Heartland Arts Fund provides fund
for California E.A.R. Unit performance

Arkansas State University-Jonesboro has been selected to receive a Heartland Arts Fund grant.

This award will support the performance by the California contemporary music ensemble, the E.A.R. Unit, at the Fowler Center Saturday, Jan. 31, at 7:30 p.m. 

The E.A.R. Unit appearance is scheduled in connection with the 2004 regional conference of the Society of Composers Inc. and includes a lecture/demonstration at 6:30 p.m., just prior to the concert.  Both the lecture/demonstration and concert are free and open to the public.

The Heartland Arts Fund is a program of Mid-America Arts Alliance funded by the National Endowment for the Arts with additional contributions from the Arkansas Arts Council and foundations, corporations, and individuals throughout Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Texas.

The Heartland Arts Fund enables individuals and families throughout America’s heartland to share in and to enjoy the arts and cultures of our region and the world.

David J. Fraher, Heartland Arts Fund Chairman said, “Arkansas State University is to be commended for its commitment to serving their community with this distinctive event.  Audiences near northeastern Arkansas will have the opportunity to see the exciting work of the California E.A.R. Unit, many for the first time, and the Heartland Arts Fund is proud to help support this work and Arkansas State University.”

The California E.A.R. Unit (http://www.earunit.org/tours.htm) is a nationally recognized contemporary music ensemble specializing in mixed media performance art and a leader in the performance and commissioning of new music.  Founded in 1981, E.A.R. Unit musicians with clarinet, flute, piano, percussion, ‘cello, and violin are recognized today as one of America's finest contemporary chamber ensembles. 

Says the New York Times, "The E.A.R. Unit performs with exuberance and razor sharp precision."  A winner of the American Music Center “Letter of Distinction,” the E.A.R. Unit has performed in London, Brussels, Paris, Cologne, Reykjavik, and Kiev, and appeared in U.S. halls including New York’s Carnegie, Washington’s Kennedy Center, and the Library of Congress.  Festival appearances include Ravinia, Tanglewood, Aspen, and Bang on a Can.

For further event information, contact Professor Tim Crist of the ASU Department of Music at 870-972-2094.  For further information on the Heartland Arts Fund, call the Heartland Arts Fund staff at 816-421-1388.
                                          

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