UK School of Music Sets the Mood for Valentine’s week

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 7, 2025) — Love is in the air this February as the University of Kentucky School of Music presents two enchanting concerts, perfect for a Valentine’s celebration. Whether you’re in the mood for the sultry swing of jazz or the sweeping romance of orchestral music, UK’s talented musicians have something special in store.

UK Jazz Ensemble

The UK Jazz Ensemble and UK Lab Band will present their annual Jazzy Valentine concert 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 12, in the Singletary Center for the Arts Recital Hall.

The concert will feature an evening of big band jazz, heartfelt ballads and lively Latin rhythms.

“A contemporary arrangement of ‘My Funny Valentine,’ written to feature our outstanding alto saxophone soloist Gabe Neff, will be a highlight of the evening,” said Miles Osland, director of UK Jazz Studies.

UK Jazz Studies has presented a Valentine’s concert for more than 20 years.

The UK Jazz Ensemble has received invitations to perform at the Midwest Clinic International Band, Orchestra and Music Conference multiple times, most recently in December 2025, and at the International Association of Jazz Educators Conference. In 2011, the UK Jazz Ensemble, along with the Osland/Dailey Jazztet, toured France, Switzerland and the Netherlands, performing at two of the world’s most prestigious jazz festivals. In 2014, the ensemble completed at two-week tour of China.

Tickets for the concert are general admission — $14 for adults and $7 for students (fees included).

UK Symphony Orchestra

The UK Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of John Nardolillo, presents its first concert of 2025, 7:30 p.m., Friday, Feb. 14 in the Singletary Center Concert Hall.

The performance will feature Sergei Rachmaninoff’s “Piano Concerto No. 2,” one of the most beloved works of the Romantic era, with senior Caleb Weber on piano. The program also includes Sergei Prokofiev’s “Suite from Cinderella;” Claude Debussy’s “Prélude à L’après-midi d’un faune;” and Richard Strauss’ “Suite from Der Rosenkavalier.”

Arrive early to the UK Symphony Orchestra concert for the Rey M. Longyear Pre-Concert Lecture Series, 7 p.m. in the Singletary Center Concert Hall. UK School of Music lecturer Mary Margaret Zrull will present insights on the evening’s repertoire. Seating for the lecture is reserved; a concert ticket includes access to the lecture.

Founded in 1918, the University of Kentucky Symphony Orchestra is a 100-member all-student orchestra presenting more than 50 concerts each year, including classical, chamber and education concerts. Under the direction of Nardolillo, the orchestra has performed at Carnegie Hall in New York and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., toured the state of Kentucky, and toured China, playing concerts in major concert halls in Shanghai, Tianjin, Hangzhou, Yangzhou and Beijing. In 2010 the orchestra played for the Opening Ceremonies of the World Equestrian Games, a live performance that featured more than 1,500 performers and 200 horses.

Tickets for the concert are general admission — $20 for adults and $10 for students (additional online processing fees may apply).

Tickets for both concerts are are available at the Singletary Center ticket office, 405 Rose St. in Lexington, or can be purchased online.

Free advance tickets for School of Music concerts are available exclusively through the SCFA ticket office to UK students with a valid UK student ID (limit one per student). Free advance tickets are not available on the day of the show.

For tickets and more information, contact the Singletary Center for the Arts ticket office at 859-257-4929 or visit the Singletary Center website.

The School of Music at the UK College of Fine Arts has garnered a national reputation for high-caliber education in opera, choral and instrumental music performance, as well as music education, music therapy, composition, theory and music history.