This spring, you’ll want to “ankle” quickly to Mississippi State University Libraries for the ninth annual Charles Templeton Ragtime & Jazz Festival– it’s the “bee’s knees!” Dress up in ’20s fashion and be an “Oliver Twist” on the dance floor at the second annual Gatsby Gala, enjoy performances from some of the country’s most talented pianists, and learn more about ragtime, jazz and early American music at a number of lectures.

Previously an event exclusively featuring piano and concentrating mainly on ragtime, the festival is spreading its wings to include more instruments and styles. Look forward to the sounds of Stride, Boogie, Blues, Novelty, Swing, New Orleans Jazz, some Gershwin and of course, a healthy serving of Ragtime. From the wild, hot piano of Dr. Dave Majchrzak to the pastel-tinged Art Deco pianisms of Richard Dowling, from the torrid New Orleans Rag, Jazz and Blues heritage of Scott Kirby to the impressive eclecticism of Ivory&Gold®, this year's Templeton Festival truly has something for everyone!

The festival features the Charles H. Templeton Sr. Collection and Museum in MSU Libraries, which houses over 22,000 pieces of sheet music, 200 musical instruments, and unique musical memorabilia from the 1880s to the 1930s. The collection highlights the industry during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when ragtime dominated popular American music.

Events kick off with the Gatsby Gala on Thursday, March 26 at 6 p.m., featuring a fashion show of ’20s designs created by students in the Apparel, Textile and Merchandising program. A series of Templeton Museum tours, seminars and silent movies will be held throughout the day and evening concerts featuring our guest performers will be held in the evenings, Friday, March 27 and Saturday, March 28. Daytime events and the Gatsby Gala will be held in Mitchell Memorial Library, and the concerts will be held at the McComas Hall Auditorium on the MSU Campus.

The Festival is sponsored by grants from the Starkville Area Arts Council, Greater Starkville Partnership Development and the Mississippi Arts Commission, a state agency, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. Tickets are available for daily events, evening concerts, and for the entire festival online at http://library.msstate.edu/ragtime. For questions or concerns, contact Lynda Graham at lgraham@library.msstate.eduor (662) 325-6634.

Submitted by
Stephen Cunetto
Administrator of Systems
Mississippi State University Libraries