Bryan Wright’s tastes ran pretty highbrow as a child.
An avid record collector, he got his first turntable before he’d turned 2.
“It was my favorite toy as a kid,” says Wright, now a professional musician who will be performing at the Jefferson Choral Society’s 20th Anniversary Birthday Party, set for 7 p.m. Friday at the Academy of Fine Arts.
The 2001 E.C. Glass graduate began playing the piano before he started kindergarten, the violin in first grade and the viola in middle school.
Now living in Pennsylvania, he is working toward a Ph.D. in historical musicology at the University of Pittsburgh and runs his own record company, Rivermont Records, which specializes in reissuing early 20th century popular music.
“When I was looking at starting this, my neighbor advised me to pick a name that was unique and would stand out, something that had some local significance (and) would mean something to me,” says Wright, 27. “I have such fond memories of driving up and down Rivermont Avenue, with all the Victorian homes, listening to these (old) records on my radio.”
Wright is particularly fond of ragtime music, which he’s been playing on the piano for years.
Ragtime combines elements of classical music with more African-derived rhythms and blues forms, he says. Popular in the late 1890s and early 1900s, it began as dance music in the red-light districts of American cities before it became popular sheet music for piano players.
“I was drawn to ragtime because of the tuneful melodies, and it’s got a beat to it as well,” he says. “You can tap your foot to it.”
Wright will play some ragtime tunes during the Jefferson Choral Society’s (JCS) party; his wife, Yuko Eguchi, will also be featured playing Kouta songs on the shamisen, a traditional Japanese stringed instrument.
“It’s a much more ancient tradition,” Wright says of the Kouta songs. “They’re short song forms that geishas would play to entertain guests.”
Other entertainment includes Glenn Buck’s James River Swing and Sway Band and the Smith Mountain Harmoneers.
JCS member Faye Hesson says they brought in Wright because other members had raved about past performances.
“He’s just loved here by everyone who has seen him.”
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