For those looking for a change of pace in their study habits or a fresh new sound from a local band, the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art is hosting a weekly daytime series called "A Little Lunch Music."
The free concert series is every Thursday from noon until 1 p.m. in the area just beyond the lobby of the museum.
"Visiting the museum should be a part of the students' education, and we hope it will be just as important as studying at the library or going to football games," said Charlotte Hendrix, director of communications for the museum.
Programs are printed to encourage students in music appreciation classes to choose "A Little Lunch Music" for their required viewing of performances outside of the classroom.
Hendrix said she hopes the local music, free student membership and Wi-Fi and fair prices on soups, salads and sandwiches will encourage students to study at the museum.
"We're thinking it will be Auburn's newest tradition," Hendrix said.
The venue has highlighted musicians from the University's music students and faculty. Faculty members and students from Columbus State University, members of the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra and students from Carver Elementary School in Montgomery have also been highlighted.
Upcoming performances include Joseph Ikner on Sept. 20 and the Auburn Indian Music Ensemble on Oct. 4.
Series coordinator Patrick McCurry said the series began in 2007 by cellist, pianist and electric keyboardist Charles Wright.
Wright was a high school friend of McCurry and once led the Auburn Quartet.
McCurry said Wright began the series because he was simply looking for a place to play and share his music.
McCurry said he began playing the saxophone, flute and cello with Wright in the series in 2008.
After a Steinway grand piano was donated to the museum in 2009, he and Wright asked pianist Barbara Acker-Mills to join them.
The Woodfield Trio was then born.
In 2009, Acker-Mills left to teach psychology at Salem College in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Wright moved to Sarasota, Fla., and McCurry took over Wright's position as series coordinator.
McCurry said he is excited to see the audience and interested performers growing in number as the series progresses.
The series now attracts crowds of approximately 30 to 50 people and performers of all genres.
The series mostly displays classical music with some jazz, but it is open to all music performers and has no bar on talent, he said.
"Wright occasionally brought in new people, but not like this," McCurry said.
McCurry is now looking for sponsors on a student recital level for $150, a local color sponsorship level for $250, the Woodfield Trio level for $500, a chamber group level for $750 and a key performance level for $1,000 to cover time and travel costs for performers.
For performances without sponsorship, the museum holds a small honorarium.
"As a musician, it's important to me that the musicians get paid," McCurry said.
McCurry said his favorite performances in the series are those by artists who are not usually able to perform at recitals.
He said he is happy to make that setting more accessible to them.
"There's something conducive about Auburn for music," McCurry said. "It is my desire to make its art and music scene grow."
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