The Department of Music at UNC-Chapel Hill Unveils an Exciting 2025-2026 Concert Series

ARTS & CULTURE

CHAPEL HILL — As summer winds down, The Local Reporter has been providing season previews for the variety of arts coming to our area in the Fall and into next year.

Today, we will take a look at UNC-Chapel Hill’s 2025-2026 Department of Music Series, which offers performances and research.

The department offers a rich blend of academic study and performance, fostering excellence in classical, jazz, world, and contemporary music.

The new season is a combination of departmental ensemble performances and other programming with established artists. View the full schedule here.

Collected under the Martha Flowers Ensemble series, Fall and Spring will feature the likes of departmental ensembles such as the UNC Jazz Band, Symphony Orchestra, Opera, and Wind Ensemble.

Martha Flowers joined the music department in 1973 as the first African American faculty member in the department, and one of the first on campus. Widely recognized for her encouraging mentorship, she also enjoyed a groundbreaking performance career in opera and 20th-century art song.

Learn about Flowers’ legacy here, and see the full schedule of departmental performances and ticket information here.

Another group of performances is part of the William S. Newman Artists Series, which celebrates the alliance of scholarship and performance.

September 6: Rahsaan Barber & Friends (Jazz) • 7:30 pm • Moeser Auditorium
November 18: Carolina Wind Quintet with Pianist Dominika Glapiak (Chamber music) • 7:30 pm • Moeser Auditorium
January 11: Music of Bartók • 3:00 pm • Moeser Auditorium
January 20: Clara Yang, pianist (works by Chopin, Liszt, and Schumann) • 7:30 pm • Moeser Auditorium
March 5: Timo Andres, pianist • 7:30 pm • Moeser Auditorium

For tickets and additional information, click here.

The UNC-CH Music Department will also present the 2026 Festival on the Hill: Speak, Listen, April 17-19, 2026. The event is a biennial music festival presented by the department based around a given theme.

While programming isn’t yet finalized, the centerpiece will be Gabriela Lena Frank’s Conquest Requiem (2017), featuring the UNC Symphony Orchestra and Carolina Choir joined by two professional soloists (including UNC Chapel Hill’s own LaToya Lain) in this large-scale work.

Look out for further announcements from the festival that will also feature research, a soundwalk, and several concerts.

Suppose you’re a fan of contemporary music. In that case, the department’s Conversations in Modern Music brings performers, composers, and music historians with an expertise in new music to UNC-CH—the free events pair concerts with a public lecture or open rehearsal.

October 6: earspace • 7:30 pm • Moeser Auditorium

earspace is an ensemble consisting of violin, viola, cello, flute, oboe, clarinet, piano, and percussion that performs a wide scope of chamber music.

March 27: counter)induction • 7:30 pm • Moeser Auditorium

counter)induction is a composer/performer collective with the mission to present world-class performances of contemporary chamber music.

Learn more about both events here.

On the final Friday of each month during the semester, from 3:30-5:00 pm in Person Recital Hall, the UNC Music Research Forum hosts invited lectures by distinguished music scholars from around the world and informal research presentations by department members and colleagues.

While some spots remain TBA, highlights include:

October 3: Dr. Nadia Chana, University of Wisconsin-Madison

February 20: Dr. Fredara Hadley, The Juilliard School

March 6: Dr. Deborah Wong, University of California, Riverside

Check this page for updates on the unannounced spots.

Remember to also peruse The Local Reporter’s recent coverage of a spectrum of arts occurring in and coming to our area:

Pamir Kiciman is an artist who writes about a range of the arts and the creative process. This reporter can be reached at: Information@TheLocalReporter.press.