Presentation Open to the Public on October 13

(Columbia, Tenn. - October 11, 2010) - - - Associate Professor of Music Dr. Mark Lee will discuss his latest opus, a work born of the ideas and writings of twentieth century expressionist writer, Franz Kafka on Wednesday, October 13 at 2:00 p.m. in the Waymon L. Hickman building, room 122 on the Columbia Campus. This is a rare local opportunity to hear a contemporary classical composer discuss his radical and Pulitzer Prize nominated work. Lee's Kafka Musik derives from the layers of anxiety and fear and depression that characterized the expressionistic music that arrived from Germany after the first World War. The event is sponsored by Columbia State Community College's Humanities and Social Sciences division and is complimentary and open to the public.

"Lee's violent rhythms, tonalities, and exotic stylistics illustrate the composer's awareness and debt to other contemporary classical composers while bringing a distinctive and exuberant method to his own vision, said Dr. Stuart Lenig, Professor of Communications and Drama at Columbia State. "Lee works in modal, dissonant, and new minimalist modes and produces a form of music contemporary and yet based in the classical tradition."

Lee will discuss the genesis of the composition, his techniques, and provide musical and video examples of recent performances. Lee has been at Columbia State Community College for nearly twenty years during which time he has pursued graduate work at Vanderbilt, studied with internationally famous musicians and composers including Karlheinz Stockhausen, and written and produced myriad pieces of classical, pop, and electronic scores. Currently, Lee is engaged in a massive recording project of this and other works and he will relate the complexities of rendering millennial scores for contemporary audiences in a recorded medium.

For more information contact Dr. Stuart Lenig, Professor of Communications and Drama, at (931) 540-2877 or by emailing slenig@columbiastate.edu.

Columbia State is a two-year college, serving a nine-county area in southern Middle Tennessee with locations in Columbia, Franklin, Lawrenceburg, Lewisburg and Clifton. As Tennessee's first community college, Columbia State is committed to increasing access and enhancing diversity at all five campuses. Columbia State is a member of the Tennessee Board of Regents, the sixth largest higher education system in the nation. For more information, please visit www.columbiastate.edu.

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