Bluegrass to Blues Concert

Students in UL Lafayette’s traditional music program will perform a concert of acoustic bluegrass music and electrified blues and R&B in Burke-Hawthorne Theatre on the university campus on Wednesday, November 15 at 7:30 PM.

Dr. Len Springer coaches Vermilion Express, the university’s bluegrass band, recently back from the Bloomin’ Bluegrass Festival in Farmer’s Branch, Texas where the students tested their offstage jamming skills. The group’s set list includes a mix of Bill Monroe classics from the 1950s and contemporary material from the last ten years, including a song by Billy Strings and one by band member and senior music business major Lakeyn Schultz, with senior theory/composition major Benjamin Richey providing the banjo foundation. Both Vermilion Express and the Ragin’ Blues Band recorded studio tracks for the forthcoming EP from Ragin’ Records, Rougarou.

The Ragin’ Blues Band—or perhaps we should start calling it the Ragin’ and Blues Band—is led by Corey Ledet, who is not only a virtuoso zydeco accordionist but also a fan of old-school R&B and rock music, as evidenced by his own recordings and the repertoire chosen for this evening. It will not be Ledet himself, but his students who will be front and center in this set, built around the sound of three powerful female vocalists: Kayla Dugas, Nicole Needham, and Breannah Richard. Their performance will feature rich harmonies, guitar work from Joe Harper and Nick Tanner, and a spirited selection of classic songs from artists including Jackie Wilson, Denise LaSalle, the Staple Singers, and Koko Taylor.
Bluegrass to Blues Concert

Acoustic bluegrass music and electrified blues and R&B in a beautifully renovated theatre - $5 cover for persons over age 12; free with current UL Lafayette ID. No advance purchase.
Wednesday, Nov. 15, 7:30pm, Burke-Hawthorne Theatre, 211 Hebrard Boulevard on UL Lafayette campus

The mission of the Dr. Tommy Comeaux Endowed Chair in Traditional Music at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette is to stimulate interdisciplinary research on the foundations and diversity of traditional music worldwide and to advance the preservation, instruction, and performance of traditional music with an emphasis on traditions that have developed in Acadiana. The program began in the Fall of 2010. It is now possible to earn a B.A. in Music with a concentration in Traditional Music as well as a Music Minor with a Traditional Music emphasis.