When creative works take center stage at UCF Celebrates the Arts 2026, among them will be original compositions highlighting the ingenuity of the university’s students and faculty. These premieres reflect both emerging talent and established compositional voices at UCF.
An annual tradition, UCF Celebrates the Arts unites the campus and local community at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts for an immersive, dynamic festival showcasing the artistic prowess through art exhibits, plays, musical performances and more.
Here are some new compositions to enjoy during this year’s events, which run March 31 through April 12.
An Artist’s Frame for Orlando – April 4
One of the major premieres comes from Jeff Rupert, director of jazz studies and the Flying Horse Big Band. The ensemble will perform the world premiere of An Artist’s Frame for Orlando, a work composed by Rupert as a reflection on Central Florida through the eye of an artist. The piece serves as a personal tribute to the region and its cultural landscape.
Associate Professor of Music Composition Alex Burtzos notes the balance between creation and performance is a defining feature of the festival.
“One of the great things about UCF Celebrates the Arts is the way the event highlights the creative side of music-making along with the interpretive side,” Burtzos says. “Every year, the festival includes numerous world premieres, giving listeners in Central Florida the opportunity to experience something never heard before. That convergence of excellent composers and performers will continue to make Central Florida a hub for music studies in the United States.”
Zodiac – April 9
The UCF New Music Ensemble will perform Zodiac, an evening-length program created by the UCF Composition Studio that invites audiences to imagine themselves in a celestial landscape and journey through space and time. Inspired by Steve Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians, the work consists of 14 interconnected movements — an opening “Pulsar,” twelve sections representing the zodiac signs and a closing epilogue.
According to Burtzos, the movements are performed continuously and linked through shared tempo relationships.
“The effect will be a tapestry of sound that is always present but always changing,” he says, “much the way the stars move across the night sky while retaining their relationship with one another.”
wood sorrel – April 6
The UCF Percussion Ensemble’s concert on April 6 features two works that connect past and present generations of musicians. The ensemble will premiere wood sorrel by Kris Zaballero ’23, a former pianist with the UCF New Music Ensemble. The piece was commissioned by Thad Anderson ’04, associate professor of percussion and director of the New Music Ensemble, following Zaballero’s graduation and will be performed by a group of first-year percussion majors. The program will also include CAH Dean Jeff Moore’s new arrangement of Zdeněk Lukáš’s Musica Boema – Movement I: Cantabile, written as a tribute to drum corps educator Ralph Hardimon. Moore was UCF’s first full-time percussion professor in 1994.
Dreamland at Exceptional Knights – April 7
Accessibility is central to Exceptional Knights, a performance by the UCF Concert Bands. Designed as a sensory-friendly concert, the event is intended to welcome all people, including those who are deaf and hard-of hearing or of the neurodivergent community. The program includes Dreamland, an original work by music composition student Ellis Hall, who draws on the imagery of amusement parks as a metaphor for imagination and shared experience.
“In certain moments, the music invites listeners to feel like participants in the atmosphere rather than observers from a distance,” Hall says. “It celebrates energy, connection and the childlike excitement of discovering something new.”
Performances From Local Teen Musicians at the National Young Composers Challenge – March 15
As a primer event heading into UCF Celebrates the Arts, the National Young Composers Challenge, brought young composers ages 14-18 from across the United States to have their pieces performed by UCF partner organization the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra. The competition annually invites students to submit original pieces composed for either small ensemble or full orchestra, with six selected winners. This year’s contest included 177 compositions, all of which receive personalized feedback from the panel of judges.
In addition to new music, UCF Celebrates Arts also includes new and original choreography, plays, and creative writing from UCF students, faculty, and alumni. Reserve tickets today at arts.ucf.edu.