October 20, 2015

The power of music discussed in upcoming SVSU lecture

Renowned musician Vijay (Robert) Gupta will deliver a lecture titled “Music and the Mind” at Saginaw Valley State University Monday, Oct. 26 at 4 p.m. in SVSU’s Malcolm Field Theatre for Performing Arts. His talk is part of SVSU’s Fall Focus Lecture Series.‌

A soloist and chamber musician, Gupta has performed internationally since the age of eight. Not long after joining the Los Angeles Philharmonic, he became a friend and violin instructor of Nathaniel Anthony Ayers, who was the homeless and mentally ill musician who became the subject of Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez's book “The Soloist.” The text was the basis of the 2009 movie starring Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr.

In his Fall Focus appearance, Gupta will discuss the ability of music to change an individual's brain, heal ailments and transform lives. He believes music should be a fundamental element in any educational curriculum, beyond an extracurricular hobby or even a medium to facilitate instruction in other fields, such as math or science. Erudite, eloquent, and passionate, Gupta shows audiences that music isn't just something to be enjoyed - it's something that can change lives.

Gupta received a master's degree in music from Yale University and made his solo debut at age 11 with the Israel Philharmonic. His interests extend beyond music. He studied pre-medicine as an undergraduate student and was part of several research projects in neurodegenerative biology.

All lectures in the Fall Focus series are open to the public; admission is free of charge. For more information on the series, visit svsu.edu/fallfocus.

##SVSU##

Editor’s note: Early publicity materials indicated a different time for the lecture. The 4 p.m. time in the release is correct. A photo of Gupta is attached.