The Kansas City Public Library welcomes music historian Karl Hinterbichler for a presentation tracing a musical tradition that connects medieval clergymen to the Beastie Boys and beyond with From Monks to Punks: Chant from the Middle Ages to the Present on Thursday, March 5, at 6:30 p.m. at the Central Library, 14 W. 10th St.

Erudite and engaging, Hinterbichler traces a simple  musical phrase from its roots in ancient liturgical chant into the modern age, thereby linking the musical aesthetic of monks from the Middle Ages to their punk rock descendents. Along the way, he details the origin of sacred chants and explains their reinterpretation by classical and modern composers, leading to their incorporation in modern film and advertising as well as video games.

Hinterbichler is a music professor at the University of New Mexico, where he teaches music history, applied music, and chamber music. He is a widely published scholar and performs as the principal trombone with Opera Southwest.