CONTACT: Beth L. Lorow
Assistant Director of Public Relations
Office: (717) 691-6027
E-mail: blorow@messiah.edu

Messiah College Cultural Series to present the Abaca String Band

	Abaca String Band Click on image to download print-quality version

GRANTHAM, Pa. (Sept. 1, 2005) — The Messiah College Cultural Series will present in concert the Abaca String Band on Sept. 23 at 8 p.m. in Miller Auditorium, located in the Climenhaga Fine Arts Center on the college’s Grantham campus. Tickets cost $20 and can be purchased by calling the Messiah College ticket office at (717) 691-6036.

Founded in 1991, the Abaca String Band has become well-known for its unique blend of instruments, including an eight-string guitar, mandolin, violin, viola and double bass.

According to Gannett Newspapers, “There is something outrageous, irreverent and wonderfully refreshing about the Abaca String Band…everyone was a winner in this match-up.”

The group plays a wide range of music, from Bach to the Pinball Wizard. They have performed throughout the United States at the White House, Lincoln Center, Newport Music Festival, Library of Congress, Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and Troy Music Hall, among other locations.

The Abaca String Band consists of five musicians. Andrew Schulman, the founder and music director of the Abaca String Band, plays the eight-string guitar and performs each Sunday at the Palm Court located in the Plaza Hotel in New York City. As one of the leading mandolinists in the New York metropolitan area, Barry Mitterhoff has toured throughout Europe, the former Soviet Union, Czech Republic, Japan and Canada. Violinist Robert Zubrycki is an active performer in the New York City area and was the principal violinist in “La Boheme” on Broadway. Violist Julie Goodale has a degree from The Julliard School in New York City and is also a member of the Westfield Symphony and the Colonial Symphony. Marc Schmeid plays double bass and has played in numerous Broadway productions, including “Cabaret,” “ Oklahoma” and “Thoroughly Modern Mille.”

The Cultural Series is a public five-part annual performance series sponsored by Messiah College. In addition to the Abaca String Band, the remaining performances include the Wihan Quartet on Nov. 4, “Winter Holiday Jazz” with David Leonhardt on Dec. 2, Czech Nonet on Feb. 17, and the Ensemble Amarcord on March 3. Tickets for individual events cost $20 each and a season subscription costs $85; call (717) 691-6036 for tickets.

Messiah College, a private Christian college of the liberal and applied arts and sciences, enrolls more than 2,900 undergraduate students in 50 majors. Established in 1909, the primary campus is located in Grantham, Pa., near the state capital of Harrisburg. A satellite campus affiliated with Temple University is located in Philadelphia.

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ARTICLE DATE: THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2005
ARTICLE NUMBER: MC-085-05