The University of Michigan’s Symphony Band will embark on a 2025 State of the Arts: Symphony Band Tour, bringing the transformative power of music to communities across Michigan.
From May 6-12, the band will tour 11 communities, engaging students and audiences alike with educational clinics and world-class performances.
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Led by Jason K. Fettig, director of bands and professor of music in the School of Music, Theatre & Dance, 58 U-M student musicians will perform in a variety of venues, from high school auditoriums to performing arts centers across Michigan.
In addition to these concerts, interactive side-by-side clinics will provide regional high school students the opportunity to learn in collaboration with U-M musicians, culminating in joint performances with the students for their local communities.
The band’s longstanding tradition of annual tours of the state fell away in the 1990s. To revive the tradition, the U-M Arts Initiative brought together a set of new partners: the School of Music, Theatre & Dance, Office of Enrollment Management, Office of Government Relations, and the state’s U-M Alumni Association chapters.
Fettig, former conductor of “The President’s Own” U.S. Marine Band, shared the impetus for this newly rekindled tradition of the U-M Symphony Band touring.
“During my time as director of the Marine Band, we traveled all over the United States each year bringing live symphonic music directly to the communities of our fellow citizens, and it was one of the most powerful and meaningful experiences of my time there,” Fettig said. “This same spirit of sharing the joy of live music-making permeates this special tour of our wonderful state by the storied University of Michigan Symphony Band.
“I couldn’t be more excited to share the talents of our students not only through entertaining and engaging concerts for the public, but also in service of hundreds of music students across Michigan, giving them a chance to benefit from the experience of the Symphony Band musicians, and to have a rare opportunity to perform with them side-by-side.”
Connecting communities through music
Aimed at strengthening artistic engagement statewide, the State of the Arts tour features a mix of classical, contemporary, celebratory and patriotic wind band music, showcasing a range of styles and composers. Highlights include:
- Symphonic works for band by luminaries John Williams, Leonard Bernstein, Sergei Rachmaninoff and George Walker.
- Several composers and arrangers on the concert programs are Michigan-based artists, faculty and alumni, including Scott Boerma, Gala Flagello, Michael Daugherty, H. Robert Reynolds, Jerry Bilik and Mark Clague.
- Traditional marches by John Philip Sousa, Henry Fillmore and Alton Adams.
- Featured trombone soloist David Jackson, professor of music in SMTD, and several local educators who will serve as guest conductors.
The 2025 tour continues the mission of the Art Initiative’s State of the Arts strategy, which is in its second year and seeks to propel creative talent from U-M’s campus to serve communities across the state.
This year’s tour follows 2024’s theater tour, “With Love, From Inside,” a show created entirely by U-M students and builds on the Culture Corps student internship program, now in its fourth year, that places more than 30 Michigan undergraduates in jobs with state arts and culture organizations from Detroit to Grand Rapids to Marquette.
“Performances by the University of Michigan’s Symphony Band sparkle with extraordinary talent, creativity, dedication and achievement that is true to our university mission and indeed emblematic of the entire state,” said Mark Clague, executive director of the Arts Initiative.
“The U-M Arts Initiative is proud to sponsor this 2025 tour, emphasizing a long tradition of university service to the people of Michigan. The band will bring the joy, beauty and wonder of our arts-rich campus to our Michigan communities.”
Demonstrating their commitment to artistic outreach, the 58 U-M students are volunteering their time after classes end in order to share their talents, inspire and connect with the next generation of musicians across the state.
