About CUWE

The Columbia University Wind Ensemble is a selected group of woodwind, brass, and percussion players. It is designed to offer an opportunity to accomplished musicians to perform challenging music of various instrumentation and styles. Dedicated to the performance of the finest original wind literature from the Renaissance to the present, the Wind Ensemble utilizes a flexible approach to instrumentation, allowing for stylistic accuracy in the performance of everything from large military band works to chamber music. Membership is by audition. In addition, the Wind Ensemble seeks to support music education in the local community. CUWE rehearses Monday evenings from 7:30 to 9:30 in Lerner Hall.

Founded in the 1930s as the Columbia University Concert Band, the Columbia University Wind Ensemble was first directed by Harwood Simmons, then the conductor of the Columbia University Orchestra. In 1998, former president Kenneth Cho revived the Columbia University Wind Ensemble under the direction of conductor Theodore "TJ" Perlick Molinari after finding that the former group had dissolved, leaving the university community with no outlet for serious wind music. In 2002, Andrew Pease entered as conductor and music director. In 2009, the Wind Ensemble produced two new programs: the Columbia Festival of Winds, an all-day concert promoting wind band performances, and Making Music Matter, a free music-education program at P.S. 125 funded in part by the Festival. In 2013, Jason Noble became the new conductor and music director of the Wind Ensemble and continued to build on these traditions by creating the Festival of Winds Honor Band for Tri-State area students. Due to the COVID 19 pandemic, CUWE was shut down in March of 2020. In April of 2022, the ensemble was reinstated under the direction of their new conductor Jasmine Britt. In Fall 2024, Jason Noble returned to the Wind Ensemble as its conductor and music director.