NEW CONCORD, OH — February 11, 2026 — Muskingum University will present Voices of Change: Examining How the Arts Reflect and Shape Movements for Social Transformation, a four-day series that brings together music, visual art, historical context, and public dialogue to examine how creative expression can both reflect and influence movements for social transformation. Conceived collaboratively by the University’s Departments of Music, History, and Art & Design, the series invites the campus and broader community to engage with questions of democracy, representation, identity, and collective action through artistic and civic lenses.

Designed as an immersive interdisciplinary experience, Voices of Change encourages participants to consider how culture and creativity serve as vehicles for human expression and agency. Events will take place from Sunday, February 22 through Wednesday, February 25, at venues across campus and in the local community.

Voices of Change Events

• Sunday, February 22
  • Muskingum Valley Symphonic Winds & Muskingum Wind Ensemble Concert, 3 p.m., Brown Chapel

The opening event features a joint performance by the Muskingum Valley Symphonic Winds and the Muskingum University Wind Ensemble. The program includes works composed in honor of — or in tribute to — influential figures and transformative ideas, including democracy, Abraham Lincoln, the Women’s Suffrage Movement, the Tuskegee Airmen, Rosa Parks, and Marsha Johnson, prominent trans rights activist.

• Student Presentations & Reception, 4 p.m., Palmer Gallery

Following the concert, attendees will be welcomed to the Palmer Gallery for a reception and student-curated exhibitions that engage artistically with the concert’s themes.

• Monday, February 23, 3:30 p.m., Palmer Gallery
  • Safe Spaces, Strong Voices: How underrepresented communities can claim their place at the table

This event focuses on the experiences, resilience, and cultural contributions of underrepresented communities, with particular attention to the LGBTQ community and allies. Participants will explore how identity, community, and advocacy intersect within today’s social landscape.

• Wednesday, February 25, 7 p.m., Palmer Gallery
  • Two by Two in Concert

Giving new life to traditional folk music and gospel as well as bringing their own originals, this guitar/piano/vocal duo plays everywhere from festivals to wineries, restaurants to churches, retirement homes to prisons, and caves to open fields. They call central Ohio home but love traveling.

About Voices of Change Series

Voices of Change positions the arts not merely as reflections of society, but as agents within it. Through performance, visual interpretation, critical dialogue, and shared communal experience, the series invites attendees to explore how creative practice participates in shaping civic life — and how cultural expression can inspire new understandings of justice, equity, and democratic participation. In addition to the public events listed above, thoughtful discussion is taking place at a Fireside Chat that will explore broader themes about the arts’ role in the society. Students, faculty, and community members are engaging discussion designed to make the participants think deeply about how the arts help a society maintain its humanity in the digital age.

All events are free and open to the public and take place on the campus of Muskingum University.

For more information, contact David Turrill, dturrill@muskingum.edu.