New Series Invites Audiences to Discover Past, Global Musical Styles

Friday, March 22, 2019
Three smiling men and a woman hold an upright bass.

Cuarteto Tanguero will perform traditional and contemporary Argentinian tango masters during a free show March 27 at Hatfield Hall that’s part of the institute’s new Discovery Music Series.

Rose-Hulman is celebrating Music In Our Schools Month by kicking off a new Discovery Music Series with two free events at Hatfield Hall that showcase music styles from a bygone era and across the globe.

This new series is providing high-quality live music performances, to the general public, that provide uplifting musical experiences to the community, especially students of all ages, according to David Chapman, Rose-Hulman’s assistant professor of music. A special emphasis is being made to support world-class musicians who live, study and work in the Midwest.

This Sunday, March 24, the St. Louis-based Rats & People Motion Picture Orchestra will show historic silent movies by legendary filmmakers Buster Keaton, Georges Melies, and others, and will perform a live soundtrack of newly composed music. The seven-member group will have percussionists, string and wind players, and vocalists on stage while the black-and-white films are shown behind them on a large screen. The show is scheduled to start at 5 p.m.

On Wednesday, March 27, at 7:30 p.m., members of Cuarteto Tanguero will highlight the delightful musical rhythms and styles of traditional and contemporary Argentinian tango masters such as Astor Piazzola, Carlos Di Sarli and Osvaldo Pugliese. The ensemble from Bloomington, Ind., features violinist Daniel Stein, bandoneonist Ben Bogart, bassist Matt McConahay and pianist Winnie Cheung. The musicians use their chamber format to explore tango as a vehicle for self-expression and, hopefully, bring new listeners to fall in love with the musical styles of Argentina.

Chapman hopes that’s especially true for Rose-Hulman students who are taking classes he’s teaching this spring academic quarter on “Music of Film and Video Games” and “Music of the Global South.”

“Students studying about the music of Argentina need to see tango music, just as students studying Baroque music need to hear Bach cantatas and students studying modernism need to hear a Schoenberg quartet,” says the professor. “Students need more than Spotify, YouTube and iTunes for understanding music and its role in the world. They need to see and hear musicians performing in their (musical) world.”

Musicians in this series are being encouraged to talk directly to the audience during each performance, making connections between their art and their listeners, many of whom are experiencing live music for the first time.

Two special Live on the Lake shows are being planned in Rose-Hulman’s White Chapel in April for the series.

No advanced tickets are needed for any of the shows, with seating on a first-come, first-served basis.

Shows within the series are being sponsored by Rose-Hulman’s music and Spanish programs in the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, and the institute’s Center for Global Engagement along with the Center for Diversity and Inclusion.