On Friday, Feb. 16, the University of North Dakota’s music department held their first student showcase of the spring semester. These showcases only happen a few times throughout the semester and are meant to showcase the great talents of the music students here at UND. Performers will either prepare solo pieces or chamber group pieces to perform for an audience in the Josephine Campbell Recital Hall in the Hughes Fine Arts Center building. This helps showcase the hard work and dedication of those involved in music and gives students an opportunity to perform and share their love of music with others.  

Each performance during the showcase was unique to the student. There is such a wide variety of musicians here on campus, so this event is a great opportunity to see the different abilities of the students outside of a large ensemble setting. Some students choose to show off their vocal talents by singing a solo piece that they prepared. Others chose to perform solo pieces on their instruments. This included performances like a double bass solo with piano accompaniment, a vibraphone solo, various piano solos, a trombone solo, a clarinet solo, a cello solo, a flute solo, a marimba solo, and even a solo on the bassoon. Along with the various types of solo performances, there were also a few small chamber group performances. Including a brass quartet and a trombone and bassoon duet.  

No matter how each student decided to showcase their abilities, each act was nothing less than impressive. This just goes to show how important and impactful the music department is here at UND. Each student who participated in the showcase was encouraged and taught by various professors in the music department, and this shows the hard work and dedication of the students and their educators.  

If you are interested in seeing the talented performers that the music department has to showcase, I would highly encourage you to consider attending the next student showcase on March 15 at 2:30 p.m. Along with these showcases, there are countless other events that are planned for this semester. There will be various concerts, recitals, and showcases throughout the next few months and the best way to find out about these events is to look at the scheduled performances on the UND Music website. The music department and its students are an important component in our university and taking the time to support them by enjoying incredible music is definitely worth your time. 

Nora Lee is a Dakota Student General Reporter. She can be reached at [email protected].