Templeton Ragtime and Jazz Festival this week
Officials of Mississippi State University Libraries will hold the ninth annual Charles H. Templeton Ragtime and Jazz Festival this week.
This year's activities begin on Thursday [March 26] at 5:30 p.m. with the popular Gatsby Gala fashion show. Members of the MSU Fashion Board will model 1920s-inspired creations of majors in the university's fashion design program.
The Charles H. Templeton Sr. Collection and Museum at Mitchell Memorial Library is home to more than 22,000 pieces of sheet music, 200 musical instruments and unique musical memorabilia from the 1880s-1930s. The collection highlights the industry during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when ragtime dominated popular American music.
Charles Freeman, assistant professor of human sciences and Fashion Board advisor, said approximately 20 designs will be modeled during the fashion show. His students work closely with Fashion Board members to present an authentic 1920s style.
The School of Human Sciences also will sponsor a historic exhibit in the John Grisham Room featuring 1920s apparel and accessories.
Lynette McDougald, instructor of the university's floral management program, will adorn the library with floral designs popular in the 1920s and will add ostrich feathers and beads. Students in the program will gain hands-on experience with the project.
Attendees are encouraged to dress in 1920s-inspired styles and walk the "Maroon Carpet." Photos will be posted on social media and a photo booth will be available for self-portraits.
Jeff Barnhart, returning festival solo artist and artistic director, will provide music for the Gala.
On Friday [March 27] and Saturday [March 28], tours of the museum, along with seminars and silent movies will take place at Mitchell Memorial Library, the 136-year-old land-grant institution's primary repository. Mitchell Memorial is located at the southeast corner of the historic center-campus Drill Field.
On the two succeeding days, evening concerts will be performed by three solo artists and one duo. The Friday and Saturday musical programs take place in the nearby McComas Hall main auditorium.
General admission fees range from $50 each for all festival events to $10 each for the major concerts, with lesser amounts for senior citizens and retired MSU faculty and staff members. University students with current identification cards attend free. Admission to the Gatsby Gala is free.
Program and admission details are found at http://library.msstate.edu/ragtime. A detailed listing of events also is available at http://library.msstate.edu/ragtimefestival/schedule.
The 2015 festival performers include:
-- Richard Dowling, a Steinway artist known for an elegant and exciting style and rising international stature. He regularly appears in solo recitals and orchestral concerts around the world. For more, see www.richard-dowling.com.
-- Ivory&Gold, the team of Jeff Barnhart and wife Anne who have been praised by L.A. Jazz Scene for the ability to "draw out the beauty in the rich melodies and play the music... with taste, sensitivity, and a real affection for the idiom." The duo's performances are a celebration of American jazz, blues, ragtime, Broadway and hits from the Great American Songbook. For more, see www.ivoryandgold.net.
-- Scott Kirby, a specialist in American and Pan-American musical traditions spanning 150 years. An Ohio-based pianist, composer and visual artist, he is considered "today's best player of Scott Joplin's music," with appearances at every major U.S. ragtime festival and events throughout Europe. Learn more at www.scottkirby.net.
-- Dave Majchrzak, who has performed on the piano since age 6. As a rhythm section member of the Missouri-based Don Scherrer Banjo Bands, he now is featured with the St. Louis Stompers Classic Jazz Band, among other local venues, and at national festivals from California to Florida. For more, see www.ragtimedrdave.com.
Previously an event exclusively featuring piano and concentrating mainly on ragtime, the Templeton Festival is "spreading its wings to include more instruments and styles," said Dean of Libraries Frances Coleman.
Coleman said audiences should "look forward to the sounds of stride, boogie, blues, novelty, swing, New Orleans jazz, some Gershwin and, of course, a healthy serving of ragtime.
"From the wild, hot piano of Dave Majchrzak to the pastel-tinged Art Deco pianisms of Richard Dowling to the torrid New Orleans rag, jazz and blues heritage of Scott Kirby and impressive eclecticism of Ivory&Gold, this year's festival truly has something for everyone," added Barnhart.
As an added festival feature, free public viewings of "African American Treasures," a section of The Kinsey Collection -- among the largest private collections of its kind in the world -- will be available March 21-June 20 in Mitchell's third-floor John Grisham Room.
Owned by Bernard and Shirley Kinsey of Los Angeles, the display of art, artifacts, books and manuscripts celebrates African-Americans' achievements and accomplishments throughout U.S. history, especially in culture and art.
The Templeton Festival is made possible with support from the Starkville Convention and Visitors Council and Starkville Area Arts Council, as well the Mississippi Arts Commission and National Endowment for the Arts.
For more information about the Gala, please contact Leilani Salter at 662-325-2559 or lsalter@library.msstate.edu. Additional details about the Templeton Collection and Museum can be found at http://library.msstate.edu/ragtime. Follow the MSU Libraries at facebook.com/msulibrary, pinterest.com/MsStateLibrary and twitter.com/msu_libraries.
Discover more about Mississippi's flagship research university at www.msstate.edu or www.meridian.msstate.edu, facebook.com/msstate, pinterest.com/msstate, instagram.com/msstate and twitter.com/msstate.
Sasha Steinberg | Public Affairs
