Admission Cost: FREE

This concert is free and open to the public!

With a 36-year trajectory in the world of chamber music, Spanish Brass is one of the most dynamic and admired groups on the international musical stage.

In 1996 the ensemble won First Prize in the 6th International Ville de Narbonne (France) Brass Quintet Competition, considered the most prestigious in the world for this formation. In 2017 Spanish Brass received First Prize in the Bankia Awards for Musical Talent of the Comunitat de Valencia, and in 2019 they received the Espai Ter de Música Award. Their recordings have also been honored with Carles Santos Awards in 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022.

In 2020, Spanish Brass was awarded the National Music Prize of Spain’s Ministry of Culture, the country’s highest musical honor.

In addition to participating in some of the most important music festivals around the world, Spanish Brass performed at the Prince of Asturias Awards Gala in 1995, recorded the music for the theatrical work “La Fundación” by Buero Vallejo for the National Dramatic Center, and composed the soundtrack for the film “Descongélate” by Felix Sabroso for the production company El Deseo.

Renowned and sought-after as pedagogues, Spanish Brass has given masterclasses at many prestigious conservatories and music departments worldwide, including the Juilliard School, the Colburn Conservatory of Music (Los Angeles), the Berklee School of Music (Boston), University of Texas at Austin, San Francisco Conservatory, Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris et Lyon (France), the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (London), Hochschule für Musik Detmold (Germany), Lieksa Brass Week (Finland), Trakai Brass Week (Lithuania), Real Conservatorio Superior de Música de Madrid (Spain), Musikene (Higher School of Music of the Basque Country, Spain), Yale School of Music, and many others.

For more information please call 803-777-7500 or email kogercenter@sc.edu.

 

Admission Cost: FREE

Cormac Cannon, conductor
Ryan Gonzales, guest conductor

Three colors weave their way through a diverse program of classic and brand-new music for wind ensemble. The USC Wind Ensemble performs the world premiere of the wind ensemble version of Noir by USC School of Music faculty composer Fang Man. Black and white emerge through the piano keys of Charles Ives’ classic The Alcotts, the imagery of historical newsreels in William Schuman’s first work for band, and two marches by John Philip Sousa. The finale, contemporary American composer Michael Daugherty’s Red Cape Tango, is a musical depiction of a “dance of death,” following Superman’s fight to the death with the villain Doomsday.

Fang Man, Noir  - World Premiere of Wind Ensemble Version
Ives/Elkus, The Alcotts
Sousa, The Black Horse Troop
Sousa, The White Rose
Schuman, Newsreel in Five Shots
Daugherty/Spede, Red Cape Tango

Admission Cost: FREE

Making Movies will take you on a psychedelic musical journey with an original sound Rolling Stone describes as “an eclectic blend of rumbero percussions, delicate organs and grungy fuzz rock.”

Founded by Enrique Chi—a Panamanian songwriter, musician, filmmaker, and cultural producer—the Latin Grammy-nominated band serves as the primary platform for Chi’s creative mission. Armed with electric guitars and a Mejorana, a folcloric guitar native to Panamá, the band interweaves styles as divergent as cumbia and blues, salsa, soul, and rock’n’roll––all boiled down into their own original sound.

Over the course of their career, the quartet has turned heads as a Tiny Desk newcomer (with “A La Deriva”), a voice for immigrant rights (with “I Am Another You” which reached #3 on Billboard’s Latin Pop Album chart), and as a co-writer alongside salsa icon Rubén Blades with “No Te Calles,” the first single from Blades Latin Grammy nominated album.

This concert features an opening performance from Opus & the Frequencies. Known for their energetic live shows, Opus & The Frequencies have earned a reputation as a must-see Columbia act. This reputation has seen them playing small clubs and bars in support of local or touring regional acts, as well as gracing bigger stages like the St. Pats Festival in Five Points, Columbia Food and Wine Festival’s Concert On The Runway, Solfest Rollfest, and USC legacy events (Tiger Burn, First Night Carolina) in support of bands like Hippo Campus, Illiterate Light, The Blue Dogs, Flipturn, lighthearted and Brook and The Bluff to name a few.

The Frequencies harness an eclectic blend of influences—funk, indie rock, Latin grooves, and pop sensibilities—converging into a distinctive sound. This sonic alchemy flourishes whether they take the stage as a four-piece or an expansive ten-piece ensemble.

