Heartland Marimba International Festival Orchestra

The Heartland Marimba International Festival Orchestra takes the stage at PASIC 2026 on Friday, November 13, as part of the Percussive Arts Society International Convention here in Indianapolis. It's the culmination of a festival that brings together more than 50 marimba performers from around the world, presented by the Lancaster Marimba Ensemble and the Percussive Arts Society and co-directed by Jenni Brandon, Matthew Coley, David Harvey and Stephanie Smith.

The program is a wide one, pulling from several different eras and styles. You'll hear works by Steven Simpson, Florence Price, Igor Stravinsky, Elijah Caligiuri, Jenni Brandon, Fritz Kreisler and Alexander Timofeev. The standout is The Giver of Stars by Jenni Brandon, which won the HMIFO 2026 Call for Scores. The festival describes the repertoire as programmed broadly across styles, soloists, composers and arrangers, and each participant is expected to play about 75% of the program.

Before the Indianapolis shows, the festival runs from November 4-8 in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, with performances at the Manheim Historical Society, the Ware Center and the Winter Visual & Performing Arts Center at Millersville University. The week combines rehearsals, masterclasses, lectures and educational presentations with large-scale marimba orchestra performances. The orchestra is open to amateur, high school, college and professional marimba players aged 16 and over with at least four years of experience. The festival also includes the HMIF Tour, a series of related concerts across the United States, and the three performances at PASIC are billed as an insider look at the artistry, history and possibilities of the marimba.

If you're playing, participation is $205 for both the Pennsylvania and PASIC legs, which includes a four-day PASIC attendee badge—players must be PAS members. If you're only doing the Pennsylvania portion, it's $105. The Indianapolis concert is on November 13.