Arts Division

In February, the UW Symphony will perform a symphony that Coast Salish elder Vi Hilbert commissioned years ago to heal the world after the heartbreak of 9/11. The symphony was first performed by the Seattle Symphony in 2006.

Historian Coll Thrush researches the dark history of Pacific Northwest shipwrecks in "Wrecked." Thrush, who earned his master’s degree and Ph.D. in history at the University of Washington, spent six years combing through archives, oral histories and ship logs to unearth tales of sinking and survival, exploitation and tragedy. But in the process, he discovered a deeper narrative—an exploration of how people, place and power collided along the Northwest coast, and how nature always won.

While some dancers only appear weightless, Rachael Lincoln—with the help of climbing technology—literally defies gravity.

Hummingbirds often seem gentle from a distance. A closer look tells a different story. Life in the forest pushes each bird to compete, react fast, and make sharp choices. Alejandro Rico Guevara, associate professor of biology at the UW and curator of birds at the UW Burke Museum, is quoted.

The green hermit hummingbird, which lives primarily in mountain forests of Central and South America, fights to win a mate. New research found that these fights have shaped the species evolution, yielding significant differences in bill shape for male and female green hermits.

Come curious. Leave inspired. For those near and far, we invite you to end the year with us through a range of events, performances, exhibitions, podcasts, and more. As you begin to shape your December plans, dont miss the inspiring events still to come this November. In addition,sign up to receive a monthly notice when...

UW Libraries and the UW School of Music collaborate to bring the free First Wednesday Concert Series to the public each month. The series features School of Music students in approximately hour-long sets, strategically occurring during lunchtime in hopes of audience members attending during a break in their day. 

Looking for a fresh perspective? Check out these podcasts and radio shows from UW alumni and faculty, including Markus Dekanogisdi Teuton (Cherokee), (BM, Jazz Studies // BA, CHID, 2024) and Kara Bazzi (BA, Psychology, 2021). 

A Burke Museum exhibit, co-curated by Coast Salish weavers and Burke curators, highlights the importance of weaving to Coast Salish communities.

In the College of Arts & Sciences, we are proud to celebrate our first-generation community through a collection of stories! We honor our faculty and staff, and their many contributions to our university community and beyond.

The UW Symphony Orchestra performed their first program of the quarter Oct. 24 in Meany Hall’s Katharyn Alvord Gerlich Theater. Music director and conductor of the Symphony Orchestra David Alexander Rahbee conducted, and the night featured faculty pianist Cristina Valdés in a performance that brought energy, humor, and just the right touch of emotion.

Discovered in Kansas, this clam is already going viral in Seattle.

Come curious. Leave inspired. We invite you to connect with us this November through a rich and varied schedule of more than 30 events, exhibitions, podcasts, and more. From chamber opera premieres and public lectures to Indigenous storytelling and poetry celebrations, theres something to spark every curiosity. Expect boundary-pushing performances, thought-provoking dialogues on memory and...

For a 2024 exhibition in Mumbai (for which I wrote a catalog essay), Sangram Majumdar explored the contrast between visceral presence and memorys shadow, as well as the double state of consciousness that is inherent in having to constantly realign here and there. The work of Sangram Majumdar, associate professor of painting and drawing, is featured.

Tacoma Opera's production of Wagner's "Das Rheingold" involved numerous School of Music faculty, students, and alumni, including Voice professor Thomas Harper (stage director), Music History professor Stephen Rumph (Froh), alumni Kristin Vogel (DMA Voice) (Fricka) and Brendan Tuohy ('04 BM, Voice) (Loge), and company general director Lim Forgey (DMA, Voice).