School of Music Ensembles

The School of Music offers musical performance opportunities for instrumental and vocal students of all levels of interest and ability.  Groups are available with a traditional classical emphasis as well as groups that focus on the performance of a variety of jazz styles.  Annual tours, both regional and national, are taken by the Wind Ensemble, the Jazz Ensemble, and the Collegiate Choir.

Instrumental

Wind Ensemble - An auditioned group comprised of wind and percussion students, specializing in challenging, contemporary repertoire.

Symphonic Winds - An auditioned group, comprised of music majors and liberal arts students, which performs a variety of sophisticated concert band repertoire.

Illinois Wesleyan Civic Orchestra - A School of Music / community orchestra that specializes in large orchestral and choral / orchestral literature.

Jazz Ensemble - The IWU Jazz Ensemble (pictured above) continues to build upon a long and illustrious heritage which began when Dr. Streeter started the jazz program at Illinois Wesleyan in 1972.  Since then the band perform concerts throughout the United States, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the Caribbean and in May of 2007 they will perform in Italy.  The Jazz Ensemble is open to all students of the University by audition.

Jazz Lab Band - Available to any campus student without audition who is interested in gaining experience with jazz performance.  Secondary instruments are encouraged in the band and all music education majors are encouraged to participate to gain jazz experience.

Titan Band - This group provides music and entertainment for on-campus sporting event, is non-auditioned, and is open to all students of the University.

Vocal

Collegiate Choir - The 52-voice choir (pictured below) is composed of student musicians representing the School of Music and other areas of the university, and is dedicated to the performance of the finest sacred and secular choral music of the past five centuries.  Students in the choir are selected by audition and maintain a rigorous rehearsal schedule in preparation for their concert tours and other engagements throughout the year.

Chamber Singers - A select ensemble of 16-20 voices open to all students in the university by audition.  The choir presents concerts of vocal chamber literature throughout the academic year and is devoted to the performance of vocal chamber music.

Opera Theatre - Annual performances of operatic excerpts and full-scale productions.  Recent productions have included Gianni Schicchi, The Magic Flute, and Semele.

University Choir -A larger mixed choir open to all students in the University by preliminary placement hearing. The choir performs sacred and secular choral literature of different styles and periods on concerts during the fall and spring semesters.

Chapel Choir - A non-auditioned choir open to all majors that rehearses once per week and participates in occasional chapel services in the liturgy of the weekly non-denominational worship in Evelyn Chapel.