Jeremy Craycraft presents free lecture/recital

Jeremy Craycraft, a performance artist and music instructor at The College of St. Scholastica, will present a lecture/recital at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, in the Mitchell Auditorium on the St. Scholastica campus. The concert is free and open to the public.

The lecture/recital will feature the percussion ensemble works of William "Bill" Russell (1905-1992). This noted jazz scholar, producer, and collector composed eight pieces for a percussion ensemble in the 1930s during the Great Depression.

"Russell's works are strikingly original, enthusiastic and surprising," noted Craycraft.

Three of Russell's works will be performed live: "Ogou Badagri","Three Dance Movements", and "March Suite."

The program features local professional musicians Dr. Kate Lanzer, piano; Sam Black, piano; Dr. Brett Jones, percussion; and Gene Koshinski.

Craycraft directs St. Scholastica's new Hand Drum Ensemble, Drum Line, and Steel Band. He performs regularly with the Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra and has appeared as both substitute principal percussionist and principal timpanist. He has performed with the Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra, Lyric Opera of the North, the Duluth Festival Opera, Twin Ports Wind Ensemble, and The Big Time Jazz Orchestra. He is also principal timpanist of the Lakeside Symphony in Ohio.

He has been a frequent visitor, as a soloist and with various university ensembles, to area schools where he performs and provides clinics. He has received grants from the Duluth Superior Area Community Foundation and the Beim Foundation to provide drumming instruction to underprivileged youth in the Twin Ports area.

For more information contact Craycraft at (218) 723-4625.

The College of St. Scholastica is regularly recognized as one of the finest colleges in the Midwest. The 2010 "America's Best Colleges" survey by U.S. News & World Report magazine ranks St. Scholastica in the top tier of Midwestern universities. The Washington Post has rated St. Scholastica as one of the nation's 100 "hidden gems" among U.S. colleges and universities.