Music Festival: bringing the voices of SDA youth to campus

Starting on Wednesday, January 29, high school students from all over the country arrived at Union Adventist University to participate in the 71st annual Music Festival. They stayed on campus throughout the weekend to practice with one another for the upcoming concerts at College View Church. 

While Music Fest has been ongoing for 71 years, each year the program alternates between choral and instrumental, this year being choral. This setup allows students the opportunity to participate in Union’s Music Program through a variety of ways. It also displays their talent and dedication because these students are either practicing their instruments or fine-tuning their voices continually.  Ricky Little, a faculty member of Union’s Music Program, said “My favorite part is bonding with the students through the process and creating the finished product in performance”.

During choral years there are typically around 200 students that participate in the program. Vocalists from seven different Academies joined together this year to participate in the festival. Students from Sunnydale, Maplewood, Mile High, Campion, Minnetonka, Dakota and Midland sang together, joined by local homeschoolers. This event is not just a festival to celebrate music and young artists. It’s also a fellowship opportunity for young people to come together and worship, glorifying the Lord through song. A former academy student/Music Fest participant, and current Union student, said,  “I used to love taking trips to Union and getting to meet with other musicians and vocalists. I was always so blown away by some of the talent that we got to see and I was proud of my classmates when they got to showcase their talent. I also found it powerful to hear all those voices singing to God and praising him. There’s nothing quite like worship in song. Other than the festival itself I enjoyed the experience of getting to pretend I was a college student even for a few short days. It was a lot of fun all around”.

Union takes pride in the ability to host the next generation of musicians and talented young artists. To see some past performances by these gifted students, check out Union’s Youtube channel. To learn more and to see the program visit https://uau.edu/musicfestival. If you have further questions about Union Music Festival 2025, reach out to Gail Thomas through email at gail.thomas@uau.edu or by phone at (402) 486-2563.

By: Oliva Sweet