Bloomsburg Ensembles

Under the direction of Dr. David Tedford, The Symphony Orchestra is open to anyone with previous orchestral experience, and includes students, faculty, staff, and area musicians. An audition at the beginning of the semester is used to place musicians in appropriate seats within the orchestra.

Performances are held on the Bloomsburg campus each semester. The repertoire ranges is quite extensive and ranges from classical to popular and represents some of the finest orchestral compositions from all major musical periods, including numerous world premieres! Performances include classical Fall and Spring concerts, educational concerts for area school children, and the annual Aria-Concerto Competition Concert. The repertoire selected is designed to prepare each member of the orchestra for future opportunities in the orchestral field, as well as to create an enjoyable experience for the ensemble members and the audience members.

Select notable repertoire of the past seasons has been Beethoven’s 5th Symphony, Dvorak’s Violin Concerto, Rachmaninoff’s 2nd Piano Concerto, Brahms’ Schicksalslied with Bloomsburg choirs, Jupiter from The Planets, Hanson’s 2nd Symphony "The Romantic", Mendelssohn’s 5th Symphony, Saint-Saens’ 2nd Piano Concerto, and premieres by Brandon Rolle - "Focus Breathing" and Ric Del Nero - "Strange and Charm."

For more information, please contact David Tedford at dtedford@commonwealthu.edu

Contact Dr. Stephen Clickard for more information on Concert Band.

Under the direction of Dr. Matthew Slotkin, the Bloomsburg Guitar Ensemble provides advanced experiences in many styles and genres of literature written for guitar. The ensemble rehearses twice weekly and performs a concert at the end of each semester. Students in the ensemble also have the opportunity to work with guest artists and composers – recent guests include the London-based composer/guitarist Declan Zapala, Irish composer Greg Caffrey, and the Atlantic Guitar Quartet.

Contact Dr. Slotkin for more information about joining the group.

Under the direction of Dr. Stephen Clickard, The Jazz Ensemble is comprised of musicians utilizing the now standard instrumentation of five saxes, five trumpets, five trombones, and rhythm section.

The ensemble plays music which spans from the 1930s to the present from many of the great bands in jazz. It's emphasis is on the post-swing modern jazz era. This includes works from many of jazz's greatest composers.  The ensemble has performed with many of jazz’s greatest performers, including: Dave Liebman, The New York Voices, Hilton Ruiz, Dave Valentin and T.S. Monk.

The band has finished its first European Tour, which included performances at the legendary Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland and the Umbria Jazz Festival in Perugia, Italy.

The University Jazz Ensemble is an auditioned group. Auditions are held at the beginning of each semester.

Under the direction of Dr. Gifford Howarth, The Huskies Marching Band invites any student with previous marching band experience to be a member. The Husky band presents a full half-time performance at all football home games along with local exhibitions. The unit is made of instrumentalists, color guard members, and twirlers. The show concepts with change from year to year and they have included both contemporary music, broadway music, popular rock and pop songs, and original music. We are active in the fall semester. A band camp is held prior to the beginning of the fall semester.

Under the direction of Dr. Gifford Howarth, the Bloomsburg Percussion Ensemble is one of our newest ensembles, providing advanced experiences in many styles and genre of percussion literature. This ensemble meets year round and is open to any Bloomsburg student who has a strong percussion background.

Under the direction of Dr. Stephen Clickard, the Bloomsburg wind ensemble is our newest ensemble, providing advanced experiences in wind band repertoire. Auditions are required.

Under the direction of Dr. Joseph Stuligross, the CU Bloomsburg Concert Choir is an all campus mixed-voice ensemble of 40-50 voices and performs challenging classical, traditional, and contemporary choral repertoire. Membership is open by audition. Concert Choir performs 2-3 concerts per semester, including on- and off-campus performances and collaborations with other ensembles. Concert Choir thrives in an atmosphere of collegiality and community where lasting memories and powerful musical experiences are nurtured through high artistic standards. Concert Choir collaborates regularly with the NEPA Philharmonic and the Choral Society of Northeast Pennsylvania in larger masterworks, including recent performances of Orff’s Carmina Burana, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, and the Requiems of Brahms and Mozart. Student leaders plan numerous events including the on-campus fall retreat, and Concert Choir often travels to destinations such as Chicago, Boston and Toronto.

Under the direction of Dr. Joseph Stuligross, the Husky Singers are the Bloomsburg tenor-bass vocal ensemble. With a repertoire ranging from traditional choir songs to doo-wop and pop arrangements, the group sometimes incorporates theatrical sketches. Your personality is welcome, and showcased! Husky Singers are comprised of students in all majors and audition is not required. The group performs 3-4 campus concerts per year, and sometimes take the act “on the road,” with performances for University, church, and community events.

Under the direction of Dr. Amelia Garbisch, the Women's Choral Ensemble repertoire spans time and style from ancient to contemporary, popular to serious. 3-4 campus concerts are performed each year, as well as high school and community programs. A tour often highlights the spring activities. Membership is open to all female students.

The Bloomsburg University Players is an organization dedicated to promoting interest in the dramatic arts and gives its members the opportunity to gain experience through participation in any or all aspects of theatre.