This concert is free and open to the public!

Admission Cost: $25 general admission Free for USC School of Music students/faculty/staff

Join us for the opening concert of our inaugural Freeman Parker Chamber Music Series as we welcome the acclaimed Terra String Quartet. A vibrant young ensemble based in New York City, the ensemble is composed of graduates of The Juilliard School, The New England Conservatory, Harvard University, and The Curtis Institute of Music. Praised for their “remarkable maturity and musicality” and “superb ensemble playing” (Hyde Park Herald, Chicago), these four musicians are known for their sincere storytelling, commitment to artistic excellence, and versatile approach to repertoire, and they strive to foster conversation and genuine human connection through their performances and pedagogy. Their name is a nod to their multicultural origins — together, this foursome represents four continents and speaks six languages.

Admission Cost: Tickets: $27 - $32

Created as a partnership between the Koger Center for the Arts and the ColaJazz Foundation, Live in the Lobby 2026 includes this bonus concert back by popular demand! Join us to experience this one-of-a-kind series designed for audiences seeking premier jazz and specialty experiences in an exceptional setting.

Prepare for a fang-tastic night as the ColaJazz Foundation unleashes a sonic haunting straight from the crypts of New Orleans! These frighteningly talented musicians bring the “NOLA to COLA” vibe with a blend of traditional and contemporary brass band music that’s so bewitching, it raises the dead. Their high-energy performances fuse jazz, funk, and gospel sounds into a cauldron of communal celebration, stirring up a crowd frenzy that feels less like a concert and more like a midnight monster mash.

This spooktacular ensemble is commanded by the bandleader and trumpet ghoul, Mark Rapp. A nationally recognized jazz phantom and “Jazz Hero” (JJA 2025), Mark haunts stages worldwide, from the haunted halls of the Blue Note NYC to the foggy fields of the Newport Jazz Festival. Rapp, a student of the legendary Ellis Marsalis at the University of New Orleans, also serves as the ghoul-daddy (Founder and Executive Director) of the ColaJazz Foundation, dedicated to ensuring that quality jazz continues to trick and treat the Southeast.

For more information please call 803-777-7500 or email kogercenter@sc.edu.

Tickets may be purchased in person at the box office, by phone at 803-251-2222 or online.

Buy Tickets

Admission Cost: FREE

LOCATION: Koger Center for the Arts Large Rehearsal Room

Admission Cost: FREE

Student chamber music ensembles of diverse instrumentation (typically including string quartets, piano trios, wind quintets and mixed instrument groups) perform chamber music from Baroque to contemporary.

Admission Cost: FREE

LOCATION: Koger Grand Tier

Admission Cost: FREE

The Palmetto Saxophone Quartet will present a compelling program showcasing the remarkable breadth and vitality of contemporary music for saxophone quartet. Reflecting the ensemble’s commitment to championing new repertoire and innovative artistic voices, the concert features works by eight living composers, including the world premiere of a new composition by David Garner. Audiences will experience a rich variety of compositional styles, from introspective lyricism and expressive textures to exhilarating rhythmic energy and virtuosic interplay. Through this diverse program, the Palmetto Saxophone Quartet highlights the saxophone quartet’s extraordinary versatility and expressive potential as a dynamic medium for contemporary artistic expression.

* * *

All Southern Exposure concerts are FREE, but patrons may reserve seats and support the Southeast’s most adventurous music series! A gift of $175 secures a seat for the entire 2026-27 season. To donate online, click here or contact Audra Vaz at 803-777-9732 or audra.vaz@sc.edu.

Admission Cost: Free

Garnet Chorale and Gamecock Chorale come together to present a concert of music for treble and tenor/bass voices, respectively.  These ensembles feature both students and community members - a joyous celebration of music making in the Columbia community!

Free and open to the public

Shandon Presbyterian Church
607 Woodrow Street
Columbia, SC 29205

Admission Cost: A cover charge may be required.

Experience an exciting performance by the Music Industry Studies Commercial Music Ensembles featuring original songs and crowd-favorite covers. Location to be announced.

