The Midwestern State University Department of Music is proud to present a new music series, which will take place the first Friday of each month of the fall semester. The First Friday Concerts with Dr. Ruth Morrow will be 20- to 30-minute events which will be live-streamed only on the university website.

The First Friday Concerts are part of the efforts by the Lamar D. Fain College of Fine Arts to explore ways to continue artistic and musical events during the pandemic.

“Music does not stop for COVID-19,” said Morrow, the Bolin Distinguished Chair of Piano and an organizer for these events. “This series will present meaningful events in a variety of musical genres.”

Dr. Martin Camacho, Dean of the Fain College of Fine Arts, is excited about this new series. “We have been looking for ways to maintain the connection and artistic conversations between our program, students, and the Wichita Falls community. We believe this initiative will allow us to reach out and maintain that connection,” he said.

The First Friday Concerts are part of a larger initiative launched by the college, named Entr’acte. Alluding to the interval between two acts of a play or opera during which a dance or piece of music is performed, Entr’acte events are artistic events created by faculty and students during the current conditions, as an interlude, and meant to be shared with the rest of the community.

Last year, Morrow was the beneficiary of the Jane Spears Carnes Fellowship in Creative Endeavors, a program that allowed her to spend a semester dedicated to projects outside of the classroom. She used the spring 2020 semester to prepare solo piano music inspired by human rights issues for a professional CD and/or video recording.

The premier concert at 5:15 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4, will include a sample of the pieces Morrow has been rehearsing. October’s concert will feature an introduction to new faculty. November and December will bring music appropriate to each month: thankfulness and (re)birth. All events will take place at 5:15 p.m. and can be viewed at msutexas.edu/academics/finearts/music/live-event.php.

Contact Morrow or Camacho at 940-397-4243 for more information. The full calendar of events for the Fain College of Fine Arts (Entr’acte) can be found at msutexas.edu/academics/finearts/index.php.