Concordia University, Nebraska

Concordia Nebraska to present spring University Orchestra and Wind Symphony concerts

Seward, NE (04/10/2026) — Concordia University, Nebraska's instrumental ensembles offer community members multiple opportunities to hear a variety of instrumental repertoire. Instrumental music allows the audience to fit their own experiences, narratives and emotions into the music, free of the constraints of lyrical specificity.

The Concordia University, Nebraska University Orchestra will present its spring concert on Saturday, April 18, and the University Wind Symphony will perform its spring concert the following day on Sunday, April 19.

The orchestra concert will be at 2 p.m. at St. John Lutheran Church in Seward. The program features two main works Joseph Haydn's "Symphony no. 49" and Aaron Copland's "Appalachian Spring Suite." Each of these pieces are staples of symphonic repertoire.

"Haydn and Copland were each an innovator in their own time and in their own way, and their work is regarded as quality, time-tested orchestral literature. The Orchestra's performance of La Passione and the faculty's performance of Appalachian Spring Suite give both a sense of how far the Orchestra program has come and where it is going!" said director and Professor of Music Robert Cody.

The Wind Symphony concert will be at St. John Lutheran Church in Seward at 3 p.m. on April 19. The program includes a wide range of sacred wind band literature featuring familiar hymn tunes. The program is based around the theme "Stable and Steadfast."

"The theme verse for the 2025-2026 academic year from Colossians reminds us that we are set firmly on the foundation of our faith in Jesus Christ. This faith has been proclaimed in song throughout the centuries. In this concert program, we have selected works that are based on these hymns, specifically hymns that point to this stable, steadfast and never shifting foundation," said Cody. "As audiences listen, we invite them to read along with the hymn texts and consider them based on what they hear. Our sincere hope is that audiences walk out of our concert this that they will be edified in their faith and refreshed in a way that only God's creation of music is able to do."

Concerts are free and open to the public, but free will donations will be accepted during each event's intermission.

Students and community members involved in the musical ensembles include:

Orchestra

Haydn Symphony No. 49

Violin

Timothy Baker, Poy Sippi, Wisconsin

Anika Bjordahl, Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Elizabeth Crawford, Plano, Texas

Nathaniel Eldridge, David City, Nebraska

Anna Grass '24, Seward, Nebraska

Elaina Hanson, Valdez, Arkansas

Ellen Klintworth, Seward, Nebraska

Kenneth Lee, Bartlesville, Oklahoma

Avery Rothert (Concert Master), Kansas City, Missouri

Naomi Sharkey, Cedar Falls, Iowa

Abby Van Velson,'23, Broken Bow, Nebraska

Naomi Weber, Fort Wayne, Indiana

Viola

Rachel Brinkman, Plymouth, Minnesota

Sophia Roberts, Maryville, Tennessee

Cello

Dylan Buechler, Rapid City, South Dakota

Abigail Showalter, Seward, Nebraska

Lars Gindler, Collinsville, Illinois

Rachel Holst, Hartford City, Indiana

Bass

Kelsey O'Gara, Duvall, Washington

Richard Peperkorn, Fort Wayne, Indiana

Horn

Nathan Feusse, Saginaw, Michigan

Creighton Urban, Callender, Iowa

Oboe

Juliette Botsolis, Seward, Nebraska

Katelyn Cody '13, Seward, Nebraska

Appalachian Spring

Flute

Danielle Turner, Derby, Kansas

Clarinet

Heather Ryan-Christie, Lincoln, Nebraska

Bassoon

Natalie Francel-Stone, Grand Island, Nebraska

Violin

Teimuraz Janakshvili (Concert Master)

Anna Grass

Kirsten Wissink, Woodbridge, Connecticut

Abby VanVelson

Viola

Maddee Hall, Lincoln, Nebraska

Grace Dowd, Lincoln, Nebraska

Cello

Eric Wallace, Seward, Nebraska

Jennifer Lochead, Lincoln, Nebraska

Bass

Matthew Jahnke, Lincoln, Nebraska

Wind Symphony

Flute

Faith Brackney, Allen, Texas

Lana Tillman, Battle Creek, Nebraska

Karalynn Pingel, Janesville, Wisconsin

Evelyn Schwartz, Peachtree City, Georgia

Danielle Turner

Hailey Winkelman, Mayer, Minnesota

Oboe

Sarah Stepp, Lincoln, Nebraska

Bassoon

Naomi Weber

Clarinet

Bailey Bianco, Loveland, Colorado

Arabella Blakeley, Havana, Illinois

Hayley Miles, North Platte, Nebraska

Sydney Rohwer, Kearney, Nebraska

Claire VanTol, Unionville, Michigan

Bass Clarinet

Walter Seipold, Hastings, Iowa

Alto Saxophone

Autumn Consier, Churdan, Iowa

Grace Donnelly, Three Forks, Montana

Nathan Sollberger, Louisville, Nebraska

Tenor Saxophone

Jonah Carter, McKinney, Texas

Baritone Saxophone

Taylor Rogers, Plainville, Kansas

Trumpet

Caleb Anderson, Affton, Missouri

Taylor Beal, Frisco, Texas

Emily Castens, New Haven, Indiana

Matthew Feusse, Saginaw, Michigan

Matthew Hoops, Utica, Nebraska

Ellen Klintworth, Seward, Nebraska

Abbey Kudrna, Omaha, Nebraska

Mitchell Stephens, Brenham, Texas

Horn

Mary Bennett, Vernon Center, Minnesota

Kylie Burken, Holdrege, Nebraska

Nathan Feusse

Elizabeth Salo, West Ely, Missouri

Creighton Urban, Callender, Iowa

Trombone

Maxwell Carlson, Norfolk, Nebraska

David Eatherton, St. Louis, Missouri

Miriam Ganoung, Halsey, Nebraska

Michaela Gibbs, Belleville, Illinois

Matthew Guilford, Lincoln, Nebraska

Joshua Meyer, Longmont, Colorado

Euphonium

Jacob Laesch, St. Louis, Missouri

Joshua Oberdieck, Elizabeth, Indiana

Tuba

Matthew Frerking, Columbia, Missouri

Benjamin Sams, Utica, Nebraska

Percussion

Ethan Bryson, Clarinda, Iowa

Aleksa Chambers, Wilber, Nebraska

Gretchen Hoft, Eldridge, Iowa

Timothy Mars, Cody, Wyoming

Shasta Tonniges, York, Nebraska

Rebecca Tredray, Robbinsdale, Minnesota

Jacob Wald, Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Aaron Wulff, St. Charles, Missouri

String Bass

Kelsey O'Gara

About Concordia University, Nebraska

Concordia University, Nebraska, founded in 1894, is a fully accredited, coeducational university of The Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod located in Seward, Nebraska, which currently serves more than 1,700 students. Concordia offers more than 100 undergraduate, graduate and professional programs in an excellent academic and Christ-centered community that equips men and women for lives of learning, service and leadership in the church and world. For more information, visit cune.edu.

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