The Mississippi State University’s Mitchell Memorial Library will host the sixth-annual Charles Templeton Ragtime Jazz Festival March 30 and 31 featuring five pianists.
Brian Holland, Jeff Barnhart, Sonny Leyland, Martin Spitznagel and David Jasen will all be present at the festival and performing in concerts, “living room” sessions and lectures. All events are free for students. For anyone else interested in attending, the all-events badge is $50. Tickets can also be purchased online at library.msstate.edu/ragtime/festival/tkts/index.html.
Stephen Cunetto, festival coordinator, said the event grew out of an idea when talking to Chip Templeton, Charles Templeton’s son, and is an outgrowth of the Charles Templeton Sr. Music Museum.
“We thought it was a good thing to bring to Mississippi State and Mississippi that really shows the evolution of music to where it is today,” he said.
Cunetto said the festival brings people from all over the country to Mississippi to showcase the music.
“This is a good opportunity for them to broaden their horizons and hear great performers that they may not hear otherwise,” he said.
Lyle Tate, festival planning committee member, said there will be three different types of events. During the day, there will be talks at the piano in the museum, located in the library. These will be intimate “living room” sessions and will allow attendees to be able to hear the artist perform as well as have discussions with them.
“I think it’s a neat experience for students to talk in this culture and see world-class musicians up close and personal,” he said.
Cunetto said the evening concerts are something students will enjoy.
“We try to make it high tech as well,” he said.
There will be television centers showing hands watching their hands.
 Tate, senior library associate, said the festival highlights this genre and a great way of keeping its history alive.
“(The festival) draws people into the ragtime music and brings attention to music over 100 years old,” he said.
Cunetto, library system administrator, said the festival helps participants understand musical roots and evolution. He said all types of music can trace back to this genre.
“We think hip-hop is new, but really it has roots in this type of music,” he said.
Tate said an interesting dynamic of the festival is that Brian Holland and Jeff Barnhart because it is so rare to get those two together.
Cunetto said the last time Barnhart played at the Templeton festival he played an unscripted, unplayed performance where other performers joined the piano. At one point, there were four people playing one piano.
“It brought the house down,” he said. “It sounds fantastic. I have a feeling it will probably happen again.”
Cunetto said some of the more well-known songs include “The Entertainer,” “Maple Leaf Rag” and “Kitten on the Keys,” as he looked through a stack of ragtime CDs on his desk.
Ragtime music is characterized by syncopated music with strong bass clef. Tate said the music is upbeat and has no words, and it is almost always piano music, although there will occasionally be duets and trios with other instruments.
Cunetto said the music is more lively than classical music, even though the music is from a time very different from today.
“They’re very dynamic performances,” he said. “It’s not you get your bowtie own and your stiff shirt kind of music.”
Templeton was a 1949 MSU graduate and Starkville businesman. His main hobby was collecting turn of the century instruments, which were later donated to the library. The museum, located on the fourth floor, has just under 200 instruments, 13,000 pieces of playable music and 22,000 pieces of sheet music from various genres, but mostly ragtime.