Miami U musicians return

Hamilton, Ohio – Miami University student musicians return to the Fitton Center Thursday, November 9, to continue their four-performance chamber-music series.

“Every performer starts their performance journey somewhere,” said Professor Aaron Pergram. “We’re glad our students have a chance to start theirs at the Fitton Center.”

Look for Pergram and 10 students to play about an hour’s worth of music in varying personnel groupings and several different styles.

The concert begins at 6 p.m.; it is free and open the public. The musicians will play among the paintings of artist Maureen O’Keefe’s Being Good exhibition in the first-floor Monument Gallery. Guests also may explore the Home Free exhibition co-curated by distinguished Miami University alumna Dr. Nicole R. Fleetwood on the second floor.

The Miami chamber series grew out of a gallery performance by the student woodwind quintet, Oxford Wind, back in May. Which itself came about after a faculty chamber performance in the gallery space the previous spring.

“I have talked to so many people on the faculty and in our administration who are excited about this series,” Pergram said. “It’s an important opportunity for our students. This is one of the quintessential cornerstones of all the arts disciplines – art can happen anywhere. It’s adaptive.”

And possibly daunting.

“To go to the center of the county and perform in an unfamiliar venue is a big step,” Pergram said. “Oxford and Hamilton may be very close geographically, but for some of these students, it will be the first time they’re performing outside of that Miami familiarity.

“It elevates their performance. It’s not just playing for other students or their faculty. It’s not just playing for a grade. This is completely elective and they are learning – just the very beginning stages – of what it means to be a professional musician and step out of their comfort zone to perform.”

In addition to the music, Pergram said his students are learning more about the arts in general.

“They’re asking what the Fitton Center is and what the Fitton Center does,” he said. “We’re having conversations about that, but I’m also inviting them to do some research on their own. We want them to have a feel for the place, to learn how to ask their own questions, to get a sense of where they’re playing and why the Fitton Center plays an important role in community, in the region.

The Miami musicians have two more chamber performances scheduled for Thursdays this academic year, playing again on March 14, 2024, and concluding the series on May 30.

The Fitton Center for Creative Arts is located at 101 S. Monument Avenue on the Riverfront in downtown Hamilton, Ohio.

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