UMass Amherst Department of Music and Dance

We are proud to share that The Moanin' Frogs , a saxophone sextet that includes Associate Professor of Saxophone, Jonathan Hulting-Cohen, MM, has won the Menuhin Gold Prize at the 12th Osaka International Chamber Music Festa in Japan.

Held every three years, the Osaka International Chamber Music Competition & Festa features competitively selected groups from around the world. The Chamber Music Competition is restricted to string ensembles, but the Festa is open to all music genres and types of musical instruments. The Moanin’ Frogs were one of the 16 ensembles from 10 different countries that advanced to live rounds in Osaka, Japan, this month and was one of only two U.S. groups selected. Advancement in the Festa is determined by popular vote by a jury of music-loving community members and a four-person special jury of professional musicians. The competition’s highest honor, the Menuhin Gold Prize, includes a cash award and a Grand Prix Concert Tour across Japan in 2028.

Hulting-Cohen joined the University of Massachusetts Amherst faculty as an assistant professor in 2014. Co-founder of The Moanin’ Frogs, they are an internationally recognized performer, educator, and advocate for chamber music, whose work spans from vaudeville to the vanguard of contemporary music. As the group’s tenor and sopranino saxophonist, Hulting-Cohen shows exemplary skill as both soloist and ensemble performer. Their arrangement of Der Hölle Rache from Mozart’s The Magic Flute was featured in the competition’s semi-final round.
This international recognition reflects an extraordinary level of musicianship and creativity on a global stage.

TheMoaninFrogs.com
https://youtube.com//streams
https://jcmf.or.jp/12thcompetition-festa/en/

Congratulations Class of 2026!

College of Humanities & Fine Arts at UMass Amherst UMass Amherst Dance Program

The graduating class of were celebrated at the department convocation and Senior Recognition Ceremony.

Congratulations dance grads!!

The UMass Amherst Jazz & African American Music Studies area received three Downbeat Magazine awards this year!

UMass Studio Orchestra & Jazz Ensemble I
Outstanding Performance - Blues/Pop/Rock Group (College/Graduate)

Henry Bolduc, piano
Outstanding Performance - Blues/Pop/Rock Soloist (Undergraduate)

Fletcher Clark, "Stone Flower"
Outstanding Jazz Arrangement - Big Band (College/Graduate)

The DownBeat Student Music Awards recognize the top jazz ensembles at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Nine judges evaluate the participating groups based on several performance criteria, including overall sound, proper interpretation, improvisation, creativity, intonation, phrasing, and dynamics. The honorees are selected from a competitive pool in which winners must demonstrate a distinct voice in addition to technical proficiency.

On this episode of Tiny Spaces, Big Ideas you'll hear from Associate Professor Christopher White!

Music's thousand-year journey from an ephemeral, body-bound art form to AI-ready data required converting memory, performance, and creativity into discrete, storable objects—each step made for good reasons, but each removing a human element from the art.

Watch Now >>> https://ow.ly/71wG50YVekU

Department Merch is on sale!!

Starting today, until Monday May 25th, the Music and Dance Merch Pop-Up is open! Use the following link or scan the QR code to place orders!
https://soundscapemerchandise.chipply.com/umassmusicanddance/

Concert Band performs at 7:30 PM in Frederick C. Tillis Performance Hall!

The Concert Band presents its end-of-semester concert, featuring classics of the wind ensemble repertoire.

Tickets: umasstix.org

First-year UMass Amherst Dance Program student Ben Nir has been awarded the Basil Thompson Memorial Scholarship from CORPS de Ballet International!

Awarded to a university or college male dancer to support his training in classical ballet, the award is named in memory of Basil Thompson, renowned teacher, director, dancer and friend of CORPS de Ballet International. The scholarship may be used for university/college tuition as part of a dance program or for a ballet-based summer workshop of the student’s choice.

Thank you to ballet professor Mary Ann Mayer for her encouragement and advocacy of Ben as a candidate for this award!

Jazz Ensemble I & Studio Orchestra - Tonight @ 7:30 PM in Frederick C. Tillis Performance Hall

UMass Amherst's top jazz ensemble performs in the first half, then is augmented with strings and winds for a full jazz orchestra in the second half.

Includes Jeff Holmes' Easin' Down Basie Street, Felipe Salles' Perspective, and tunes by Keith Foley, Joe Zawinul, Michael Brecker, Clifford Brown, Christine Jensen, Chick Corea, Nobuo Uematsu, & Wlodek Pawlik

Tickets: Umasstix.org

Congratulations to Music Theory professor Catrina Kim, who was selected as the College of Humanities & Fine Arts at UMass Amherst Early Career Dean's Outstanding Fellow.

“It is my honor to be recognized and supported by the HFA Dean’s Fellowship Program," said Catrina. "I am lucky to work alongside colleagues and students whose brilliance infects everyone around them."

https://www.umass.edu/humanities-arts/news/2026-award-and-fellowship-recipients