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Performer presents ragtime, modern music at Showcase

Pianist and composer Scott Kirby will regale Havre audiences with a variety of American musical styles when he visits the area as part of the Northern Showcase series of concerts.

Kirby, a native of Ohio, will perform in the Showcase series Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in the Havre High School auditorium, but will make a couple of special appearances first.

One stop will be at the Eagles Manor at 10 a.m. with a performance of his music, which includes ragtime and Creole styles.

First Lutheran Church will house a master's piano workshop for piano instructors, which Kirby will conduct from 1 to 3 p.m.

Along with traditional American styles, Kirby also performs works in the more contemporary styles of New Ragtime and Terra Verde, a modern ragtime that's a fusion of 19th century European Romantic music and a variety of American ethnic music types.

Artists often featured in his performances include Scott Joplin, Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton, Louis Moreau Gottschalk and Brazilian composer Ernesto Nazareth.

A graduate of Ohio State University with a degree in English, Kirby began studying music at age 6 and continued formal piano instruction for 17 years.

After receiving his English degree, Kirby moved to New Orleans and began a career as a professional musician. In four years he made recordings of the complete ragtime works of Scott Joplin, and has appeared at every major ragtime festival in the United States and at festivals in Belgium, France, Norway and Hungary.

Tickets are available at the door for the Northern Showcase performance, costing $12 for adults and $7.50 for students. Admission is free with a validated Montana State University-Northern student ID. Northern Showcase season tickets also gain entry.

 

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