University of Cincinnati

12/11/2025 | Press release | Archived content

Watch performances from Jennifer Higdon's residency at CCM

Watch performances from Jennifer Higdon's residency at CCM

CCM hosted the Pulitzer and Grammy Award-winning composer from Oct. 16-18, 2025

5 minute read December 11, 2025 Share on facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn Share on Reddit Print StoryLike

One of America's greatest living composers spent three days in residence at CCM this fall. Relive the excitement of that residency with the latest video releases from CCM Recording Productions.

This October, the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music welcomed Pulitzer Prize and Grammy Award-winning composer Jennifer Higdon for a three-day-long residency. Dubbed the "Jennifer Higdon Festival," this one-of-a-kind event featured a variety of different public performances presented by students and faculty, along with a Composition Symposium for CCM students, faculty and staff.

"Our students regularly work with living composers, but in this case they are working closely with a celebrated Pulitzer and Grammy Award-winning composer," said CCM Director of Orchestral Studies Mark Gibson, who led the planning for the festival. "We try to provide transformative experiences for our students and this will change peoples' lives."

More than 300 students were involved in the festival's performances, which featured Higdon's compositions for orchestra, wind band, choral ensemble, opera, percussion and chamber music. Several of those festival performances are now available for on-demand viewing.

"When you have this many people involved in performances, it's such a spectacular display of the talent at the conservatory," Higdon said. "It's really impressive - not a lot of places could pull this off."

Watch Higdon's Harp Concerto

During the festival's "Symphonic Brilliance" concert on Friday, Oct. 17, the CCM Philharmoniastudent orchestra was joined by doctoral harp student Emily Stonefor a performance of Higdon's Grammy Award-winning Harp Concerto. Winner of the CCM Harp Concerto Competition, Emily Stone is a student of CCM faculty member Gillian Benet Sella. Gibson conducted the ensemble.

The Harp Concerto, which received its world premiere in 2018, is comprised of four movements. Higdon won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition in 2020 for her composition of the piece.

Watch Higdon's Percussion Concerto

The festival's "Symphonic Brilliance" concert also featured a performance of Higdon's Grammy Award-winning Percussion Concerto by the CCM Wind Symphony with faculty soloist Adam Groh. CCM faculty member Kevin Michael Holzman conducted the ensemble.

A one-movement concerto for solo percussion and orchestra, the piece was completed in 2005 and won the Grammy Award for Best Classical Contemporary Composition in 2010.

Watch Higdon's "Splendid Wood"

Higdon describes Splendid Wood as "a joyous celebration of the sound of wood, one of nature's most basic materials, a part of all sorts of things in our world, but used most thrillingly and gloriously in instruments."

The CCM Xylophone Sextet-comprised of students Marie Conti, Liang Dong, Yuxuan Gong, Qiming Han, Matt Hanson and Peter Loferski-performed the work during the festival's "Opera, Chamber and Percussion" concert on Saturday, Oct. 18, which was dedicated to Higdon's compositions. Groh and fellow CCM faculty member Rusty Burge served as music directors.

We will release video of additional selections from CCM's Jennifer Higdon Festival in the near future!

Download the digital program for Jennifer Higdon Festival's "Symphonic Brilliance" concert, and view the ensemble rosters, by clicking here.

Download the digital program for the festival's "Opera, Chamber and Percussion" concert by clicking here.

Nothing beats the thrill of a live performance, and there's no better way to experience CCM's world-class students than at our annual Moveable Feast fundraising event on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. Moveable Feast is your opportunity to experience all CCM has to offer. Plan a "notable" evening of artistic selections, including performances by the CCM Philharmonia, CCM Wind Symphony and so much more! Tickets to Moveable Feast are on sale now.

About These Videos

These CCM OnStage Archives videos were produced by CCM Recording Productions, an in-house video production entity that plans a season of promotional videos, short documentaries and concert recordings showcasing CCM students, faculty, staff and alumni.

