The MSUM Percussion Studio, directed by Dr. Kenyon Williams, will host a traditional Javanese slametan/gamelan naming ceremony Friday, Nov. 5 at noon in the MSUM Center for the Arts Art Gallery. The beautiful new collection of Javanese percussion and string instruments, known collectively as a gamelan, will be on display Wednesday through Friday in the art gallery. They will be given an […]
Guest artists and workshops draw percussionists from across the region He’s the proud new “father” of an exotic Indonesian baby who hasn’t yet received a name. Kenyon Williams, MSUM Music Department faculty member, reveals his baby’s name in a traditional Indonesian ceremony, complete with a ritualistic Javanese meal, on Friday, Nov. 5, at noon in the MSUM Art Gallery. The […]
Dr. Kenyon Williams was recently awarded a highly competitive Minnesota State Arts Board “Artist Initiative” Grant for 2010. Funded through the recently approved Cultural Heritage funds passed into law by the people of Minnesota in 2009, the grant will allow Williams to commission original works for percussion and to lay the groundwork for the recording of what will become his first commercially released CD. He will record the CD with the aid of MSUM Music Industry professor Ryan Jackson this coming fall and spring, utilizing commissions and selections from composers around the world, including MSUM’s own Professor of Composition Henry Gwiazda and Concordia’s Russell Peterson.
Dr. Kenyon Williams, Associate Professor of Percussion, will perform the regional premiere of Emmanuel Sejourne’s “Concerto for Marimba and String Orchestra” Monday, Feb. 8 at 7 p.m. at Moorhead High School with the school’s Orchestra. Directed by MSUM Adjunct Professor of Violin Jon Larson, the MHS Orchestra is recognized as one of the largest and most accomplished ensembles in the Upper Midwest. Admission is free.
Dr. Kenyon Williams, Associate Professor of Percussion, has been named a Yamaha Performing Artist. His work with the Fargo Moorhead Symphony, solo performances and clinics across the country, and leadership within the Percussive Arts Society all contributed to this honor. As a Yamaha artist, he will endorse Yamaha products while also receiving support for his appearances at future performances and workshops. Yamaha is one of the largest manufacturers of percussion instruments in the world, and maintains an elite roster of artists who perform exclusively on their instruments. Williams also endorses Latin Percussion instruments, Innovative Sticks and Mallets, and Coyle Steel Drums.