Performances by Juno Award-winning flamenco guitarist Jesse Cook and Canadian jazz vocal sensation Sophie Milman will begin the 2007 Mississippi State Lyceum Series.The event will take place Thursday in the Lee Hall auditorium at 7:30 p.m.
A newcomer to MSU, 22-year-old Milman will open the show. Her self-titled album currently holds the No. 2 position on iTunes’ top jazz album downloads and No. 29 in jazz overall. In addition to appearing on the covers of Montreal’s Voir Magazine and Lifestyles Magazine, she attends the University of Toronto as a full-time student.
“I love Toronto,” Milman says on her Web site. “I love the fact that you can find every type of music in the city. I love Toronto’s openness to new styles and ideas. It creates such an eclectic and rich musical and cultural palette.”
Born in Russia, Milman is fluent in four languages, which she reveals through her music.
Cook will follow Milman’s jazz performance with his signature South American guitar stylings. Flamenco is defined as strongly rhythmic-involving such vigorous actions as clapping hands and stamping feet. As part of his “rumba” guitar style, Cook has been known to do this during his performances.
“His concerts are a lot of fun,” said Jim Walsh, MSU public relations director. “People like him who are younger because he gets up, claps and interacts with the audience. But he also attracts an older crowd due to his sound.”
Cook has released seven albums with his earliest in 1995 titled Tempest. He continued with Gravity in 1996, Vertigo in 1998 and Free Fall in 2000. He released Nomad, recorded in Egypt, Spain, England, Canada and the United States in 2003, followed by Montreal: Live in 2004, which put one of his concerts at the Metropolis Theatre into audio format. His latest work, released in 2005, is titled Ultimate Jesse Cook. Cook has sold more than 1 million CDs worldwide.
The collaboration of instruments in Cook’s full-band lineup, which create his South American feel and Spanish vibe, are bass, percussion, palmas, violin, guitar and drums. He has collaborated with well-known artists including Peter Gabriel, Paul Simon and John Lennon. In 2005, his Montreal: Live appeared at No.3 on the Billboard New Age chart. Cook has also won two Juno Awards for best instrumental album and was nominated in 2004 for Best World Music Album. In addition to playing with The Gypsy Kings, Cook’s music has been heard during the 2000 Sydney and 1998 Nagano Olympic games. One of Cook’s songs has also been heard on HBO’s comedy series “Sex and the City.”
“Cook came last year and said he had a really good time,” Walsh said. “Students requested that he visit MSU again. He was booked in May.”
Tickets for the event are $15 for adults, $10 for senior citizens and $8 for children ages 3 to 12. MSU students will be admitted free with a valid student ID. General admission tickets for the performance will be available at the door. For more information on the Lyceum Series program, telephone 325-4201 or visit www.msstate.edu/dept/lyceum. Artist information is available at www.a-c-t-s-inc.com.