The Department of Music hosts several performing ensembles and combos. Participation is not limited to Music students, but auditions may be required. Some ensembles are also open to community members.
Each ensemble has its own audition requirements, rehearsal, and performance schedules, as well as minimum levels of proficiency. Minimum proficiency levels can be found here. Check the links below for each ensemble’s other requirements. To determine eligibility for academic credit, please see the Stanford Bulletin.
Ensemble auditions take place in Fall quarter, generally beginning the Thursday and Friday of Orientation week. Auditions for most ensembles are now closed. If you wish to join an ensemble at other times of the year, contact the ensemble director for information.
Departmental ensembles include:
A select choir of 24 voices dedicated to the performance of virtuosic literature for the small choral ensemble. Its members maintain a rigorous schedule of performing, touring, and recording. Membership in the Chamber Chorale is set at the beginning of the academic year.
The Stanford Early Music Singers specialize in the performance of choral literature from the Medieval and Renaissance eras. EMS typically numbers 25–30 members, with smaller groups occasionally drawn from the ensemble. EMS’s repertoire for the year includes a broad range of literature from England and the Continent presented in the glorious acoustic of Memorial Church.
The Memorial Church Choir provides choral music for Sunday morning University Public Worship at Stanford Memorial Church. This weekly service provides the opportunity to explore and perform a wide range of sacred choral music. Special events will include participation in the Stanford Invitational Choral Festival and the annual Christmas Service of Lessons & Carols.
With 180 members, Stanford’s Symphonic Chorus is the largest choral ensemble on campus and specializes in the performance of choral masterworks with orchestra.
A select concert choir of 50 members, the University Singers perform a broad range of Western classical music, both a cappella and accompanied. Membership in University Singers is set at the beginning of the academic year.
The Stanford Symphony Orchestra is a full-sized symphony orchestra open by audition to all members of the Stanford community, as well as community members in Palo Alto and surrounding cities.
The Stanford Philharmonia Orchestra is a select chamber orchestra of 35 performers. The orchestra offers accomplished musicians an opportunity to perform a rich repertoire of traditional and contemporary works for small orchestra setting. It is dedicated to providing high-quality live performances on the Stanford campus and throughout the Bay Area. The orchestra also provides opportunities for its musicians to collaborate with renowned artists visiting and performing at Stanford. The Stanford Philharmonia presents three concerts each year, one per academic quarter.
The Stanford New Ensemble (SNE) offers undergraduate and graduate students opportunities to perform the most significant music of our time, from landmark compositions of the 20th century to the most recent works of this new century, as well as new works by Stanford faculty and student composers. The Ensemble also fosters collaborations between student musicians and renowned visiting composers and artists at Stanford.
The Summer Stanford Symphony Orchestra is open to all members of the Stanford community. Although Stanford students are given priority, the Summer Orchestra also welcomes musicians from the local and non-Stanford community.
The Stanford Wind Ensemble is made up of 45-50 wind and percussion players and givesthree concerts in Dinkelspiel Auditorium each year. A featured student soloist for each concert is chosen by audition. The Ensemble performs all types of music for winds, from large chamber works to the full scope of a large concert group. The literature is taken from the earliest periods of music to the most modern and contemporary. While some transcriptions of classics are used, most of the literature comes from composers who have written original music for the medium, such as Bernstein, Hindemith, Stravinsky, and others.
The Department of Music holds auditions each fall for students interested in performing chamber music. Groups are formed with students of similar interest and abilities, and may be coached by a faculty member. Repertory depends on the playing level of the group. The chamber music program enables students’ participation at intermediate and higher levels for small (3- to 8-member) chamber groups, meeting once a week with their coach. Chamber music groups should have a minimum of three students; all students in chamber ensembles should register for credit in Music 171, but a simple majority of each ensemble must be registered in Music 171.
The Stanford Jazz Orchestra is part of the Stanford Jazz Program, which is open to the general student population. Players enjoy a relaxed and fun — yet quasi-professional — environment, dedicated to performing quality contemporary literature at the highest possible level. Concerts always include world class guest artists. Repertoire emphasis is on new and original efforts rather than historical and traditional works.
