FTCC Foundation, Inc., announces a $12,000 Grassroots Art Project Grant from the Arts Council of Fayetteville-Cumberland County to support the 2026-27 Fine Arts Concert Series at Fayetteville Technical Community College.

The grant will help bring local, regional and nationally acclaimed musical artists to FTCC for a series of free performances and educational engagements during the 2026-27 academic year. Guest artists will work with FTCC students through performances, collaborative experiences and other educational opportunities. All concerts are free and open to the public.

The guest artists for the 2026-27 Fine Arts Concert Series are:

• Heartland Marimba will open the series Oct. 6 with a performance at 7 p.m. in FTCC’s Cumberland Hall Auditorium. Founded in 2014, Heartland Marimba is dedicated to creating a viable market for the classical marimba art form and bringing marimba performance to communities of all sizes, particularly small and underserved communities.
• Ethan Hanson, a Fayetteville singer-songwriter, will perform Oct. 21 at 7 p.m. in Cumberland Hall Auditorium. Hanson's music combines soul, rock, blues, hip hop and reggae, with soulful vocals and a dynamic live performance that incorporates looping, live recording and layered arrangements.
• Hub New Music, one of today's leading contemporary music ensembles, will perform Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. in the Tony Rand Student Center Multipurpose Room. The ensemble features flute, clarinet, violin and cello and has expanded its repertoire through more than two dozen commissions from celebrated contemporary composers.
• Dark & Luminous Night of the Soul will conclude the series May 4 at 7 p.m. at the Gray's Creek High School Auditorium. The collaborative performance will feature choirs from FTCC and Gray's Creek High School performing works by acclaimed Norwegian composer and pianist Ola Gjeilo alongside a string quartet from the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra.

The Arts Council’s Grassroots Art Project Grants increase opportunities for access to arts, cultural and historical programming in Cumberland County. The grants are awarded to nonprofit agencies, institutions of higher education and municipal entities in Cumberland County that demonstrate financial and administrative stability.

FTCC Foundation executive director Jennifer McFadyen Hammond said the GAP Grant reflects the power of partnerships to expand educational opportunities and enrich the local community.

“By supporting the Guest Artist Series, the Arts Council of Fayetteville-Cumberland County and the North Carolina Arts Council are helping FTCC provide transformative learning experiences for students while ensuring that exceptional musical performances are accessible to the public,” Hammond said in a press release. 

The FTCC Music Society, which coordinates the annual guest artist series, was established to bring first-class musical experiences to FTCC and facilitate collaborative musical engagements within the broader community. The Music Society organizes concerts with acclaimed artists, while providing opportunities for FTCC music students and students from the surrounding community to work alongside and learn from professional artists.

FTCC music instructor Alec Powers said the concert series provides valuable educational and inspirational experiences.

“I believe the arts and arts education are essential to healthy communities,” Powers said in a press release. “They help us develop communication and collaboration skills, explore new perspectives and open our minds to one another.”

For more information about the FTCC Fine Arts Concert Series, contact the FTCC Foundation at foundation@faytechcc.edu or 910-678-8441, or the FTCC Music Department at music@faytechcc.edu or 910-678-9773.