The UMKC Conservatory's Barr Institute for American Composition Studies was formed through the generosity of Howard and Patricia Barr for the purpose of:

1. Supporting the acquisition, care, preservation, use and promotion of existing materials related to the period of American composition between 1890 and thereafter, excluding the art of jazz and its derivatives.
2. Promoting individual research initiatives related to the historical and theoretical underpinnings of post-1890 American Classical Music.
3. Supporting new composition efforts including commissions, theses and dissertations by composition students.
4. Supporting collaborative and interactive efforts to study new music.