Jazz master dances with ivories at RU

Chick Corea

Chick Corea

Chick Corea, master pianist and living jazz legend, will fill Radford University's Bondurant Auditorium with the sounds of vibrant music on Wednesday, April 16.

The concert is part of the University Performance Series, which brings world-class professional individuals or companies to perform for the campus and surrounding communities. RU considers hundreds of potential events each year in every category of the performing arts.

Renowned for his jazz and fusion stylings, Corea flirts with nearly every musical tradition from straight ahead to avant-garde, bebop to fusion, children's songs to chamber music, along with some far-reaching forays into symphonic works. This will be his second visit to Radford.

"We brought his acoustic quartet to RU about 20 years ago and I know many still remember that concert so well," said Joe Scartelli, dean of the College of Visual and Performing Arts. "Personally, it was easily one of the top three live music experiences in my life. I heard musical ideas that I did not realize were humanly possible."

Corea has earned his status as a living legend over the last five decades, playing with luminaries such as Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock and Béla Fleck. Corea has won 20 Grammy awards and remains the fourth-most-nominated artist in the history of the Grammys, with 61 nominations. He is also triple Latin Grammy winner, a DownBeat Hall of Famer and NEA Jazz Master.

"Over the years, he has just continued to cement his place as royalty in the world of jazz. We are so fortunate to host him one more time," Scartelli said.

The performance series is dedicated to bringing arts events of the highest caliber to the New River Valley. The committee aims to provide cultural and artistic events that would be otherwise unavailable in the area.

"Whenever you have a chance to meet, see or hear a person who is the very best in the world at whatever he or she does then you must go," Scartelli said. "These experiences have incredible potential for being transformative and teaching all of us just how far some humans can excel. Beyond being inspirational, this concert will be some of the greatest jazz one can hear anywhere in the entire world, right here at RU!"

The concert will take place at 8 p.m. on April 16 in the Bondurant Auditorium at Preston Hall. Tickets are $20 for adults, $10 for children and free with an RU ID. They can be purchased at the Hurlburt Student Center information desk or by calling (540) 831-5420. They may be also ordered online at http://radfordactivities.universitytickets.com/user_pages/event_listings.asp.

Mar 25, 2014