For the sixth year, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh faculty, students and alumni will put on quite the show.

An evening of exceptional artists and performances—UW Oshkosh’s Musica Viva!—will be held Saturday, April 9 at the Arts and Communication Music Hall on campus.

The annual fundraising event starts at 6 p.m. with an opening reception. The show starts at 7 p.m. and features solo, chamber and ensemble selections.

Community member Jim Grine, UW Oshkosh emeritus music professor and longtime supporter of Musica Viva!, will serve as this year’s Master of Ceremonies.

This year’s show will highlight several new faculty members, including singer-songwriter Nathan Edwards ’07.

Edwards, a UW Oshkosh alumnus, is the music department’s new director of recording technology.

“Nathan Edwards is a perfect fit for our Recording Technology Program at UW Oshkosh. He brings fresh and forward thinking to the curriculum, while also honoring the groundwork laid by his former teacher and mentor, Wally Messner,” said Alison Shaw, UW Oshkosh music department chair and associate percussion professor. “As a UWO alumnus, Nathan is really in touch with the students and their needs and he has already made great structural and curricular changes that will insure the future and growth of recording technology at UWO.”

Also featured in this year’s show will be a wind group conducted by Devin Otto, the new director of bands at UW Oshkosh.

“Devin Otto has infused our band and wind ensemble program with enthusiasm, energy and passion. He has quickly become a great friend to the students, alumni and area instrumental music educators, and brings an inspired vision to the future of our program. We are very lucky to have such a talented educator join our faculty,” Shaw said.

Beyond faculty and students involved with Musica Viva!, this year’s alumni performer is Ed Karrels, who graduated from UW Oshkosh in 1997 with a degree in computer science. Though Karrels wasn’t music major, he took trombone lessons and played in a number of ensembles during his years as a student at UW Oshkosh. After working in Silicon Valley, Karrels is now back in the Midwest working on a Ph.D. in computer science—he continues to study the trombone and play in one of the University orchestras.

Tickets to Musica Viva! are $60, which includes hors d’oeuvres and complementary beverages prior to the show. A $30 concert ticket includes a post-concert dessert buffet.

Proceeds from Musica Viva! fund scholarships that allow exceptional music students to study at UW Oshkosh.

“The scholarship I received will allow me to focus more on academic and musical achievement, putting me one step closer to making my dreams a reality,” said Katie Warren, a music industry major who plays the French horn. Warren is the recipient of the 2016 Orville Sherman Scholarship.

Tickets are available online at uwosh.edu/go/viva or by calling the UW Oshkosh Music Department at (920) 424-4224 or musicaviva@uwosh.edu.

Learn more:

• UW Oshkosh Department of Music