Contact: Maridith Geuder
A Tuesday [Nov. 11] concert at Mississippi State will display the distinct musical and artistic skills of a graduating senior in graphic design.
Sam Flegal of Nashville, Tenn., will draw on a longtime interest in jazz and his academic work in the university's art department during a 7:30 p.m. free public program he's calling "Dead Chocolate Bird: Art and Music of Sam Flegal."
Prior to the show, his graphic design pieces and illustrations will be featured in the lobby of Giles Hall. The evening's musical component takes place in the Bettersworth Auditorium of Giles, home of MSU's College of Architecture.
"I decided to combine two of my great interests because I thought it would be an unusual presentation," he said. The concert title derives from a project assigned by professor Jamie Mixon, he added.
"We had to create an advertising logo and package design for a product," he explained. "I combined a dead bird, something clearly unappealing, with chocolate, which most people love. It's part of what I call my 'dead' humor."
Flegal played in the jazz band during his years at Nashville's McGavock High School. At MSU, he became a founding member of the State Messengers, a performing ensemble composed of music education faculty members and students.
The ensemble will join him during the concert on such classic jazz numbers as "Birdland," "So What," and "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy."
In a tongue-in-cheek piece that's part of his dark humor repertoire, Flagel accompanies the Dizzy Gillespie number "Night in Tunisia" with a video he produced. He has retitled the collage "'Zombie' Night in Tunisia."
"The inspiration for this was drawn from a photography class in which some of my friends posed as zombies," he said with a smile.
For more information about the concert, telephone (662) 325-3070.