Students of Mercer’s Townsend School of Music are given opportunities throughout the year to hear musicians from around the world perform and attend master classes conducted by the visiting artists. This series, the Joan Stockstill Godsey Concert Series, is a result of one of many long-lasting monetary gifts from Mercer’s former president, Dr. R. Kirby Godsey, and his wife Joan Godsey.
Dr. Carol Goff, Chair of Keyboard Studies at Mercer, emphasized how instrumental the Godseys were in bettering Mercer in all of its departments. “Ms. Godsey was a church musician, and [she and her husband] always wanted to be involved,” Goff said. Dr. Godsey was also heavily responsible for the Townsend School of Music coming to fruition. In its beginning, the music department was part of the College of Liberal Arts, but Godsey was a crucial part of the school of music’s separation.
“The idea [of the Godsey series] is to fund concerts to bring in major artists for edification of the student body and public,” said Dr. Ian Altman, associate professor of piano at Mercer and the next performer in the series. Altman will perform selections from the masterful piano works of Debussy, Liszt, Beethoven, and Chopin. The concert will take place in Fickling Hall at 7:30 p.m. on March 29.
Dr. Ian Altman to perform next as part of the Joan Stockstill Godsey Concert Series
The Steinway piano ( a gift from the Godseys) in Professor Goff's room in the McKinnley Music Building.
