LSU Vet Med announces its second artist-in-residence, musical artist Charlie Rauh

Written by Sandra Sarr, MFA

The LSU School of Veterinary Medicine has named its second artist-in-residence, Charlie Rauh, an acclaimed musician, composer, and recording artist.

Rauh’s soothing music will enhance LSU Vet Med’s Wellbeing efforts for students, faculty, staff, and animals through his compositions and performances during his four-week residency during summer 2023. He will compose six original songs inspired by his experiences at LSU Vet Med. The music composed and recorded at LSU Vet Med will be performed and made available free of charge to members of the school community and beyond. His residency will culminate in a free, public performance in which members of the LSU A Cappella Choir, Alissa Rowe, choral conductor, will collaborate with Rauh.

The first of its kind in the U.S., the artist-in-residence program housed at a veterinary school began at LSU School of Veterinary Medicine in 2022. Artists-in-residence will generate multiple pieces of art, and each artist will leave one work of art to remain in LSU Vet Med’s permanent collection.

“Art in its varied forms is an avenue for teaching, discovering, healing, and protecting. Our residency enriches our community and offers an innovative and lasting way to express various aspects of what we do. We are very fortunate to welcome Charlie as our first musical artist,” said Oliver Garden, BVetMed, PhD, LSU Vet Med dean.

Rauh, who grew up in Huntsville, Alabama, is based in New York City. Rauh is currently signed to the Austin-based label, Destiny Records. His work as a soloist has been supported by grants from Meet the Composer, the Untitled Artist Group, the Fractured Atlas Group, and New York Foundation For The Arts. In addition to his sonic inspirations, he welcomes the imagery of various poets, ranging from Anna Akhmatova to the Brontës. The latter were the theme of his 2020 album, The Bluebell, which brought about a new chapter of his introspective approach. As a supporting artist, Rauh works with a variety of colleagues across several genres, both as a touring sideman and a studio musician and arranger, including work with Wilco drummer Ken Coomer, Magnetic Fields producer Charles Newman, Tom Waits producer Oz Fritz, Sparklehorse contributor Alan Weatherhead, and Pulitzer nominee Cornelius Eady.

“The invitation to spend time as composer in residence at LSU's School of Veterinary Medicine is a singular opportunity to use my creative process in a new way. I believe that spending time with Vet Med clinicians, as well as their patients, will inspire a new sound and intention in my music—a sound that will exist to magnify the often-overlooked qualities of wonder, strength, purity, and empathy intrinsic to all living things at their core," Rauh said.

Of his debut solo album, Viriditas, All About Jazz wrote, “These quiet tunes dust off a few neglected shelves of the human soul, and from them pull down vials filled with brightness.”

“Charlie Rauh plays guitar with a quiet intensity, each note and chord ringing with purpose,” wrote Acoustic Guitar Magazine. “Rauh gives a gentle reminder that playing soft and slow can be more impactful than loud and fast.” 

Over time, various artists’ compositions will represent multiple facets of LSU Vet Med’s missions and portray what’s at the heart and soul of what happens at the school.

While other veterinary schools have commissioned art or invited musicians and filmmakers to campus for events and one-time projects, this trailblazing residency program hosts a different artist-in-residence at the veterinary school each year. Artists will represent multiple genres, for example, watercolor, photography, sculpture, filmmaking, poetry, and more.

The inaugural artist was Shelby Prindaville of Sioux City, Iowa. Prindaville’s residency culminated with a joyous and well-attended public art exhibition at the vet school.

To experience Charlie Rauh’s music, go to charlierauh.com.

For more information about LSU Vet Med’s Artist-in-Residence program, contact Sandra Sarr at sarr1@lsu.edu.