University of Arkansas Percussion Ensemble to Perform 'The Poetics of Winter' at Crystal Bridges

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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas Percussion Ensemble will perform The Poetics of Winter, a concert designed to play on scenes of winter depicted in works from the collection at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville. The concert is at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 7, in Crystal Bridges’ Great Hall. Admission is free with online reservations. Look for "Concert: The Poetics of Winter."

“Performances like these are important for the students,” said Chal Ragsdale, University Professor of percussion and the ensemble’s director. “They give students an extra incentive to prepare music at a high level and a beautiful space in which to perform.”

The ensemble of 19 undergraduate and five graduate students will perform a primarily solo marimba repertoire, with a marimba quartet and mallet octet, which includes marimbas, vibraphones, orchestra bells and crotales (small tuned brass discs arranged like a piano keyboard.) The students are almost entirely music majors, though enrollment is open to all interested and qualified University of Arkansas students. An entrance audition is required.

“These performances give students the opportunity to serve the community at large by providing a listening experience that is new and (we hope) intriguing for their audience,” Ragsdale said. “Students also experience the logistical challenge of moving the equipment, setting up efficiently in a space new to them and adapting very quickly to a completely new acoustic space.”

The Percussion Ensemble is one of many student groups within the department of music in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences. It was formed in 1962 by Larry McCormick, a graduate assistant under "Doc" Worthington. It continued under a series of graduate assistants until 1973, when Luther Meier, the university’s first percussion teacher, was hired. Ragsdale took the reins in 1975 when he was hired to replace Meier. The Ensemble has performed a full concert every semester since 1975. It has also toured regionally, representing the University of Arkansas at several regional and national music conventions through the years.

The public is invited to explore the natural acoustics of the Great Hall and warm up with complimentary coffee, cocoa and tea. The program will feature photographs of the museum’s December landscape.  Individuals are encouraged to submit their photographs of the museum grounds by uploading images to Flickr with the hashtag #CBpoeticsofwinter.

For additional details about the performance or to inquire about contingencies in case of inclement weather, contact Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art at 479-418-5700.