AMES, Iowa (March 19, 2025) – Their respective universities have been fierce athletic rivals for over a century, but on March 28, music students and faculty from Iowa State University and the University of Iowa will celebrate a stage united while presenting their first-ever joint performance at one of the world’s greatest concert halls.

The Iowa State University Wind Ensemble, led by Dr. Michael Golemo, and the University of Iowa Symphony Band, led by Dr. Richard Mark Heidel, will present an innovative concert performance at 7:30 p.m. on Fri., March 28, in Chicago’s historic Orchestra Hall at Symphony Center, the 2,521-seat auditorium that is home to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

This performance will mark the first collaboration between these storied ensembles and will feature a compelling program of traditional and contemporary compositions performed by some of the finest student musicians from each campus (more info here).

The Iowa State University Wind Ensemble’s program will consist of the Finale from Paul Fauchet’s Symphony in B-flat; Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin, featuring ISU faculty member Mei-Hsuan Huang on piano; Dance of the Jesters from “The Snow Maiden” by Peter Tchaikovsky, with the University of Iowa’s Dr. Richard Mark Heidel as guest conductor; and Concerto for Wind Ensemble by Kevin Day. 

The Iowa Symphony Band will perform Festmusik der Stadt Wien by Richard Strauss; O Magnum Mysterium by Morten Lauridsen; Run to the Light by Ivan Trevino featuring UI alumni Dr. Nick Miller (2020 MA, 2023 DMA) and Dr. Peter Naughton (2014 BM, 2020 DMA) as percussion soloists; Handel in the Strand by Percy Grainger, with Iowa State University’s Dr. Michael Golemo as guest conductor; Unidad En Ritmo by Michelle Fernandez; and Polka and Fugue from Schwanda by Jaromir Weinberger, with UI faculty member Dr. Gregory Hand on organ. 

Tickets

Tickets are available through the Chicago Symphony Orchestra website at https://bit.ly/UI-ISU-Chicago.

General admission tickets are $20 each, while tickets for groups of 20 or more are $8 per person. 

Request an interview

Both Dr. Michael Golemo, ISU Director of Bands and Professor of Music, and Dr. Richard Mark Heidel, UI Director of Bands and Professor of Music, are available for interviews now through March 28.

To request an interview, please contact Lisa Schmitz with the Iowa State University News Service at (515) 294-0704 or lisaschm@iastate.edu.