Dr. Jeanne Sinquefield at the Chancellor’s Arts Showcase in 2024.
May 5, 2025
Contact: Janese Heavin, heavinj@missouri.edu
Photos by Abbie Lankitus
A $4.6 million gift from Dr. Jeanne Sinquefield, Rex Sinquefield and the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation will ensure University of Missouri students continue to redefine the sounds of tomorrow through the Mizzou New Music Initiative.
The funding will expand opportunities for students and faculty, supercharging a program already known for fostering bold, original compositions and turning visionary ideas into reality.
"My goal is to make Missouri a mecca for musical composition,” said Jeanne Sinquefield, a member of the UM Board of Curators and founder of the Mizzou New Music Initiative (MNMI). “The MNMI covers K-12, undergraduate and graduate school students and international composers. Critical to this is supporting concerts and recordings.”
The Sinquefields’ gift will support continued growth of the highly successful Mizzou New Music Initiative, which includes a dynamic mix of festivals, competitions and collaborations designed to connect emerging composers with performers who bring their works to life. Among the centerpiece events are the Creating Original Music Project Festival, a statewide K-12 program celebrating its 20th anniversary this summer, high school summer camps for composers and the internationally renowned Mizzou International Composers Festival, which features Alarm Will Sound as ensemble-in-residence.
“The achievements of our students and alumni are a testament to the exceptional talent nurtured here at Mizzou,” University of Missouri President Mun Choi said. “We’re incredibly proud of the composers and performers who are shaping the future of music — and deeply grateful to Dr. Jeanne Sinquefield and Mr. Rex Sinquefield for their extraordinary generosity, which continues to open doors and inspire creativity across our campus and beyond.”
The new funding will support the addition of a production coordinator who will help with the logistics of producing concerts and events, as well as an audio engineer to expand the initiative’s ability to create and share professional-grade recordings. Scholarships and awards, including the notable Sinquefield Composition Prize, will enable more students to pursue their artistic dreams. A new mixed media studio — welcoming not just composers but also filmmakers and digital artists — will open collaborative possibilities across disciplines. Scholarships to support the Mizzou New Music Ensemble will also be available.
“It’s incredible to have this level of support for students, faculty, guests and resident artists who are dedicated to creating new music,” Stefan Freund, professor of composition and artistic director of the initiative, said. “These programs empower composers to express themselves not only through melody and harmony but also through imagination and innovation.”
A legacy of impact
The Sinquefields’ commitment to music education at Mizzou spans more than two decades of support for not only the initiative but also the Sinquefield Music Center, home to Mizzou’s School of Music.
Since its inception in 2006, the Mizzou New Music Initiative has performed more than 1,250 original works, including 120 by Missouri high school students. More than 20 pieces have been performed by the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, and others have debuted at events such as the university’s Chancellor’s Arts Showcase.
And alumni of the program are making waves across the country. Mizzou graduate and composer Stephanie Berg, for example, had a commission from the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and has seen her works performed by the Rochester Philharmonic. Oswald Huỳnh was recently announced as the winner of the 2025 Rome Prize in Musical Composition, and José Martínez teaches music at Colby College. Mizzou composition majors have also gone on to pursue advanced degrees at top institutions, including the Juilliard School and the Eastman School of Music.
The Mizzou New Music Initiative will remain rooted in its founding mission of cultivated original voices while evolving, growing and embracing new ideas, Freund said.
“Our compositions, performances and ideas will continue to change the way we listen to and think about music,” he said. “And we’re able to do that because of Jeanne Sinquefield’s unwavering support of the arts and her belief in the power of new music to inspire, challenge and connect us all. On the top floor of the Sinquefield Center is a large sign with Jeanne’s favorite quote, ‘The joy of life is music.’”
