Chris Grabau, Busch Student Center building manager, is a man of note-musical notes.? He is the lead guitarist, vocalist and writer for the St. Louis band Magnolia Summer. Throughout his 17 years with SLU, Grabau has been quietly gaining fame for his broad range of musical talents-though he might humbly protest.
“I feel very lucky to be doing any of this, to be honest,” he said.? “I’m proud that I have an ability to do this, that I can express myself and be creative musically.”?
The Joplin, Mo., native started the band Magnolia Summer in 2001.? He has played in several bands since his days as an undergraduate, but he considers Magnolia Summer to be his biggest undertaking.? All the other members are in other bands now, and Grabau calls the members a “revolving cast of friends.”? And they have met with substantial success.
This quasi-informal band has played at South by Southwest and other prestigious venues across the nation.
However, Grabau said, as the band tries to play mostly originals, it plays live shows infrequently.? “We would rather make it worth someone’s time to hear it,” he said.
Amidst the release of its two records and sporadic touring, Grabau has found time to contribute tracks to more than a dozen compilation CDs.?He has met and played with a number of prominent names and is a member of Undertow, a management record label design company that helps up-and-coming bands put out records.?
Despite his rising success, Grabau doesn’t reserve his talent exclusively for the stage.
He uses his musical talents and skills to help improve student groups and student life.
“It’s important to live a well-rounded life,” he said. And he seems to do just that every day at SLU.
He is heavily involved in student groups; he even started the first version of SLU TV.? Most recently, Grabau has loaned his talents to improving the Billiken Club.?
His efforts have clearly paid off, too:? the Billiken Club was the Riverfront Times’ best rock club of 2007.? This success is yet another in the long list of contributions Grabau has made to the university.
“He’s a very talented human being,” said Cindy Bush, BSC building coordinator.? “He contributes to the programmatic environment more than students and staff realize, especially when it comes to the talent that’s brought on campus, his involvement with the Billiken Club and his supervision of KSLU and SLU TV.”? ?
However, Grabau remains grounded.???????
“I think music has been confused with pop culture too much,” he said.?”Music is universal; pop culture is about celebrity.?I identify myself more with being a musician.”?
He said that “music is all about being a part of the community you live in.”?It is in this spirit of community that he so fully dedicates himself to improving SLU.?
Throughout his long affiliation with the University, he has consistently worked to enhance and enrich the community.?After earning his B.S. from SLU in psychology and fine and performing arts in 1995, he went on to earn a master’s degree in counseling and education, and he hopes to complete his doctorate soon.?
He was the program coordinator for Parks College on its campus in Cahokia, Ill.?And through it all, he has seen and taken part in tremendous changes.
Grabau was a member of the first resident adviser staff and helped create the first golfcart parade.?He lived inside the Cupples House as on site security,
He watched the building of the clock tower, a now-essential landmark of the University.?
And he continues to watch and help with excitement as the University grows and develops.?
Listen to Grabau and his band, Magnolia Summer, on their MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/magnoliasummer or check out the video of them performing below.
Video courtesy of YouTube
