On Fri. Feb. 9, the College of Charleston Department of Music and the Charleston Symphony Orchestra (CSO) will partner once again for a collaborative project, Magnetic South, which presents its second contemporary classical music concert of the 2017-2018 season. The concert kicks off at 7:30 p.m. in the Simons Center for the Arts and $10 tickets can be purchased online.

The goal of Magnetic South is to introduce the people of the Lowcountry, and students at the College of Charleston, to important works from the 20th and 21st centuries, including new works by living composers. This particular event will primarily feature music composed by faculty members of the College of Charleston’s Department of Music.

Charleston native Dr. Edward Hart is one such composer. His song cycle, The Caged Bird Sings, will be performed at this concert featuring tenor Rodrick Dixon, who recently performed for Charleston’s Colour of Music Festival. The Caged Bird Sings draws inspiration from the poetry of Paul Laurence Dunbar. Hart is an accomplished composer whose work has been performed all around the globe, including a concert in Mexico with President Vicente Fox in attendance.

Another featured composer is Dr. Yiorgos Vassilandonakis and his chamber orchestra piece ...thought I was awake, which explores the sonification of shifting dream states. An expert in music theory and composition, Vassilandonakis’ music engages the senses and ventures into a multitude of genres.

Composer, producer, and Arts Management Lecturer Dr. Nathan Michel’s sextet Shelter will also be performed. Michel makes a variety of music, from acoustic to electric, from pop to experimental and classical. His band, Hospitality, has toured worldwide, and one of their albums was named a top record of 2012 by Rolling Stone.

The program will also feature a performance of a piece by Kirsten Volness, who won CofC’s annual Call for Scores. The Call for Scores seeks new music to be performed and recorded by the Charleston Symphony Orchestra.

All music at the Magnetic South event will be performed by the Charleston Symphony Orchestra and conducted by Vassilandonakis and CSO Music Director Ken Lam.

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