Rock band dedicates show to Study Abroad

Friday, September 12, 2008

By Wes Burt 

(September 5, 2008  Stillwater, OK) - One Stillwater rock band has a personal reason for its plans to promote the Oklahoma State University Study Abroad program at an upcoming show at Eskimo Joes.

It was the Study Abroad program that brought two of the band’s founding members together to form the group Colourmusic.

In 1998, Ryan Hendrix, an Oklahoma native, met Nick Turner, an exchange student from England, at an international party at OSU. The first conversation they ever had was about music.

It wasn’t long before Hendrix took a study abroad trip to England, and they used the opportunity to make a little music together.

After Hendrix returned to the states in 2002, he invited Turner to come back to do a music project together. It was during this music project that Hendrix and Turner and band-mates Nicholas Ley, Colin Fleishacker and Cry Suter would become Colourmusic.

Because of the band’s study abroad beginnings, they have partnered with the program to promote it during their next Stillwater show.

“We just want to create an environment where international kids could actually meet some Americans in an informal way,” Hendrix said.

 Colourmusic will play, but they also plan to celebrate some of the international students on campus by showcasing clubs like the Malaysian Drum Choir during
the show.

“This is how passionate we are about it,” Hendrix said. “If we are ever successful I would love to start a charity to help support people to study abroad.”

Colourmusic’s study abroad benefit concert at Eskimo Joes September 20 begins at 8 p.m. and is for all ages.  The band recently released an album, for details visit their Web site at www.colourmusic.net .