ECU School of Music: Ensembles

Instrumental Ensembles

Large Ensembles:

Concert Band
Approximately 70 students take part in the Concert Band, enjoying continued musical involvement at the university level without excessive performance pressures or rehearsal time. There are no auditions, and membership is open to all University students. [Contact Dr. Scott Carter, director]

ECU Symphony Orchestra

The Symphony Orchestra performs several times each year, playing a wide variety of literature chosen from standard orchestral repertoire, contemporary works, music for smaller instrumentation or chamber orchestra, as well as works for full orchestra. The ECU Symphony is open to music majors and to musicians who choose to major in other disciplines. [Contact Dr. Jorge Richter, conductor]

Marching Pirates

As the dominant spirit organization on campus, the band entertains more than three-hundred thousand fans each year at ECU and National Football League games, as well as regional high school marching band festivals. The band's unique style combines exciting arrangements of diverse musical styles with traditional and contemporary drill design. [Contact Dr. Christopher Knighten, director]

Symphonic Band
The Symphonic Band consists of 70 select woodwind, brass and percussion instrumentalists. Although most of the members of this group are music majors, several talented students from other disciplines also participate. Auditions are held at the beginning of each semester.Each year, the students who participate perform four concerts of established wind band repertoire as well as contemporary band literature. [Contact Dr. Christopher Knighten, director]

Wind Ensemble
The Symphonic Wind Ensemble is comprised of the most outstanding wind and percussion students in the School of Music. The group is dedicated to the study and performance of the finest wind repertoire regardless of historical period or disposition of instrumental forces. The ensemble had performed original compositions under such well-known composers as Karel Husa, Vincent Persichetti, Vittorio Giannini, Martin Mailman, Jack Stamp and Ron Nelson. [Contact Dr. Scott Carter, director]

Jazz-related Ensembles:

Contemporary Jazz Ensemble
The Contemporary Jazz Ensemble has been in existence for approximately ten years. The main purpose of the group is to acquaint advanced students with small group performance of compositions by jazz masters such as Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, Chick Corea, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Joe Henderson, and Cedar Walton.

Jazz 'Bones
The Jazz 'Bones was organized in 1974 as an adjunct to the East Carolina University Jazz and Trombone Ensembles and performs several on-campus concerts and at various education conferences each year. The group has appeared in concert with such artists as Kai Winding, George Roberts, Bill Watrous, Phil Wilson, Charles Vernon, Dan Barrett, and Jiggs Whigham. [Contact Mr. George Broussard, director]

Jazz Ensemble "A"
The award-winning East Carolina University Jazz Ensemble "A" (ECUJE) is the select touring group of the East Carolina University School of Music Jazz Studies Program. The ensemble has earned international recognition as one of the premiere university jazz ensembles from the state of North Carolina. [Contact Mr. Carroll V.Dashiell, Jr., director]

Jazz Ensemble "B"
The lab band for jazz studies.

Additional Ensembles:

ECU Viol Consort
In existence since 1999, The viol consort is a string ensemble using period instruments (Viols da Gamba). The group performs Renaissance polyphony of the 14th through the 16th centuries, often in conjunction with the Early Music Singers or the Early Music Ensemble. The Viol Consort has also performed frequently for local church services and for various university and community events. The ensemble is comprised of students, faculty, and local community musicians. [Contact Dr. Kevin Moll, director]

Guitar Ensemble
The ECU Guitar Ensemble is open to guitar students, mostly music majors, with experience in classical guitar. Students who have taken the non-music major group guitar sequence are welcome to participate as well. The ensemble has toured across the southeastern US and performs in recital every semester on campus. Students participate in a variety of ensemble experiences including small and large guitar ensembles as well as performing with other types of instruments. [Contact Dr. Elliot Frank, director]

Percussion Ensemble
The Percussion Ensemble is a chamber ensemble specializing in music composed exclusively for percussion instruments. Music in all styles; contemporary art music,ethnic ensemble, pop, jazz etc. are all performed. This ensemble is open only by audition and is primarily intended for upper level undergraduates and graduate students. [Contact Dr. Jon Wacker, director]