The Stanford Afro-Latin Jazz Ensemble is dedicated to the performance, interpretation, and study of Afro-Latin music and its fusion with North American jazz. The repertoire is suitable for both concert and dance-format performances and covers the full spectrum of the music of the Americas. The group presents a quarterly concert, and several guest artists and lecturers work with the band throughout the year. The ensemble is open to students and members of the Stanford community at large.
Performance of works for full brass choir and for smaller ensembles of brass instruments.
Open to serious flute students interested in performing both traditional and contemporary music for flute choir and multiple flutes.
Small ensemble devoted to learning trans-idiomatic improvisation techniques and composing indeterminate pieces in a workshop setting, with one major concert each winter. Prerequisite: access to an instrument and successful small group audition during the prior quarter. Improvisational experience and conventional instrumental virtuosity are not required.
The Stanford Laptop Orchestra (SLOrk) is a large-scale, computer-mediated ensemble (more than 20 laptops, human performers, controllers, and custom multi-channel speaker arrays). Offstage, SLOrk serves as a one-of-a-kind learning environment that explores music, computer science, and live performance in a naturally interdisciplinary way.
The Stanford Mobile Phone Orchestra (MoPhO) is a first-of-its-kind ensemble that explores social music-making using mobile devices (e.g., iPhones and iPads). Far beyond ring-tones, MoPhO’s interactive social-musical works and research take advantage of the unique technological capabilities of today’s hardware and software, transforming multi-touch screens, built-in accelerometers, gyroscopes, microphones, cameras, GPS, data networks, and computation into powerful, mobile, and personal musical instruments and experiences.
Stanford Taiko stands out in the Japanese-American drumming community as one of the leading collegiate Taiko ensembles in the country. The 15 to 20-member ensemble presents a dynamic blend of the ancient Taiko, or Japanese drum, with contemporary musical influences. In addition to on-campus and community performances, Stanford Taiko tours both nationally and internationally (2000: Japan, 2003: Hawai'i, 2004: Thailand, 2005: Los Angeles, 2006: Thailand and Japan, 2007: Seattle, 2009: Thailand, 2011: Hawai'i), and founded the Intercollegiate Taiko Invitational, the annual gathering of the collegiate taiko community, in 1995. Stanford Taiko studies regularly with leading taiko performers including Kenny Endo, San Jose Taiko, and the On Ensemble, and has studied in Japan with taiko masters Eitetsu Hayashi and Kiyonari Tosha.
The internationally acclaimed and award-winning St. Lawrence String Quartet is the ensemble-in-residence at Stanford University. The SLSQ, consisting of violinists Geoff Nuttall and Scott St. John, violist Lesley Robertson, and cellist Christopher Costanza, performs regularly on campus and directs the department’s chamber music and string program. The Quartet is actively involved in the commissioning and performance of new works. Don’t miss a chance to hear them! Their extensive touring schedule can be seen here.
The SLSQ hosts a summer chamber music seminar each year on the Stanford campus. This intensive program is designed for those with a serious ongoing interest in chamber music and follows a rigorous schedule of study and performance in a uniquely supportive environment, blending advanced students destined for careers in music performance with adult amateurs. The SLSQ and their special guest faculty offer dynamic instruction in a relaxed and supportive atmosphere. For more information, visit the seminar website here.
The Stanford Woodwind Quintet is a professional ensemble composed of Stanford teaching faculty. Recognized for solo work and chamber music collaboration, the Quintet excels in music from the classics through the 20th century. Its members include Alexandra Hawley, flute; James Matheson, oboe; Mark Brandenberg, clarinet; Larry Ragent, horn; and Rufus Olivier, bassoon.
A Cappella Groups are not affiliated with the Department of Music. They hold their own auditions. For more information, visit the websites below or look in the Stanford Directory under “Arts & Entertainment.”
Leland Stanford Junior University Marching Band (LSJUMB) is based in the Athletics Program. Traditional marching skills are not encouraged. Auditions are held at the beginning of the school year. Find out more here.
Department of Music,
Stanford University
541 Lasuen Mall
Stanford, CA 94305-3076
Tel: 650.723.3811
Fax: 650.725.2686
Stephen M. Sano , Chair
Copyright © 2004 Stanford University Department of Music
Website Developer: Jeff Q.
Nguyen (Mus. ‘04)
Webdeacon: William Keats
Banner: Copyright © 2004, Raina Cornejo
This site is best viewed with
Netscape 6+, and Mozilla Firefox