1780 – The Official Blog of Transylvania University

1780 | The Official Blog of Transylvania University

Liz Carroll Celtic music concert has been rescheduled for April 5; new ticket reservations must be made

LEXINGTON, Ky.—Grammy-nominated fiddler Liz Carroll will give a concert Thursday, April 5, at 7:30 p.m. in Transylvania University’s Carrick Theater. Accompanying Carroll will be Cork-born composer and pianist Cormac McCarthy. Tickets for the World Voices Series Concert are $10. (One free ticket with a Transylvania ID). The concert has been rescheduled, after tornado warnings on March 2 prompted the postponement of the show. Ticket reservations for the March 2 show are void and those wishing to attend the concert must make new reservations by calling (859) 233-8141.  Carroll began composing music as a child and has performed with artists ranging from violinist Yehudi Menuhin to rocker Don Henley. “Liz Carroll has amazed audiences around the world and we are thrilled to have her perform at Transylvania,” said Larry Barnes, professor of music and director of the World Voices Series. “She is a recognized master of the Celtic fiddle and all who come to hear her are in for a real treat.” In April 2011, Carroll was awarded the Cumadóir TG4, becoming the first American-born composer to be honored with Ireland’s most significant traditional music prize. Irish Echo, the largest circulation Irish American weekly newspaper, calls Carroll’s playing “nothing less than breathtaking,” and a concert review from The New York Times declares Carroll “Brilliant…She does more than run through her finger twisting reels and sustained slow airs. She—and her listeners—continually rediscover each melody.” McCarthy, originally from Cork, Ireland, lives in Chicago.

“The Long Death of Environmentalism” is topic of Transylvania’s Kenan Lecture, Wed., March 7; free and open to the public

LEXINGTON, KY.—Ted Nordhaus, cofounder and chairman of the Breakthrough Institute, will give a talk titled “The Long Death of Environmentalism,” at Transylvania University on Wednesday, March 7, at 7:30 p.m. The lecture, in the Mitchell Fine Arts Center’s Haggin Auditorium, is free and open to the public. The Breakthrough Institute was founded by Nordhaus and president Michael Shellenberger in 2003 to “modernize liberal-progressive-green politics,” according to the website. Nordhaus and Shellenberger are the authors of the book “Break Through: Why We Can’t Leave Saving the Planet to Environmentalists,” and the essay “The Death of Environmentalism: Global Warming in a Post Environmental World,” which triggered a national debate about the future of environmentalism. “Break Through” was called “prescient” by Time and “the most important thing to happen to environmentalism since ‘Silent Spring’” by Wired. Nordhaus has been profiled in the New York Times, Wired, the National Review, The New Republic and on NPR. In 2007, he and Shellenberger received the Green Book Award and Time’s 2008 “Heroes of the Environment” award.
 This lecture is part of Transylvania’s William R. Kenan Jr. Lecture Series and is funded by a grant from the William R. Kenan Jr. Charitable Trust. For more information, contact the public relations office at (859) 233-8120.

Transylvania University names Kathleen S. Jagger interim vice president and dean of the college, effective August 1, 2012

LEXINGTON, Ky.—President R. Owen Williams announced today that he has appointed Associate Vice President and Associate Dean of the College Kathleen Jagger interim vice president and dean of the college, effective August 1, 2012. William Pollard, who has held the position since 2004, will step down on July 31. He will remain professor of English. “Kathleen is an exceptional individual on many levels, and I look forward to working with her on a broader spectrum of issues,” Williams said. “I am deeply grateful to her for agreeing to serve in this important capacity.” Jagger joined the faculty in 2002 as professor of biology and is currently associate vice president and associate dean of the college. “I am honored to have the opportunity to serve Transylvania in a new capacity and continue some of the initiatives Dean Pollard began such as increasing our interdisciplinary majors and minors, enriching the breadth of the curriculum with additions such as Chinese language study and developing the enhanced First Year Student Experience,” Jagger said. “It will be a marvelous opportunity to support our students, my colleagues on the faculty and the administration as we collaborate to move the college forward.” Jagger’s major responsibilities have been in mentoring, advising, retention, diversity and coordinating academic support services. She implemented a first-year community book project, facilitated the formation of a first-year academic honorary and designed the QuickStart preorientation program. Jagger is vice chair of the university’s Quality Enhancement

“La Esencia Flamenco: Dance Across Cultures” at Transylvania Feb. 29 features Flamenco Louisville performance, discussion and tapas

Flamenco Louisville LEXINGTON, Ky.—Flamenco Louisville, an inclusive, participatory community of dancers, musicians, teachers and aficionados, will share their passion for the Spanish dance with the Lexington community at the “La Esencia Flamenco: Dance Across Cultures” performance at Transylvania on February 29, at 7:30 p.m. in the Mitchell Fine Arts Center’s Haggin Auditorium. The performance, discussion and reception to follow are free and open to the public. In addition to the performance, there will be a discussion and exploration of this unique art expression, including remarks from Lori Rowland Houlihan, special events liaison of the office of the mayor of Lexington; Henry Berlin, professor of Spanish at Transylvania; Transylvania religion professors Paul Jones and Carole Barnsley and author Rosie Moosnick. The speakers will discuss the various cultures and religions that influenced Spain and flamenco across centuries. An informal reception will follow the performance, during which further dialogue with Houlihan, Berlin, Jones, Barnsley and Moosnick will be welcome.  Authentic Spanish tapas and non-alcoholic sangria will be served at the reception. Flamenco is a system of singing, music and dance with its roots in the diverse cultures of Moorish-ruled Al-Andalus (the Iberian peninsula), now known as Spain and Portugal. The many flamenco song forms, or palos, were developed and preserved in the Gitano families and communities of Southern Spain that lived on the fringes of society. It is something that, in its purest form, takes place within the family or an intimate community.

“enigmatic remembrances” explores the works of artists Petra Carroll and Rae Goodwin; opens Friday, Feb. 17 in Transylvania’s Morlan Gallery

the body of, of the body (2012) LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University’s Morlan Gallery presents “enigmatic remembrances: new work by petra carroll and rae goodwin.” The exhibit, which opens Friday, Feb. 17 during Gallery Hop with a reception from 5-8 p.m, runs through Friday, March 23. “The premise of the exhibition is investigation of the power our memories have to commandeer our perceptions,” says gallery director Andrea Fisher. “The resulting work takes on a variety of media including two and three-dimensional mixed media that are often site-specific and transform the gallery space.” Working collaboratively, Carroll and Goodwin describe the ideas that motivated their latest work. “Exploration of memory is the exploration of the unknown. Each time we walk down ‘memory lane’ our recollections diverge and vary because we view the memory of the past from a different point in time. Our perception of the past shifts and changes as we shift and change.” Goodwin, director of foundations at the University of Kentucky, lives in Lexington and has taught at Pikeville College and Winthrop University. She ran an arts enrichment business for nine years in North Carolina. Her performance and sculptural works have been shown regionally, nationally and internationally in New Zealand, the McColl Center for Visual Art in North Carolina, Central Park in Manhattan and the Atlanta Contemporary Arts Center. She earned her M.F.A. in sculpture from Winthrop University and her B.A. degree in art from Framingham State College. Carroll, assistant professor