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“I write music that remembers. That resists. That resonates.
I  write what dances, sings, and stirs the spirit." 

Okoye - "The Beatitudes" from WHEN THE CAGED BIRD SINGS World Premiere
Okoye - And the People Celebrated
Nkeiru Okoye, Clouds Welling (2022), world premiere by Clare Longendyke, pianist
Okoye/LUSITANO IN VICENTINO'S COUNTRY (2025) for String Quartet
"I am Moses" words and music by Nkeiru Okoye
Okoye "Black Bottom"  II - Shops on Hastings/ Detroit Symphony Orchestra / Thomas Wilkins, conductor
We Met at the Symphony
OKOYE/Cote "We've Got Our Eye On You" Scene One. Baldwin Wallace performance

About

 

Nkeiru Okoye is a musical force and narrative architect whose compositions don’t just speak: they testify. A Guggenheim-winning powerhouse blending classical rigor with the spirit of jazz, gospel, funk, and the African diaspora, her music is as gripping as it is unflinching. Whether she’s shaking concert halls with Voices Shouting Out, crafting spoken-word symphonic works, or spotlighting overlooked voices from history, Okoye commands attention — and holds it.  Her music has been commissioned and performed by the BBC, The Philadelphia Orchestra, Detroit Symphony, Juilliard, Houston Grand Opera, and Opera North UK. She is recorded on NAXOS, MSR, Albany, and Pentatone, and published by Theodore Presser.

With three major premieres and an orchestral residency, in the 2025-2026 season,  Okoye continues to expand the boundaries of contemporary classical storytelling. At the heart of the season is her residency with the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra, which features the landmark oratorio A Time for Jubilee. Set against the backdrop of the historic Selma to Montgomery Trail, the work unites soprano Laquita Mitchell, a mass choir of local college choruses, and conductor Jamie Reeves in a powerful musical reflection on unity, protest, and hope. Following its Montgomery premiere in February 2026, A Time for Jubilee will tour to orchestras across Alabama. As part of the residency, the Montgomery Symphony will also present We Met at the Symphony: An Evening with Nkeiru Okoye, a concert of her comic vocal and chamber works.

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Events

6/26/2025

BREAKING BREAD

LUNA Composition Lab Festival –

ICE – International Contemporary Ensemble

Carnegie Hall. 

7/11/2025

“You gave me a Baby Girl,”

From When the Caged Bird Sings

Concerts on the Square

Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra

Andrew Sewell, Conductor, Angela Brown, Soprano

9/27/2025

PHILLIS WHEATLEY: A MUSICAL JOURNEY

Musical Tales: A Journey Through Sound and Story

Austin Civic Orchestra
Veronica Garcia, Conductor
Leslie Wingo, Narrator

9/29/2025

VOICES SHOUTING OUT

Masterworks I: Mahler’s Titan Symphony 

Montgomery Symphony
Jamie Reeves, Conductor

10/11/25

AFRICAN SKETCHES SUITE

Four Seasons Arts presents 

Rochelle Sennet in concert

10/24/2025

"Inside is what remains" 

Songs by African American Women Composers

The London Song Festival

Francesca Chiejina, Soprano

10/28/2025

VOICES SHOUTING OUT

Northern Ohio Youth Orchestra

Daniel Heim, Conductor

11/7/2025

WE MET AT THE SYMPHONY

An evening of music by Nkeiru Okoye

We Met At the Symphony, 600 Square Feet, Briar Patch and more.

12/12/2025

VOICES SHOUTING OUT

Orquesta Sinfonica de Guayaquil 
Julius P. Williams, Conductor
Teatro Centro Cívico, Equador

2/9/2026

World Premiere - A TIME FOR JUBILEE

Montgomery Symphony: Masterworks III

Jamie Reeves, Conductor, Laquita Mitchell, Soprano

2/27/2026

A TIME FOR JUBILEE

Alabama Symphony Orchestra: Momentum
Daniel Cho, Conductor

Laquita Mitchell, Soprano

3/8/2026

A TIME FOR JUBILEE

Shoals Symphony Orchestra: Variations on America

Ethan Lolley - conductor
Laquita Mitchell, Soprano

3/21/2026

WORLD PREMIERE - PIano Suite

Julliard Faculty Recital

Orli Shahan, Piano

3/29/2026

VOICES SHOUTING OUT

Capitol City Symphony: Shout
Vicki Gau, Conductor

4/27/2026

A TIME FOR JUBILEE

Tuscaloosa Symphony

Adam Flatt, Conductor

6/17/2026

VOICES SHOUTING OUT

Minnesota Orchestra: Juneteenth

Kedrick Lamar, Conductor

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©2025. Nkeiru Okoye. All rights reserved. 

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