Amidst tapping feet, drumming fingers and clapping hands, Music Professor Guthrie Ramsey attempted to link his two professions -- musician and scholar -- at a book signing Wednesday evening.
Over 40 people were present at the Penn Bookstore to listen to Ramsey recite passages from his new book Race Music: Black Cultures from Bebop to Hip-Hop and perform music with his band Dr. Guy's MusiQologY.
Ramsey's book is a personal examination of the cultural history of jazz, gospel, soul and motown. He explained how he drew influences from fiction writers, scholars and his own experiences growing up on the south side of Chicago. Ramsey said he wanted to write in a style that was accessible so that he could reach as many people as possible.
Ramsey explained to his audience that he sees music as intrinsically tied to life.
"Good music is one of the reasons that makes us want to live," he said.
Through Race Music, he said he hopes to break down the categorization of musical styles, showing how truly integrated they actually are.
Ramsey said that being an artist "provides his soul with deep satisfaction."
"I feel like a rock star," he said, as he pounded out smooth jazz tones on his keyboard. Seconds later, he had exchanged his thick orange-toned glasses for traditional wire-rimmed reading ones, ready to capture the audience's attention with quotes from his book.
In a passage about his childhood family gatherings, Ramsey recalled "an era of communal gathering where the young and not-so-young eagerly participated."
His statement may have well been describing the crowd gathered before him supporting his latest work -- seasoned musicians and newcomers alike attended the book signing.
Christine Hibbard, director of marketing at the Penn Bookstore, noted the diversity of the group, estimating that a crowd of students, staff and University City residents had come to support the Penn professor.
"It's going to change the world of musicology," graduate student Jennifer Ryan said of the book.
The novelty and excitement of the subject was what brought College freshman Lindsey Rosin to the event.
"He's so passionate about music -- how could you not want to learn about it?" she said of Ramsey, who teaches her "Jazz: Style and History" class.
And first-year graduate student April Hamm explained she admired Ramsey because "he brings a lot of issues to the table that a lot of other scholars are afraid to touch on."
