As flute and harp music begins to play in the Utah State University library, a small group of onlookers gather.
The brief concert features four pieces from various musical eras. Between songs, the director visits with the audience and one man comments that he is enjoying hearing a harp live for the first time.
“That’s a special experience to hear an ensemble like this, or to see an instrument that you’ve only heard on recordings before,” said Leslie Timmons, an associate professor of music at Utah State and director of the flute choir. “Making that available to anybody who happens to be in the library is a service, really, of the music department.”
Although music has been performed in the library as part of past events, this is the first time an official series has been organized.
Rachel Wishkoski is the music librarian at the university and helped organize the series entitled, Listen in the Library. She said the library already features visual student art, but for Year of the Arts she wanted to do more.
“I really wanted to find a way to include sound and music in that and I wanted to find a way that I could help feature student performers from the music department and have their work represented,” Wishkoski said.
Timmons said another reason for the series is to provide music students more performance opportunities.
“This is fairly early in the semester for a group like this to be performing, so we’re happy to have a venue where there’s not a lot of pressure,” Timmons said.
Timmons and Wishkoski hope both the location and shorter length of performances will make music more accessible to students.
