Fowler Center Series opens 2008-09 season with Rhonda Vincent and the Rage

Sept. 3, 2008 --  Arkansas State University’s Fowler Center Series begins its 2008-09 season on Friday, Sept. 19, at 7:30 p.m., when Rhonda Vincent and the Rage take the stage in Riceland Hall, Fowler Center, 201 Olympic Drive, Jonesboro, performing hard-driving, high-intensity contemporary bluegrass.

Since 2000, Rhonda Vincent has been named Female Vocalist of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) seven times. The Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music named her Contemporary Female Vocalist of the Year five times, Traditional Vocalist of the Year five times, and Entertainer of the Year four times. She has performed and recorded with Dolly Parton, George Jones, and Faith Hill. She has been featured at the Grand Ole Opry more than 100 times, as well as making numerous appearances on CBS, ABC, NBC, and PBS.

Born July 13, 1962, in Kirksville, Mo., she began her musical career at the age of five, playing drums in her family’s band, the Sally Mountain Show. She earned the respect of her predominantly male peers in the 1970s and 1980s for her success in the bluegrass genre. Vincent is a talented multi-instrumentalist and singer; she plays mandolin, guitar, and fiddle, and is noted for her progressive chord structures and multi-range vocals. Her band, the Rage, is Hunter Berry on fiddle, Mickey Harris on bass, Kenny Ingram on banjo, and Darrell Webb on guitar. Berry is a five-time Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America (SPBGMA) Fiddle Player of the Year, Harris was a nominee for IBMA Bass Player of the Year in 2007, Ingram is a two-time IBMA Award winner, and Webb has performed with Alison Krauss and Union Station and Dolly Parton, among others. The official web site of Rhonda Vincent and the Rage is http://nemr.net/~rhondav/index.html.

Tickets for all Fowler Center Series events may be purchased by calling 870-972-2781 or 1-888-278-3267, or online at http://tickets.astate.edu. On performance evenings, the box office in Fowler Center opens one hour prior to the event.

Ticket prices are $30 and $20 for adults; $24 and $16 for ASU faculty and staff; $23 and $15 for senior adults and K-12 students; and $10 and $6 for ASU students.

See www.fowlercenter.astate.edu/TicketInfo.html for season ticket information, including prices, or call the Fowler Center at 870-972-3471 for more information.          

###