Dead ahead: Mickey Hart gives free lecture-demonstration, Monday

Mickey Hart, legendary Grateful Dead drummer, world music producer and advocate for endangered musical communities, visits the Cornell campus Monday, Oct. 7.

Among other activities, Hart will present a free public lecture-demonstration titled "Music at the Edge of Magic" that evening at 8 p.m. in the Statler Auditorium, made possible in part by the Cornell Council for the Arts, American Indian Program, American Studies Program and the Department of Music.

While the lecture is free, tickets will be required for admission; they can be picked up at the Willard Straight Hall Ticket Office (255-3430), with a maximum of two per person. Prior to, at intermission and after the event, the Cornell Store will offer many of Hart's books and recordings for sale in the lobby of the auditorium.

Hart will lecture in a free-form and interactive style with the theme following Drumming at the Edge of Magic, a Journey into the Spirit of Percussion. Partially autobiographical, the book is an odyssey of sorts that tells the story of the history of percussion worldwide. Hart will show slides from another of his books, Planet Drum, and play recordings from around the world.

He also will speak about the preservation of rare and endangered recordings from the Library of Congress, where he serves as trustee to the American Folklife Center, as well as his work on the impact of music on the brain, including the neurological function of music and the benefits to be derived from rhythm and music therapy.

His tireless study of the world's music led Hart to many great teachers and collaborators, including his partners in Planet Drum. Planet Drum's self-titled album hit No. 1 on the Billboard World Music Chart, remaining there for 26 weeks, and also received the Grammy for Best World Music Album in 1991 -- the first Grammy ever awarded in this category. Planet Drum is one of 29 recordings released on Hart's the "World" series on Rykodisc Records.

Hart's experiences have paved the way for unique opportunities beyond the music industry. He composed a major drum production performed by an assembly of 100 percussionists for the opening ceremony of the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games, along with Zakir Hussain, Giovanni Hidalgo and Philip Glass. Additionally, Hart has composed scores, soundtracks and themes for movies, television and home video, including "Gang Related," "Hearts of Darkness," "Apocalypse Now," "The Twilight Zone," "Vietnam: A Television History" and "The Next Step."

Recently Hart was appointed to the board of trustees of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress where he heads up the sub-committee on the digitization and preservation of the center's vast collections. This has evolved into "Save Our Sounds," a fund-raising effort that continued to develop in 2001. In October 2000, the Saybrook Graduate School and Research Center conferred an honorary doctorate of humane letters on Hart for his work in advancing the preservation of aural archives.