Ensembles & Performance

Master of Music in Performance students can expand their performance experience through a variety of ensembles, depending on their concentration and interests.

Instrumental Ensembles

Students who play keyboard, percussion, woodwind and brass, and string instruments have the opportunity perform in numerous instrumental ensembles including the

• Chamber Orchestra, which performs larger chamber works in a true chamber music setting. The Chamber Orchestra generally performs one concert per semester and on occasion has joined with the Temple University Concert Choir in a combined performance.
• Diamond Marching Band, which performs at athletic events throughout the academic year, including traditional pregame shows and varied halftime shows throughout the season. The “Pride of the Cherry and White” marching band performs at all home games and also travels to select away games.
• Percussion Ensemble, which provides a quality educational chamber music experience for its members, promotes the performance of percussion literature in a variety of styles, and encourages the composition of new works for the medium.
• Symphony Orchestra, which comprises string, brass, woodwind and percussion players at the undergraduate and graduate levels. The orchestra has performed in recent years at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia, as well as Carnegie Hall and the Lincoln Center.
• Wind Symphony, an ensemble for woodwind, brass and percussion students that comprises advanced graduate and undergraduate musicians. This group performs at least six formal concerts throughout the academic year.

Jazz Instrumental & Vocal Ensembles

Student looking to grow specifically through Boyer's renowned jazz ensembles can join

• Temple University Jazz Band performs on Temple’s Main Campus and throughout the Greater Philadelphia region. It hosts the annual Essentially Ellington Eastern Regional High School Jazz Band Festival.
• Temple University Lab Band has served as the opening act for the Temple University Jazz Band’s Kimmel Center performances and as the headliner for the annual Big Band Dance swing dance held each spring in The Underground at the Howard Gittis Student Center. The band has also performed at Temple Performing Arts Center and in Tomlinson Theater.
• Jazz Band Number Three provides an environment in which students can improve application and knowledge of ballad concepts, ensemble and section blend, expansion of dynamic range and rhythmic interpretation. The repertoire covers a wide chronological range, from the Count Basie and Duke Ellington catalogues to contemporary arrangements and compositions.

Voice & Opera Ensembles

Boyer students looking to hone their skills as vocal performers should consider joining an ensemble, like the

• Concert Choir, which comprises undergraduate and graduate students at the Boyer College of Music and Dance. In addition to performing the great masterworks of the choral and orchestral canon, the choir performs a lot of new American choral music and has presented many first Philadelphia performances.
• Opera Orchestra, which accompanies Opera Theater each semester in a fully staged production.
• Singing Owls, a mixed choir, comprises Temple University alumni, faculty, staff and students as well as members of the Greater Philadelphia community. The ensemble's primary goal is to create a dynamic and inclusive singing community through the appreciation and performance of music from diverse cultures, genres, places, and time periods.
• University Chorale, a choir of men's voices, representing a wide range of majors within the Boyer and across the university. The chorale performs music of many cultures and times. In recent years, the choir has placed a special emphasis on contemporary American music, including works by Jeffery Ames, Carol Barnett, Eric William Barnum, Daniel Pinkham Frank Ticheli, and Z. Randall Stroope.
• Women's Chorus, a mixed choir of female students, representing a wide range of majors within the Boyer and across the university. The ensemble performs four times per year on campus as well as with the combined choirs and orchestra for the annual Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts concerts.

Learn more about the full slate of other student ensembles available through the Boyer College of Music and Dance.