With the cool fall weather comes a new way to enjoy the outdoors. The Frost School of Music and the John C. Gifford Arboretum have collaborated to create a free monthly concert series known as Music in the Arboretum.
The concerts feature jazz, classical and other types of music performed by Frost students and faculty.
Attendees are encouraged to bring a folding chair or blanket to the outdoor seating area, which is located on the northwest side of campus behind the Knight Physics Building.
“Music in the Arboretum is intended to expose students to the arboretum as well as the great talent within the Frost School of Music,” said Steve Pearson, director of the arboretum. “Listening to good music under the trees as the sun sets is a great way to end a day.”
The concert series kicked off last month with Avocado Estate, a trio of Frost graduate students who play progressive bluegrass. The next event, which is scheduled for 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, will feature a performance by Category 5 Brass.
“There are a lot of graduate students who enjoy the space,” said senior Jae Sung Shrader, chair of the ECO agency, a branch of Student Government. “I really hope that these events open up undergraduates’ minds to the arboretum.”
Anuradha Gunathilake, a doctoral biology student and curator of the arboretum, also hopes to bring attention to the location with this series.
“We can draw in the UM community and the public to come and enjoy the beauty of the arboretum,” Gunathilake said.
There will be no event in December, but the series will begin again on Jan. 17 and continue every third Thursday of the month through April.