Studio 804 is a design/build program at the University of Kansas School of Architecture and Urban Planning. It provides hands-on designing and building opportunities for KU architecture students in their final semester of their degree. Focused on service leaning projects, Studio 804 has built a number of low-income housing in the blighted neighborhoods of Lawrence and Kansas City. Their efforts not only provide a service, but also help to elevate the awareness of architecture and urban planning in those communities.

Photo courtesy of Studio 804

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For the chamber music fans out there, at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 11, 2008, saxophonist Vince Gnojek will give a recital at the University of Kansas. Mr. Gnojek is the professor of saxophone at KU and will be accompanied by Holly Beneventi Page, piano and Brian Gnojek, clarinet. The program will feature works by all modern composers with the exception of Jules Demersseman who was one of the very first composers for the saxophone. This recital marks Gnojek’s 20th year at KU and coincides with the 50th Anniversary of Murphy Hall.

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In 2005, my wife and I did a recital together where we each played a half-concert worth of music. In addition to some unaccompanied Piazzolla études, the big piece that I performed was a jazz improvisation with my father Vince Gnojek. I gathered together a series of 10 photographs which were a combination of my own photographs and some found images. All of them were abstract and had strong elements of texture and color. I projected them onto a large screen and we each stood on either side of it and, with the lights turned out, we performed an improvised piece of music that responded to the photography that we were looking at.
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