In his blending of math, technology and music, James Perconti ’10 personifies the liberal arts ideal.  James, a math and computer science major, has been in both the Laurentian Singers and Early Music Singers since his first year; both were groups he knew he wanted to be a part of the minute he visited the St. Lawrence campus.  He has traveled with the Laurentian Singers to San Diego, Los Angeles and Puerto Rico, and will be going to New Orleans in Spring 2009, where the Singers will tour, meeting up with other college choirs to raise morale in the ongoing aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. He also enjoys singing sacred music in church settings.

In addition, James is the treasurer of the St. Lawrence Fencers, an employee at the Quantitative Resource Center, and secretary of the Hub, a theme house whose dwellers devote their time to teaching technical skills, exploring information technology and hosting gaming events.

James, seemingly left-brained and a gifted mathematician, sees no contradiction in being involved in music. “Music theory is quantitative, engaging the same left part of the brain as understanding numbers,” he says. “Sounds, pitches, duration – it’s physics.”

Not only does James see the correlation between the two fields he loves; he is also very appreciative of the fact that he has been able to fully investigate both. “I wanted to go to a liberal arts institution like St. Lawrence so I could do different kinds of things,” he says. “If a school isn’t liberal arts-based, you have to be totally immersed in a program to concentrate on something. Here I can be involved in music without having to major in it -- and that’s exactly what I want.”