Registration is open for a seminar that will be taught by UO English professor Paul Peppis on 20th-century literature, providing the public with an experience in intellectual engagement that is the hallmark of a university education. UO Insight Seminars, a program offered by the UO Libraries, were established in 2003 to provide an opportunity for the general public to reengage with the liberal arts.

Vox Resonat – an ensemble of vocal soloists specializing in music of the Baroque, Renaissance and Middle Ages – will perform in Eugene at 8 p.m. on Friday, March 22 at Central Lutheran Church and in Silverton at 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 23, at Mt. Angel Abbey. Vox Resonat’s newest program, “Penitentia,” features Renaissance masterpieces written for Lent and Passiontide, including penitential psalms, motets and lamentations, composed by Tallis, Lassus, Josquin, Gombert, Mouton and Rebelo.

The UO Libraries will host a Discover Music Sale and a Music Services Intro on Wednesday, April 3, and Thursday, April 4, offering a variety of vintage records and other forms of music. The combined events will be from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., each day in the Knight Library’s Browsing Room, 1501 Kincaid Street, on the UO campus.

Bach’s St. Matthew Passion takes concert listeners through a story of betrayal, cruelty, faith, hope and redemption – the last hours of Jesus’ life. In the Digital Bach Project’s new St. Matthew initiative, listeners can actively plumb the depths of the great musical drama in a nearly limitless multimedia experience.

With Oregon’s leading universities pulling together, there’s reason for optimism about the state economy in 2013.