Contact: Sammy McDavid
STARKVILLE, Miss.—A Florida-based chamber ensemble whose musical repertoire spans the African diaspora will open Mississippi State’s first 2017 Lyceum Series event.
The Ritz Chamber Players’ performance begins at 7 p.m. Jan. 24 in the Bettersworth Auditorium of historic Lee Hall.
The concert is sponsored by the university’s Richard Holmes Cultural Diversity Center.
General admission tickets are $25 each and may be purchased in advance at www.union.msstate.edu/student-activities/lyceum/tickets.
Founded in 2002 by artistic director Terrance Patterson, the nearly 20-member group based in Jacksonville performs works from the standard classical repertoire in varied combinations. It also gives a special focus to contemporary African American composers.
For complete biographical information on the members, see www.ritzchamberplayers.org/about/players.
In a review, the Baltimore Sun recognized the group as “one of the most interesting and dynamic ensembles to emerge in recent years,” while The Gathering Note, a classical music blog, praised the members for “inspired, terrifically potent playing.”
Over the years, Patterson, a clarinetist born in Jacksonville, has led his accomplished colleagues in collaborations with, among others, the New York Philharmonic and Boston and Pittsburgh symphonies in the U.S., and the London Symphony in England.
Details about the upcoming Lyceum event in early March are found at www.lyceum.msstate.edu, or by telephoning the Colvard Student Union’s Center for Student Activities at 662-325-2930 or visiting the union’s Suite 314.
MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.