Percussion Players
This ensemble performs music intended only for percussion instruments and in a wide variety of styles. Freshmen, sophomores and non-majors (by audition) are welcome to perform in this ensemble where in addition to a focus on performing, time is spent teaching the techniques necessary for performing on a wide variety of percussion instruments. [Contact Dr. Jon Wacker, director]

Zamba Yawar (ECU Afro-Andean Ensemble)
This World Music ensemble specializes in the traditional music from the Andean highlands and the creole expressions from the Pacific coast of South America. The group performs vocal and instrumental repertoire using a variety of authentic, traditional non-Western instruments. Ensemble participation is by audition. [Contact Dr. Mario Rey, director]

Sports-related Ensembles:

Basketball Pep Band
The ECU Basketball Pep Band consists of 40 students representing many degrees fromacross campus. The band performs at all men's and women's basketball home games as well as the men's and women's Conference-USA tournaments. Members of the band receive academic credit for participation and are paid for each performance.

Marching Pirates

Vocal Ensembles

Opera Theater

East Carolina University's Opera Theatre is committed to giving students the opportunity to learn the requisite skills for performing in opera and musical theater. It has become the tradition in the past ten years to produce two works each academic year, in addition to occasional smaller scale offerings and educational opera outreach for children. Professors oversee the productions -- working closely with students to achieve the highest possible caliber of opera for our community. A wide variety of operatic offerings at ECU has included standard works by Mozart, Handel, and Puccini, as well as lesser-known operas by Britten, Blow, Menotti, and Rorem. Opera Theatre hold auditions in the spring and fall of each year for its upcoming productions.

Chamber Singers
Because of the more demanding rehearsal and performance schedule, the 32-36 voice Chamber Singers invites only the most gifted and passionate choristers from ECU to be amongst its ranks. Designed to perform twentieth-century a cappella repertoire at a professional level, this ensemble also delves into the repertoire of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries on a biannual basis in order to present baroque masterworks using historically informed performance practices in collaboration with ECU’s Early Music Ensemble. The televised performances of G. F. Handel’s complete Messiah performed on original instruments in the spring of 2003 attracted impressive audiences and earned rave reviews.

Women's Chorale
This choir of 40-50 singers is open to all female university students and performs a wide variety of SSAA repertoire. The Women’s Chorale is home to female students of all levels of vocal ability, ranging from graduate voice majors to music education majors to non-music majors. Rehearsals emphasize the fundamentals of healthy singing, music reading, choral discipline, and professional performance aesthetics. The Women’s Chorale typically performs twice each semester, both on campus and in the community, often in conjunction with the University Chorale or Chamber Singers.

University Chorale
The 110-120 voice University Chorale is open to all university students, and is typically comprised of an equal balance of music-majors and non-music-majors. Presenting at least four concerts per academic year, this ensemble is lead by faculty and graduate student conductors whose collaboration and individuality result in marvelous programming variety and a stimulating array of pedagogical approaches. Geared to sing primarily accompanied works from the eighteenth through twentieth centuries, the University Chorale is also home to the School of Music’s graduate assistants in voice who serve as section leaders within the sections of the ensemble.

ECU Choral Scholars
Created in 2003 and a subset of the Chamber Singers of ECU, this 14-voice ensemble is composed of those students capable and eager to perform a more diverse choral repertoire in a chamber music setting. This ensemble requires considerable individual preparation outside of its singular weekly rehearsal time, and because of its size, requires excellent musicianship and collaborative singing ability. The repertoire for this ensemble will range from Renaissance madrigals and motets to lighter 20th century genres including jazz and novelty works. This ensemble will perform at all Chamber Singers concerts, as well as making regular recruitment appearances at high schools around the state.

ECU Early Music Singers
ECU Early Music Singers: Founded in 2002, this choral group specializes Renaissance Polyphony and Plainchant. The Early Music Singers typically do one major concert per year (usually in February) in two different church venues, in conjunction with the ECU Viol Consort. The ensemble is comprised of students, faculty, and local community musicians.