Share Tweet Share Email

NIU scores at 2017 SAVVY Arts Venture Challenge and Chamber Music Competition

June 20, 2017

NIU Director of Percussion Studies Dr. Gregory Beyer and Projecto Arcomusical (made up of NIU percussion alumni and graduate students) participated and were recognized at the SAVVY Arts Venture Challenge and Chamber Music Competition held at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, SC, on June 3-5.

The SAVVY Arts Venture Challenge is the world’s leading experiential entrepreneurship workshop designed to help musicians, performing artists and educators increase their income and impact.

“It was an intense and meaningful week,” Beyer said. “It was an absolute pleasure to perform alongside some wonderful ensembles from around North America. The winning ensemble, The Living Earth Show, as well as the BIK Ensemble and Real Vocal String Quartet, gave strong and inspiring performances.

“Taking a budding professional ensemble to the finals of an international chamber music competition is exciting and we have a lot of reason to be extremely proud of the group we brought from NIU.”

During the Arts Venture Challenge, three of the Projeto Arcomusical members: Daniel Eastwood (’12), Alexis Lamb (’16) and Raychel Taylor (’17), became founders of their own entrepreneurial teams.

NIU alumni led three of the nine teams formed at the event.

Those teams won all three group awards presented during the SAVVY Reveal presentation on Friday, June 9. Lamb’s team took first place in the Exhibit Awards, Eastwood’s project received an honorable mention in the Pitch Presentations and Taylor’s “Girls March” project took first place in the Pitch Presentations.

Taylor’s project gained tremendous momentum. “Girls’ March” has received inquiries of interest for start-up funding and will kick-off its activities in the summer of 2018 at The Citadel in South Carolina.