The Percussion Club and the Music Department at the University of Arkansas - Fort Smith have joined forces to present a concert April 15 that will feature the UAFS Percussion Ensemble along with world-renowned composer and percussionist Nathan Daughtrey.

 

The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. in Breedlove Auditorium on the UAFS campus, 5210 Grand Ave. In addition, Daughtrey will conduct a master class at 5 p.m., just prior to the concert.

 

Directed by Joshua J. Knight of Fort Smith, the concert will showcase a variety of instruments, like the marimba, xylophone, drums, cymbals and various “effects” instruments, along with solo pieces performed by Daughtrey.

 

According to Knight, this concert is a must-see event for percussion enthusiasts.

 

“Not only will the audience be entertained by the variety of instruments and a great solo percussionist,” he said, “but the music repertoire will feature beautiful and energetic compositions composed by Daughtrey, exciting music by Christopher Rouse and the fun ragtime selections of George Hamilton Green.”

 

A resident of Greensboro, N.C., Daughtrey is a visiting lecturer of percussion and music composition at High Point University, where he teaches applied lessons, directs the percussion ensemble and works in collaboration with the School of Communication and Department of Dance.

 

He previously taught applied percussion and conducted the percussion ensemble at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and was a sabbatical replacement at the University of Oklahoma, where he taught graduate and undergraduate percussion students and conducted the world-renowned OU Percussion Orchestra. He has performed and given master classes and clinics throughout the United States and across three continents.

 

Daughtrey has recorded two solo marimba albums to date, as well as several chamber music albums, including a recent collaboration with euphonium soloist Brian Meixner.

 

To date he has more than 60 publications for percussion ensemble, concert band, orchestra, chamber ensembles and soloists. His compositions appear regularly on performances at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention (PASIC), the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic, the Bands of America National Percussion Festival, and in concert halls and other performance venues around the world.

 

The concert and master class are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Knight at josh.knight@uafs.edu or 479-788-7558.