President Ono, 50 Cellists to Perform at Nippert Opening Game
UC President Santa J. Ono and an ensemble of 50 cellos will bring a special musical note to the debut of UCs newly renovated Nippert Stadium on
Saturday, Sept. 5.
The Bearcats football teams opening of the 2015-2016 season at UCs expanded and improved historic stadium kicks off at 7 p.m. against Alabama A&M. Before the first kickoff, the cello choir, including Ono, will perform a new version of the Star Spangled Banner composed by Miguel Roig-Francoli, Distinguished Teaching Professor in UCs College-Conservatory of Music (CCM).
The
, led by directors Sarah Kim and CCM faculty member Alan Rafferty, gave the world premiere of Roig-Francolis composition of the national anthem on Aug. 8 at the conclusion of their Sixth Annual Cello Workshop at CCM. For the Nippert Stadium performance, they will be joined by students from CCM and led by Mark Gibson, CCMs director of Orchestral Studies. The new version of the national anthem will also be part of the opening concert of the CCM Philharmonia concert series at
8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4,
in Corbett Auditorium.
The idea for the special anthem for the opening game at Nippert started with President Ono, who takes private cello lessons with Rafferty. Ono approached Rafferty with the suggestion. Then, Rafferty and his wife Sarah Kim invited Roig-Francoli to write a new arrangement of the national anthem for the ensemble.
Image of Miguel Roig-Francoli with students
Some of the cellists in the Cincinnati Young Artists are as young as 12 years old. The Cincinnati Young Artists have quickly become an important addition to Cincinnati's rich cultural heritage. Led by Kim and Rafferty, their programs have been providing the highest level training to students from all over the country in Greater Cincinnati for the last six years. Each summer, the couple presents a week-long Chamber Music and Cello Workshop at UCs CCM.
Related Stories
CCM Choral Conducting student receives 2025-26 Presser Graduate Music Award
April 21, 2026
UC College-Conservatory of Music is proud to announce that DMA Choral Conducting student Max Trombley, is the recipient of The Presser Foundation’s 2025-26 Graduate Music Award. Invited annually, graduate schools of music at accredited colleges, universities, and independent institutions of higher education present the Presser Graduate Music Award to an outstanding graduate music student whom they select. The Award was established to encourage and support in a special way the advanced education and career of truly exceptional graduate music students who have the potential to make a distinguished contribution to the field of music.
CCM announces winners of 2026 Winstead Artistry in Wind Playing Competition
April 21, 2026
The UC College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) is proud to announce the winners of the fifth annual competition for wind players in memory of Cincinnati Symphony principal bassoonist and long-time faculty member, William O. Winstead. The winners of CCM's 2026 Winstead Artistry in Wind Playing Competition are: - Winstead Prize ($2,000): Seongjin Kim, clarinet - Honorable Mention ($500 each): Valentina Arango-Sanchez, flute; and Michael Zelinksi, horn - Collaborative Pianist Prize ($1,000): Giorgos Kyriazidis, piano
Bringing deadly ‘Sweeney Todd’ to life
April 17, 2026
“Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” not only stars the titular “demon” barber, but is famously a monster of a show. It’s such a grand team lift across its dozens of cast members, special effects and a multistory set that most productions cut it down to a small-scale adaptation. But the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music is stepping up to the challenge of putting on a full-scale performance of the classic, gory tale. Debuting on Broadway in 1979, the show is almost 50 years old, with countless revivals and adaptations of the vengeful barber Sweeney Todd and his co-conspirator, pie shop owner Mrs. Lovett. CCM’s performance, with a double cast and three-story set, is just as huge and bloody as the original.