June 9-21, 2026
Ozark Music Festival
About the Festival
One of its kind, the Ozark Music Festival is a prestigious two-week orchestral training program, bringing over 100 pre-professional and professional musicians to Northwest Arkansas. From June 9-21, 2026, the University of Arkansas Fayetteville campus will serve as the festival’s home base, offering a vibrant hub for rehearsals and performances.
Throughout the festival, chamber music and orchestral concerts will occur in unique community spaces throughout the Northwest Arkansas region. The festival will foster musical growth while simultaneously enriching the community with two weeks of exciting public performances.
Festival Performances
The Ozark Music Festival will kick off with an outdoor brass fanfare performance that is free and open to the public at Fayetteville’s new Cultural Arts Corridor at the "Upper Ramble.” Festival Orchestra concerts will be staged in iconic venues such as the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the Faulkner Performing Arts Center. Chamber music concerts will take on a more intimate tone, unfolding in familiar and unexpected locations like public libraries, coffee shops, restaurants, churches, and other underutilized spaces across Northwest Arkansas.
By bringing music to both traditional and non-traditional venues, the Ozark Music Festival aims to engage the community in new ways, transforming everyday locations into artistic hotspots. With performances happening daily, residents and visitors alike will have countless opportunities to experience the transformative power of live music.
Call to Artists
Put your mark on this year’s festival! We’re looking for artists to submit proposals for a digital digital design that can be used across a variety of materials, including posters, T-shirts, flyers, and other promotional collateral. As in past seasons, our visual concept incorporates the image of a violin, with original artwork creatively integrated within its form, as seen on last year’s festival poster.
We will share the final artwork and credit the the artist on social media. They will also receive four complimentary festival passes and T-shirts.
The festival theme this year is "Where Worlds Meet." Repertoire includes Stravinsky's Firebird, Sibelius Symphony No. 2, and Copland Appalachian Spring. The common thread is a sense of becoming—each piece traces a path from uncertainty or tension toward clarity, warmth, and renewal, whether through folklore, nature, or human connection. Together, they explore how different “worlds” express the same universal arc of hope and forward motion.
Submissions should include a portfolio and a written proposal of your concept for the festival art. Proposals are due Feb. 20, 2026 and the selected artist will be notified by Feb. 28, 2026.
Questions? Email info@ozarkmusic.org.
Visiting Fayetteville?
If you’ve never been to Fayetteville, you are in for a treat! Nestled in the Ozark Mountains, Fayetteville has a little something for everyone! Whether you’re soaking in the nightlife on Dickson Street or spending the day exploring the city by bike, you'll find an authentic experience around every corner. Learn more about Fayetteville here.