It seems that at every corner you turn on the University of Missouri campus, another artistic vision comes to fruition. Whether students came to Mizzou with artistic passion or were inspired by the campus, the resources available are just the surface of what the university has to offer.
In their free time, first-year students Owen Pirch and Jacob Asmelash enjoy playing their saxophones outside Gillett Hall. As others pass by, Pirch and Asmelash fill the air with jazz-laced tunes, putting smiles on the faces of many.
“I don’t think I’ve ever met someone who really doesn’t enjoy hearing people playing on the streets,” Pirch said.
The start of their jam sessions began simply with a desire to make music.
“I want to play my music, but [the Gillett practice room is] always full,” Asmelash said.
“So one day I decided, ‘I’m sick of this, I’m just gonna go outside and play.’ I started playing, and people just started gathering around, then it turned into a Gillett jam session.”
Traveling from Blue Springs, Missouri, Pirch and Asmelash knew coming to Columbia would allow them the artistic liberty they craved. The duo was eager to share their roots on the unfamiliar streets of Columbia.
“In Kansas City, there’s jam sessions every single night of the week, and that’s very different than it is here in CoMo, where there’s one every three weeks,” Asmelash said.
Pirch and Asmelash would like to expand these jam sessions for others to join in and play along.
“If they’re a musician, in general, they should be interested in playing with us,” Pirch said. ”We just need a couple willing and able people to keep the ball rolling.”
Through their music and the social community nurtured on campus, Pirch and Asmelash find themselves talking to just about anyone.
“Being in this town and being near so many diverse groups of people, no one is really confined to what’s expected of them,” Pirch said. “Everyone is able to have their own interests here, and that’s a beautiful thing.”
Edited by Mikalah Owens | [email protected]
Copy edited by Danielle McCorison and Emma Harper | [email protected]
Edited by Chase Pray | [email protected]
