Oklahoma City Community College’s (OCCC) Cultural Programs Office introduces the next installment of its new series “Close Encounters of the Cultural Kind,†a cultural experience in the intimate setting of the college’s Bruce Owen Theater. The second performance is the Richter Uzur Duo Thursday, Feb. 8, 2018 at 7:30 p.m.

The Richter Uzur Duo plays a whimsical mashed-up blend of classical, world, and rock music. Viktor Uzur and Brad Richter are each master musicians of the highest caliber with global solo careers, major international awards and intensive training from two of the world’s most lauded musical institutions, The Moscow Conservatory and The Royal College of Music, respectively.

While developing into classical musicians as students, Brad and Viktor cut their teeth in rock bands – Viktor as an electric guitarist and Brad as a guitarist and singer. They also delved into folk and world music, eventually setting those interests aside to pursue their classical concert careers. Since the “RUDuo†was founded in 2005 they have discovered a way to blend all of the musical styles they love, and audiences have as much fun listening to the results as Brad and Viktor have playing.

The Richter Uzur Duo has played hundreds of concerts in North America, South America, Europe and Asia and has a rapidly widening circle of communities around the globe that invite them back again and again. In the US, the RUDuo is perhaps best known through its regular appearances on NPR’s “Performance Today,†North America’s most listened to classical music program, as well as frequent national and international broadcasts on the Armed Forces Radio Network and programs such as PBS’s “Wood Songs†and NPR’s “Classical Guitar Alive,†which named their debut CD Best New Release in 2010.

Together Viktor and Brad have composed and arranged the most expansive collection of music for a cello and guitar duo in existence, but in particular their “Duo Concerto for Cello and Guitar,†commissioned by the Jackson Symphony in Michigan and premiered in May 2012. Like all of the Duo’s music, the Duo Concerto is a seamless blend of musical cultures brimming with flash and drama.

The Richter Uzur Duo are outspoken advocates for the arts and arts education. Brad as the executive director of Lead Guitar, a not-for-profit that establishes guitar programs in public schools nation-wide, and Viktor as professor at Weber State University and director of the Bonneville Chamber Music Festival. Whenever possible, the Duo includes school or community outreach events with their performances.

Tickets are $15 each and available at tickets.occc.edu and the OCCC Cultural Programs box office at 405-682-7579. For more information for this performance and others, visit www.occc.edu/pas.

OCCC enrolls more than 20,000 students annually. The college is currently the largest adult basic education provider in the state. OCCC offers a full range of associate degree programs that prepare students to transfer to baccalaureate institutions while other degree and certificate programs prepare students for immediate employment. At OCCC, students receive a quality education with small class sizes, dedicated professors and leadership opportunities. Students can choose from more than 60 major fields of study and participate in any of the 40+ clubs and organizations. For more information about OCCC, visit www.occc.edu.