Arman Sangalang, ’22
NIU School of Music jazz alumni Arman Sangalang and Gabriel Wade are finalists for Luminarts Jazz Improvisation Fellowships.
Luminarts Cultural Foundation was founded in 1949 by members of the Union Club of Chicago to strengthen the cultural community of Chicago by upholding the club’s century-long tradition of advocating for the arts. Luminarts is dedicated to encouraging the city’s outstanding young artists so their emerging talents can be heard in performance halls, read within libraries and homes, and exhibited in galleries, museums.
The finals will be held Thursday, May 7 at 6 p.m. at The Union League of Chicago (65 W. Jackson Blvd., Chicago). Finalists will compete for Luminarts Jazz Fellowships. A panel of judges will decide the winners, which will be announced at the conclusion of the event.
Arman Sangalang earned his Master of Music in Jazz Studies from NIU in 2022. He is a Chicago-based saxophonist and composer, who will release his second album, Waypoints in August, 2026 on Calligram Records. Calligram was founded by NIU Professor of Jazz Studies Geof Bradfield.
Gabriel Wade, ’24
Gabriel Wade earned his Master of Music in Jazz Studies from NIU in 2024. He earned first place in the 2024 Tom Williams Jazz Division of the National Trumpet Competition. A native of Little Rock, Arkansas, Wade currently serves on the music faculty at Harper College in Palatine, Illinois.