Admission Cost: FREE

Admission Cost: FREE

Cormac Cannon, conductor
Ryan Gonzales, guest conductor
Philip Bush, piano

The USC Wind Ensemble takes flight! Emerging composer Noah Hudson-Camack’s exhilarating fanfare is contrasted with the haunting rising intervals of David Biedenbender’s Enigma. Adam Schoenberg’s Rise is a haunting an evocative journey, while Frank Ticheli’s new work Over the Moon is a joyous and imaginative trip into space. Faculty pianist Philip Bush takes center stage in Olivier Messiaen’s groundbreaking Oiseaux exotiques, based on bird calls from around the world.

Hudson-Camack, Fanfare and Flight
Biedenbender, Enigma
Schoenberg, Rise
Messiaen, Oiseaux exotiques
Ticheli, Over the Moon 

Admission Cost: FREE

The Guitar Ensemble Fall Showcase features an engaging program performed and produced by student guitarists. Join us in celebrating a semester of collaboration, creativity, and musical excellence. 

Admission Cost: FREE

Admission Cost: Free

Cormac Cannon, conductor
Andrew Boysen, Jr., guest conductor
David Warren, guest conductor

The annual concert for the USC Band Clinic features guest composer and conductor Andrew Boysen, Jr., Director of Bands at the University of New Hampshire. In addition to Boysen’s work, the Wind Ensemble performs works by Joan Tower as well as John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The concert closes with the soundtrack from the classic Star Wars trilogy (and perhaps a special encore!)

Tower/Stamp, Celebration Fanfare
Boysen, Phoenix
Lennon/McCartney, arr. Berg, Black Bird
Williams/Hunsberger, Star Wars Trilogy

Admission Cost: FREE

Admission Cost: FREE

Featuring Olivia De Prato, violin; Ashley Bathgate, cello; Ken Thomson, clarinet; Karl Larson, piano

Formed in 2020, the Anzû Quartet is an ensemble dedicated to the music of our time and the recent canon. A collaboration between internationally renowned performers of contemporary music, this new quartet pays homage to Olivier Messiaen’s 'Quatuor pour la fin du temps' by actively commissioning and performing new works for this iconic instrumentation.

The members of Anzû are veterans of New York City's vital contemporary music community and have frequently collaborated with one another across a wide range of musical endeavors and acclaimed international performances. Olivia De Prato (violin), Ashley Bathgate (cello), Ken Thomson (clarinet) and Karl Larson (piano) have been lauded by critics and musicians worldwide, and have been instrumental in helping form and cement the work of important NY-based chamber groups such as the Bang on a Can All-Stars, Mivos Quartet, Ensemble Signal and Bearthoven. They have premiered works by some of the most important composers of our time at some of the most prestigious venues in the world.

* * *

All Southern Exposure concerts are FREE, but patrons may reserve seats and support the Southeast’s most adventurous music series! A gift of $175 secures a seat for the entire 2026-27 season. To donate online, click here or contact Audra Vaz at 803-777-9732 or audra.vaz@sc.edu.

Admission Cost: FREE

The University Chorus shares the stage with invited ensembles from our community.

Free and open to the public

 Shandon Presbyterian Church
607 Woodrow St.
Columbia, SC 29205 

Admission Cost: FREE

Under the direction of Dr. Alicia Walker, USC’s flagship choral ensemble presents “Through the Valley” featuring Herbert Howells’s “Requiem” for a cappella choir.

Free and open to the public

Shandon Presbyterian Church
607 Woodrow Street
Columbia, SC 29205

Admission Cost: FREE

Cormac Cannon, conductor
Jay Jacobs, guest conductor
David Warren, guest conductor

The USC Wind Ensemble reflects on the first days of spring with a program of deep and meditative works. Ottorino Respighi wrote Huntingtower for band in 1932, while Breathe by Katahj Copley will receive its world premiere in the version for wind ensemble. The Octet for Wind Instruments came to Stravinsky in a dream and displays the virtuosity of our most gifted students. Associate Director of Bands Dr. Jay Jacobs leads the ensemble in a brand-new work by Haley Woodrow dedicated to renowned band director Doug Stotter. The concert concludes with Flourishes and Meditations on a Renaissance Theme, a musical tour de force by Michael Gandolfi.

Program:

Respighi, Huntingtower 
Copley/Cannon, Breathe; World Premiere of Wind Ensemble Version
Stravinsky, Octet for Wind Instruments
Woodrow, Dark River; Consortium Premiere
Gandolfi, Flourishes and Meditations on a Renaissance Theme