UW Bands Director Leads Project to Connect Communities With Classical Music

Interlochen Public Radio’s Sound Garden Project (SGP), an innovative initiative founded by University of Wyoming Director of Bands Matthew Schlomer, has entered a strategic partnership with the renowned Concert Artists Guild (CAG) in New York City.

Launching in 2026 for CAG’s 75th anniversary season, this collaboration integrates SGP’s immersive, community-centered residency into CAG’s prestigious artist development program for emerging classical musicians.

Now entering its sixth season, the SGP was designed by Schlomer to bridge the gap between classical music and modern lifestyles. By placing artists in unconventional, everyday locations -- such as hardware stores, skate shops and fire stations -- SGP fosters intimate, personal exchanges that redefine how classical music is experienced.

The partnership provides top young professional musicians with specialized training to become “citizen artists,” beginning with a rigorous, one-week “sound sampling” exploration, followed by multiweek artist-in-residence opportunities in Northern Michigan.

“It is an incredible honor to mentor the best young professional musicians in the country,” Schlomer says. “I’m especially thrilled that our Wyoming students will have firsthand knowledge of what is happening at the forefront of classical music.”

Schlomer’s vision focuses on bringing high-level artistry directly to people in their daily lives, fostering genuine human connection through the intimacy of sound.

“The unique pedagogy in the Sound Garden Project equips musicians to creatively plant music in unexpected places,” he says. “These skills will be especially meaningful for Wyoming musicians to innovate new ways of engaging audiences with the incredible power of music.”