Penn State Composition & Technology

08/15/2026

Faculty News!

Baljinder Sekhon, Associate Professor of Composition, will be composing a new work for the Grossman Ensemble to be premiered May 2027!

🎉🎉🎉

With over 100 world premieres under their belt, the members of the Grossman Ensemble—the Windy City’s premier contemporary musicians—are experts in forging unique soundscapes. They close their 26/27 season with brand new compositions by Dorothy Chang, Baljinder Singh Sekhon, Rand Steiger, and ...

08/13/2026

Congrats to our Living Music treasurer Travis Hahn!

…and he also happens to be an exceptional composer and musician!

As we approach summer commencement, we are excited to share this semester's Eberly College of Science student marshal — Travis Hahn!

Hahn will receive a bachelor's degree in mathematics and a master's degree in applied statistics this summer. During his time as a student, he explored his passion for meteorology research, allowing him to work with the U.S. Department of Energy and the State College National Weather Service.

Read about him at https://bit.ly/4hpOOer.

08/09/2026

Deadline in a couple of days! Please share with the high school composers in your life!

08/09/2026

The Penn State School of Music will present "Music in the Gardens," a free outdoor concert featuring the Symphonic Wind Ensemble, along with family-friendly activities, at The Arboretum at Penn State on Sept. 10.

08/09/2026

Composers! Researchers!

Submit your work for the 2027 Penn State International New-Music Festival and Symposium!

Festival dates: March 18-20, 2027
Submission deadline: September 4, 2026
Notification date: October 19, 2026

Guest Ensemble: Anzû Quartet

Composers: There are 31 submission categories to choose from! You can submit up to two works total.

Research Presenters: There will be two two-hour research presentation sessions! You can submit thirty-minute research presentation proposals on any topic related to contemporary music.

The guidelines and call are packed full of information… check it out via the links below.

Composition Guidelines:
https://sites.psu.edu/pennstatecomposition/files/2026/08/Penn-State-2027-New-Music-Festival-and-Symposium-Call-for-Scores-Announcement.pdf

Composition Online Submission Form:
https://forms.gle/zx4xbHsnYo7awGqs8

Research Presentations Guidelines:
https://sites.psu.edu/pennstatecomposition/files/2026/08/Penn-State-2027-New-Music-Festival-and-Symposium-Call-for-Presentations-Announcement.pdf

Research Presentations Online Submission Form:
https://forms.gle/Feo1k4mLCWS5ZiCp9

Festival Webpage:
https://sites.psu.edu/pennstatecomposition/penn-state-international-new-music-festival-and-symposium/

The Penn State University School of Music will be holding the 4th Biennial International New-Music Festival and Symposium March 18-20, 2027. The festival will consist of multiple concerts and research presentation sessions, featuring the work of composers and scholars selected through an international call for scores and research proposals. Selected composer participants will attend the festival in person, work with performers, network with other participants and within the Penn State community, and hear their compositions presented on a festival concert. Selected scholars will present a paper/presentation on any topic related to contemporary music. The festival concerts will feature performances by Penn State faculty and student performers, Penn State large ensembles, chamber ensembles, and guest ensemble Anzû Quartet. Composers can submit up to two works total and can select from 31 categories/genres for submission.

Penn State School of Music

08/06/2026

The Penn State Young Composers Institute is a fifteen-course virtual program for high school students interested in music composition. Weekly two-hour classes are held on Zoom, delivering a curriculum that includes the study of instrumentation, orchestration, notation, digital engraving, modern approaches to form and harmony, and current stylistic trends in composition.

Each composer completes three works and one of those works is recorded in Penn State’s Studio A by Penn State graduate student performers.

This is a virtual program – you can live anywhere!

FALL 2026 REGISTRATION DEADLINE IS AUGUST 11!

https://sites.psu.edu/pennstatecomposition/young-composers-institute/

07/14/2026