Celebration Iowa Singers and Jazz Band

Celebration Iowa Singers and Jazz Band is a project of Luther College.

Celebration Iowa is a not-for-profit organization created in the midst of the farm crisis of the 1980's by Dr. Dennis L. Darling and Dr. Judith Bowstead Nye, two Luther College educators optimistic about Iowa's youth. This program is a celebration of the talent, potential, energy and spirit of the people of Iowa. Celebration Iowa's mission is to:

- provide opportunities for talented Iowa high school students to perform in an educational, service-oriented setting;

- provide quality entertainment to Iowans at local fairs and festivals, and at state-wide events;

- participate in an outreach program to serve Iowans who are unable to join our celebration at nursing homes, care centers, youth detention centers, and special-needs camps;

- offer a program of intensive study, practice, and performance where high school musicians can polish performance skills and study music theory, improvisation, music literature, theatre, and dance;

- provide training by exemplary staff who are experts from the worlds of music, dance, education, and performance;

- foster arts programming in local communities throughout the state of Iowa.

Each summer, Iowa high school students join the Celebration Iowa program for a "summer of a lifetime," learning from the best artist instructors in the state, performing in over 30 Iowa communities, and fostering lifelong friendships with like-minded high school musicians.

Celebration Iowa continues to forge ahead in areas of musical excellence for its Iowa students and audience members. Throughout its 24-year history, Celebration Iowa has operated under several different names. Originally called the Iowa State Fair Singers from 1983 to 1988, the program became the State Fair Singers and Jazz Band with 1989's addition of the jazz band. The program's current name, Celebration Iowa, was established in 2000.

Since 1983, the program has educated 556 high school students from 219 Iowa communities, performed in 148 Iowa communities, and delighted over 1 million audience members across the state.

The Park Bench Story--History of the Celebration Iowa Singers and Jazz Band

Questions and Answers about Celebration Iowa