Guitarist brings fusion to lecture series

Charles Carey, the CSC music faculty member who teaches guitar, opened the series with a presentation about fusion, the blending of rock and jazz that gained popularity in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He spoke about the genre’s pioneers, and provided examples of their music. Some of the subjects included The Meters, Edgar Winter, Chick Corea, Steve Morse and Jing-Chi.

Carey, a native of Miami who joined the CSC faculty in 2008, was accompanied by two music students, bass player David Barger of North Platte and drummer Kaleb Britton of Rapid City.

A standing-room only crowd of about 40 people attended the event in the library basement. It also marked the first live streaming event for the CSC College Relations Department this fall. The video has been archived and is available online.

Carey is no stranger to the stage. At age 12, he became the house guitarist for the Burt Reynolds Dinner Theater. In that position, he worked with many established artists and was given the opportunity to tour with several of the musicians. Prior to coming to CSC, Carey instructed music at Palm Beach Community College for 14 years and earned a master’s degree from Florida International University.

The next Graves Lecture Series presentation will be Tuesday, Sept. 20, with a presentation by Dr. Charles Snare, CSC dean of teaching and learning. He will deliver a presentation titled “The Landscape of Higher Education: Challenges and Opportunities.”

The presentation will begin at 7 p.m. in room 108 of the library, and is open to the public free of charge.