Scholarship benefit concert to end School of Performing Arts' year on a high note
For one night only, join the talented School of Performing Arts music students and faculty for Exposition I: Create, a scholarship benefit concert and musical showcase. The groups take the stage Sunday, April 13, at 3 p.m. in the Moss Arts Center.
"Create" is the chosen theme of this first Exposition showcase. The event will be dynamic, fast-paced, and fun, with many different styles of music coming from every direction in the concert hall!” said department chair Tracy Cowden.
Patrons will enjoy a collage of music groups playing everything from Bach to student compositions, all packed into one concert that is expected to last about an hour and a half. The program includes a 1920s-style piece from the percussion ensemble, featuring faculty member Annie Stevens on the xylophone.
"I am looking forward to sharing the stage with my percussion students and making some exquisite music with them," commented Stevens. "It's exciting to be a part of a concert that showcases the talent right here in Blacksburg, and one that will benefit these very students. I'll be performing one of my all-time favorite ragtime-style xylophone pieces, "Bye Bye Medley," arranged by Bob Becker." The program will close with a compilation of four vocal and instrumental groups performing Carl Orff’s ever-popular “Carmina Burana.”
“This concert is an opportunity for us to showcase the talents of nearly every music major, plus the talented non-majors who participate in our music ensembles, in one special event,” said Cowden. The groups include the Jazz Ensemble, Virginia Tech Choirs, Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Percussion Ensemble, Natural Grooves Saxophone Quartet, Linux Laptop Orchestra (L2Ork), and more.
Students and faculty say they are hoping to make the Exposition an annual event, as it evolves and reoccurs, with plans already in the works for next year's performance. “Recruiting talented music students is very competitive,” said music faculty member and trumpet instructor Jason Crafton. “Scholarship dollars help us attract the best and brightest musicians to Virginia Tech.”
Tickets are $20 general, $15 senior, and $10 student, and may be purchased through the Moss Arts Center box office or by calling 540-231-5300.
The Moss Arts Center is located at 190 Alumni Mall on the campus of Virginia Tech. parking is available in the North End Parking Garage on Turner Street or in the parking, in the Squires Lot, located at the corner of College Avenue and Otey Streets, in the Architecture Annex Lot on Otey Street, and the Perry Street/Prices Fork lots. Find more parking information online or call 540-231-3200. Additional parking is available in the Kent Squire parking garage and the Farmers Market metered parking lot, both located on Draper Road. Additional downtown Blacksburg parking information can be found online.
