St. Joseph’s College President Donald R. Boomgaarden, Ph.D., is preparing to lead two musical performances at SJC Brooklyn in April.
During “An Afternoon with Chopin: Preludes, Nocturnes and the Ballade No. 1 in G Minor” on April 2 in the auditorium in Tuohy Hall, Dr. Boomgaarden will perform some of Polish composer Frédéric Chopin’s most famous works and place them into historical context with a complimentary lecture. The performance, which is part of St. Joseph’s College Council for the Arts’ Chamber Music and Afternoon Jazz Spring Parlor Series, begins at 12:40 p.m.
Classic Bluegrass
Dr. Boomgaarden, who began playing the piano as a toddler and also plays the banjo and the fiddle among other instruments, will perform again at SJC Brooklyn on April 15 — this time in the Tuohy Hall Student Lounge — at 7 p.m. Together with student and faculty associates, Dr. Boomgaarden will discuss the origins of North American roots music and perform classic bluegrass songs.
The president will touch on the significance of family histories in the development of the roots movement and illustrate some of the basic stylistic traits found in this rich legacy, as well as the important political and social events that shaped musical culture in the United States.