Visual and Performing Arts - NMU Events and Announcements

Visual and Performing Arts

Join us on Sunday, March 15, at 3:00pm in Reynolds Recital Hall for a collaborative concert with the NMU Choirs and Wind Ensemble! This is a pairing you don't want to miss, and the best part, it's free!

Visual and Performing Arts

Please join us at the 30th Annual Celebration of Student Scholarship!

The 30th Annual Celebration of Student Scholarship will be held on Thursday, April 16, 2026, all day in Jamrich Hall.

The Celebration of Student Scholarship is an annual event held on the Northern Michigan University campus to recognize the scholarly activity of undergraduate and graduate students in all disciplines. Students share their scholarly and creative work with the NMU and Marquette communities. The event is free and open to the public. Students interested in participating should speak with their faculty advisors for assistance in planning their submission.

In the past, this event was limited to research posters and 10-minute oral presentations. Last year, the event expanded to include student artwork. For the 30th anniversary, we are looking to include as many different students from across campus as possible and are opening Celebration to other formats, including film and video, readings, round tables, performances, publications, artistic displays, and more.

This event is an important opportunity for student scholars to share their work in a way that is accessible to the general public. Our mission is to improve how we communicate about academic topics and ideas while recognizing the hard work done by NMU students under the guidance of faculty. Join us to discover and celebrate student scholarship.

Visual and Performing Arts

The NMU Symphonic Band and Wind Ensemble will present "Musical Perspectives and Monumental Moments" on Monday, February 23, at 7:30 pm.  Please join us in Reynolds Recital Hall for their first concert of 2026!

Visual and Performing Arts

The NMU Orchestra is excited for its annual Children's Concert!  

The selections the orchestra will perform include How to Train Your Dragon by John Powell, Phantom of the Opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest by Hans Zimmer, and Randy Newman's Ma Belle Evangeline from The Princess and the Frog, arranged by Anna Zepke.

This is a free event for families and friends, in dedication to our younger members in the community!

Visual and Performing Arts

Join us for the Art & Writing Awards on the campus of NMU in the Art & Design Building, room 165, on Saturday, March 14, from 2-4 pm.

Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Exhibition: February 21 to March 14, 2026

Presented by the nonprofit organization, the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are the country’s longest-running and most prestigious scholarship and recognition program for creative students in grades 7–12. This year, there were 130 total submissions from Upper Peninsula students. Forty-six creative teens from the Upper Peninsula received regional honors, including Gold Keys, Silver Keys, Honorable Mentions, and American Visions & Voices nominations, from the local Scholastic Awards Affiliate Northern Shores Storywork Writing Project.

The featured visual artists in this year’s exhibition are – Reese Collins, Eleanor Dohrenwend, Cat Ernsberger, Morgyn Hansen, Nynna Jarvi, Brooke Johnson, Hannah Josefsen, Natalie Joyal, Madeline Meilahn, Gabrielle Myers, Arianna Paananen,  Isabelle Recollet, Savanna Rautio, Miles Spaulding,  Lilia Skoglund, Addisyn Sundberg, Esme Ulland-Joy, Lila Witham, and Quinley Wonch

Learn more about Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.

Visual and Performing Arts

Scholastic Art & Writing Exhibition: February 21 to March 14, 2026

Presented by the nonprofit organization, the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are the country’s longest-running and most prestigious scholarship and recognition program for creative students in grades 7–12. This year, there were 130 total submissions from Upper Peninsula students. Forty-six creative teens from the Upper Peninsula received regional honors, including Gold Keys, Silver Keys, Honorable Mentions, and American Visions & Voices nominations, from the local Scholastic Awards Affiliate Northern Shores Storywork Writing Project.

The featured visual artists in this year’s exhibition are – Reese Collins, Eleanor Dohrenwend, Cat Ernsberger, Morgyn Hansen, Nynna Jarvi, Brooke Johnson, Hannah Josefsen, Natalie Joyal, Madeline Meilahn, Gabrielle Myers, Arianna Paananen,  Isabelle Recollet, Savanna Rautio, Miles Spaulding,  Lilia Skoglund, Addisyn Sundberg, Esme Ulland-Joy, Lila Witham, and Quinley Wonch

Join us for the Art & Writing Awards on the campus of NMU in the Art & Design Building, room 165, on Saturday, March 14, from 2-4 pm.

Learn more about Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.

Visual and Performing Arts

The 2025 NMU Jazz Festival will be held on the beautiful campus of Northern Michigan University on Thursday and Friday, March 19-20.  High school and middle school jazz bands from throughout the region will participate in a variety of performances and clinics, and an exciting evening performance will showcase NMU students, faculty, and guest clinicians.

This year’s festival will feature The Westerlies, a New York-based brass quartet comprised of Riley Mulherkar and Chloe Rowlands on trumpet, and Andy Clausen and Addison Maye-Saxon on trombone.  This cutting-edge ensemble is “an arty quartet…mixing ideas from jazz, new classical, and Appalachian folk” (New York Times). From Carnegie Hall to Coachella, The Westerlies navigate a wide array of venues and projects with the precision of a string quartet, the audacity of a rock band, and the charm of a family sing-along.

Visual and Performing Arts

The Westerlies, “an arty quartet…mixing ideas from jazz, new classical, and Appalachian folk” (New York Times) are a New York-based brass quartet comprised of Riley Mulherkar and Chloe Rowlands on trumpet, and Andy Clausen and Addison Maye-Saxon on trombone.

We are very excited to host The Westerlies on the NMU campus as part of a collaboration with the NMU Jazz Festival.  Their Thursday evening Siril Concert will also serve as the opening concert of the 2026 NMU Jazz Festival.  The members of the ensemble will serve as clinicians for visiting high school and middle school bands attending the Festival, and they will also be featured individually as guest soloists with NMU Jazz Ensembles during the Friday evening Jazz Festival Concert!

Please visit The Westerlies' website to learn more about this fantastic ensemble: https://www.westerliesmusic.com/

Visual and Performing Arts

Marquette-area piano students, teachers, parents, and NMU piano majors will present their annual concert of 4-hand and 8-hand piano pieces. All are welcome to attend this free concert starting at 11am, Saturday, February 14, in Reynolds Recital Hall!

Visual and Performing Arts

Join us for a fun and free night of Jazz! This is the first Jazz Concert of the Winter 2026 semester featuring the NMU Jazz Band, NMU Jazz Combo, and the NMU Wildcat Combo. See you in Reynolds Recital Hall at 7:30 pm on Wednesday, February 11, 2026.