December 16, 2009

Guitar music played by Dr. Corey Whitehead, an assistant professor of music at California State University, Fresno, now fills the silence telephone callers once experienced when being transferred or put on hold at the university.

Collaborating with Fresno State’s Department of Music, the university’s Information Technology Services has made it possible for callers to hear Whitehead play pieces from “Sonoras Fragancias” by Robert Strizich. The music is based on the music of Gaspar Sanz, a 17th century Spanish baroque composer.

Strizich also wrote “Music for the Peace Garden,” a guitar quartet inspired by the university’s Peace Garden outside the Henry Madden Library.

Whitehead joined the Fresno State music faculty in 2006. He is an accomplished, award-winning performer who has played throughout the United States and in Europe, Asia, South America and Africa. Whitehead also has written books on guitar instruction and is a recording artist.

His music was introduced recently on the campus’ new Avaya phone system, which was completed in summer.

Each semester the “hold” music will change, featuring another set of compositions and performances by music department faculty, said Eric McLain, associate director of Information Technology Services.

For more information on the music currently featured, contact McLain at emclain@csufresno.edu or 559.278.3923.