GRANVILLE, Ohio — Denison University’s Bluegrass Ensemble, directed by Casey Cook and Mark Wade, will perform for the last time this year on Friday, May 1, at 8 p.m. in Swasey Chapel (200 Chapel Drive). The concert is free and open to the public.

Organized in the spring of 2000, the Denison Bluegrass Ensemble brings together students interested in the performance of traditional Appalachian, country, bluegrass and progressive acoustic music. Cook got involved in bluegrass as a child in his family’s band, Special Cookin’. Cook and his brother were inducted into the North Florida Bluegrass Association Hall of Fame as the youngest professionally performing duo in bluegrass. He went on to co-found an Atlanta-based bluegrass band, the Dappled Grays, with which he still plays and sings.

A newcomer to the ensemble, Wade has appeared in a number of local orchestras, including the Central Ohio Symphony Orchestra, the Newark-Granville Symphony Orchestra and the Springfield Symphony Orchestra in Ohio. Wade’s trumpet playing has earned him the audience of notables such as presidents George H.W. Bush and William Clinton.

Denison University, founded in 1831, is an independent, residential liberal arts institution located in Granville, Ohio. A highly selective college enrolling 2,050 full-time undergraduate students from all 50 states and dozens of foreign countries, Denison is a place where innovative faculty and motivated students collaborate in research, civic engagement and the cultivation of independent thinking.

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CALENDAR LISTING: Denison University, Granville — Bluegrass Ensemble performance on Friday, May 1, at 8 p.m. in Swasey Chapel (200 Chapel Drive). The concert is free and open to the public. For information, contact 740-587-6220.