Ensemble Enrollment

All ensembles are open to every West Georgia student, including graduate students, undergraduates, Advanced Academy, music majors, and other majors.

Here are some important features of the music ensembles at UWG:

• Participation is open to all students. Membership is not limited to music majors. In fact, many of our members represent majors from the entire University, ranging from business to criminology, computer science to social sciences, education to nursing, physical education to biology, and virtually every other major field.
  
  
• Ensembles take a small amount of time. Our schedule is frequently less time-consuming than most high school programs. The ensembles meet on a regular class schedule, and we understand the student's need to concentrate on academics. We are seeking students who enjoy music and wish to continue performing.
  
  
• Ensembles include students with advanced and average musical abilities. Students are sometimes overly concerned about their talent level. Most students who successfully complete their high school program will find a place available for them in one of the UWG ensembles.
  
  
• University ensembles are college-credit courses. Each ensemble offers one hour of credit through the Department of Music. Students may elect to participate for the entire year or during one term only.

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Concert Choir

Concert Choir, a traditional choir of 50-60 voices, is directed by Dr. Kevin Hibbard. The choir performs standard choral repertoire of classics, spirituals, and major works with orchestra. Placement auditions for new members are scheduled prior to the start of classes. The most recent performance featured student concerto competition winners performing the Allegro from Mozart's Horn Concerto No 1, K. 412 and "Verdi prati" from Handel's Alcina, as well as the full UWG concert choir, singers from Atlanta's Collegium Vocale, and the Carroll Symphony Orchestra performing Luigi Cherubini's Requiem in C minor.

Concert Choir
Kevin Hibbard, conductor
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Opera Workshop

Opera Workshop provides opportunities for soloists, chorus members, and support staff. Directed by Dr. Larry Frazier, the Opera Workshop performs full-scale operas and scenes. Individual coaching is provided for singing roles. Recent productions include Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni, The Magic Flute, and Cosi Fan Tutte; Susannah by Carlisle Floyd; Bizet's Carmen; Puccini's Gianni Schicchi and La Boheme; The Mikado by Gilbert and Sullivan; Verdi's La Traviata; P.D.Q Bach's The Stoned Guest, and Johann Strauss's Die Fledermaus.

photo by Steven Broome

Opera Workshop
Larry Frazier, director

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Jazz Ensemble

The University of West Georgia Jazz Ensemble consist of a big band and jazz combos that perform both on campus and on tour. Each year the Jazz Ensemble hosts the Sunbelt Jazz Festival, featuring clinic sessions and performances by notable world-class artists such as Bobby Shew, Chris Vadala, Jerry Coker, Vincent DiMartino, Steve Weist, Rob McConnell, Gary Foster, Lew Soloff, and others. The band performs each semester and in the spring takes a performing tour throughout the Southeast. The ensemble serves as the resident band for the annual Sunbelt Jazz Festival. Auditions are held each semester.

UWG Jazz Ensemble
Dan Bakos, director
Jazz Ensemble Homepage

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The Marching Band

The Marching Band, "The Sound that Lights the South," is the most visible of the UWG Bands, providing the color and pageantry of Wolves Athletics and enrichment of university life. The band performs regularly at home and away football games, parades, and festivals, is often invited to perform at high school marching band exhibitions, and travels to selected away games.

The band schedule does not conflict with other academic classes. In fact, members of the band enjoy having a break from daily study and classroom work while building leadership skills and lifelong friendships.

The Marching Band holds its annual pre-season band camp one week prior to the fall term. Band camp is required of all members and consists of placement auditions, fundamentals training, and show preparations. After the conclusion of camp, the band resumes a class-time rehearsal schedule - no extra rehearsals are scheduled outside of class.

The band rehearses Tuesday through Friday from 3:30 to 5:00 p.m. Members enroll for university credit toward their academic degree. In addition, the university pays for all expenses, including the pre-season band camp and all of the band's travel costs.

The Marching Band
Douglas Overmier, director

MARCHING BAND HOMEPAGE
"The Sound that Lights the South!"

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The Marching Band Visual Ensemble

The Marching Band's Visual Ensemble has earned a reputation for being one of the finest collegiate units of its kind. The young women in this group have a passion to perform and the dedication to excel. Persistence and perfection are their coveted trademarks. Members of the visual ensemble typically have dance, colorguard, or majorette experience. However, any young woman with excellent movement skills is invited to audition for membership in this dynamic visual ensemble. Tryouts for the Visual Ensemble are held each spring for the fall marching band season.

Members of the Visual Ensemble audition for membership for the Braves basketball season.

The Marching Band
Douglas Overmier, director

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Pep Band/Basketball Band

The Pep Band/Basketball Band provides entertainment at home basketball games. This group is a favorite among Wolves fans, featuring exciting musical arrangements and spirited performances. Auditions are held during the fall term. The Basketball Pep Band is made up of 25-30 select players who are selected by audition. The band performs at men's home basketball games. The repertoire of the Basketball Pep Band consists of a variety of jazz, rock, and other popular musical styles. Members travel to the men's conference basketball tournaments.

The Wolves Basketball Band
Douglas Overmier, director

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Small Ensembles

The Department of Music offers numerous opportunities for participation in small chamber ensembles. These include like- and mixed-group wind and percussion instruments, guitar ensemble, keyboard ensemble, and the Collegium Musicum.

Each semester applied studio instructors coach like-instrument ensembles such as flute choir, clarinet choir, saxophone ensemble, horn ensemble, trumpet choir, trombone choir, tuba & euphonium ensemble, percussion ensemble, guitar ensemble, and keyboard ensemble. Other chamber ensembles - like trios, quartets, and quintets - are organized and coached by the applied studio faculty.

The Collegium Musicum performs Renaissance music on period instruments, including viols, recorders, crumhorns, flute, and harpsichord.

Percussion Ensemble

The UWG Percussion Ensemble performs a wide variety of repertoire including works originally composed for percussion and those that are transcribed from other genres. Enrollment in the ensemble is open to music majors and minors. Non-majors who are proficient performers in the area of percussion are accepted into the group by audition.

Jazz Percussion Ensemble
Douglas Overmier, director
Percussion Studies Homepage

Saxophone Ensemble
John Bleuel , director