, innovative collaborations with composers, and dedication to educating the next generation showcase a recipe for successful music making. F-PLUS proves that your path in music is not confined to traditional ensembles but is rich with opportunities for those daring to explore. I hope our students are paying attention!”

Josh Graham, who is both a faculty artist at UNI and member of F-PLUS noted, “The works included on this event highlight a number of recent commissions from F-PLUS with a diverse array of some of today’s most exciting composers. Charles Peck’s ‘Fleet Feather’ was the winner of our first call for scores, Emma O’Halloran’s ‘Dream On’ was commissioned by the Irish Arts Council and Gemma Peacocke’s ‘Flight Recorder’ was written for our residency at Princeton University. The Festival will also include two world premieres: Jonathan Schwabe’s ‘Autumn Seas,’ inspired by the artwork of Emil Nolde, and George Tsontakis’ ‘Low Bar,’ commissioned by the Barlow Endowment. We are thrilled that George, an extremely decorated composer and winner of the Grawemeyer Award, will join us at the premiere!”

For more information on the New Music Festival visit music.uni.edu/newmusicfestival. For questions on these or any other School of Music events and activities, contact Caroline Francis (319) 273-2028, caroline.francis@uni.edu.