Credits for Featured Videos right arrow down arrow

CCM Philharmonia performs Jennifer Higdon's Harp Concerto w/ soloist Emily Stone (Oct. 17, 2025)

Camera Operators
 Davison Black
Anthony Dillion
Caleb Kuhnell
Derek Stacy
Ben Terribilini

Music Recording & Mix
 Simón Sotelo

Recording Assistant
 Emmett Warnken

Editor
 Anthony Dillion

Producer
Melissa Godoy

CCM Wind Symphony performs Jennifer Higdon's Percussion Concerto w/ soloist Adam Groh (Oct 17, 2025)

Camera Operators
 Davison Black
Anthony Dillion
Caleb Kuhnell
Derek Stacy
Ben Terribilini

Interview Lighting
 Taylor DeBoo

Music Recording & Mix
 Simón Sotelo

Recording Assistant
 Emmett Warnken

Documentary Intro Editor
 Davison Black

Producer/Music Performance Editor
 Melisa Godoy

CCM Percussion performs Jennifer Higdon's "Splendid Wood" (Oct. 18, 2025)

This video was produced, filmed and edited by Ben Terribilini, a senior in CCM's Media Production BFA program, as part of his capstone project. The video was co-produced with CCM Recording Productions.

Producer/Editor
 Ben Terribilini

Camera Operators
 Taylor DeBoo
Melissa Godoy
Derek Stacy
Ben Terribilini

Music Recording & Mix
 Simón Sotelo

There's More To Explore!

Access additional videos on CCM's official YouTube channel

Looking for CCM's School, Stage & Screen podcast? Tune in here

Enjoying CCM's video releases? Support CCM's students by making a gift to CCMpower:

Supporters right arrow down arrow
Louise Dieterle Nippert Trust Scholarship and Resident Artist Supporter The Corbett Endowment at CCM Dance Department Supporter All-Steinway School Supporter William L. Gasch Endowment Fund for Dance Excellence CCM Dance Department Supporter J. Brett Offenberger, MD and Mr. Douglas E. Duckett
Dr. & Mrs. Carl G. Fischer
Greg Mathein
Jim & Linda Miller
George & Caroll Roden Ken and Toni Kanter Musical Theatre Department Supporters GLP German Light Products
Upstaging, Inc. Theater Design & Production Supporter The Estate of Genevieve Smith Opera Production Supporter Rafael and Kimberly de Acha Opera D'Arte Supporter The Friedlander Family Dr. Randolph L. Wadsworth Judith Schonbach Landgren and Peter Landgren Mr. & Mrs. Harry H. Santen Elizabeth C.B. Sittenfeld Elizabeth Stone Mrs. Thomas E. Stegman Mrs. Theodore W. Striker Mrs. Harry M. Hoffheimer Ariel Quartet Supporters The Friedlander Family
Karl Zipser Chamber Music at CCM Jan Rogers Willard and Jean Mulford Charitable Fund of the Cambridge Charitable Foundation Choral Studies Supporters Anonymous Classical Guitar Supporter Mr. & Mrs. Joseph W. Hirschhorn Philharmonia Supporters Dorothy Richard Starling Foundation Starling Pre-Collegiate Supporter Starling Strings Supporter Dr. Timothy E. and Janet L. Johnson Thom Miles and Roberta Gary Strader Fund of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation Organ Department Supporters Keyboard Club of Cincinnati
L. Ried Schott Piano Department Supporters Kevin and Nancy Rhein Wind Studies Supporters Willis Music/ Buddy Rogers Music LINKS Instrument Donation Supporter

Sponsors listed as of August 15, 2025

Next OnStage

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Featured image at top of award-winning composer Jennifer Higdon visiting a CCM rehearsal alongside Assistant Professor of Percussion Adam Groh. Photo/Angelo Anton

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University of Cincinnati published this content on December 11, 2025, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on December 16, 2025 at 15:05 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]