Monday, October 20th, 2008

Former Drexel University student, Jocelyn Kirsch, 23, was sentenced yesterday to five years in federal prison after stealing the identities of 16 victims to obtain $119,000 between November 2006 and November 2007, according to the Daily News.

Kirsch told U.S. District Judge Eduardo C. Robreno that she was “sorry” for what she had done and hoped that a letter she sent the judge had expressed her remorse, according to the article.

Kirsch has been in federal custody since June. She pleaded guilty July 14 to conspiracy, aggravated identity theft, fraud and money-laundering charges in a scheme that paid for trips to the Caribbean, Hawaii and Paris, as well as other luxuries.

Defense attorney Ronald Greenblatt said that Kirsch also suffered from a painful bladder ailment and that meds prescribed by doctors to treat the condition led to “disinhibition” on the part of Kirsch, according to the article.

However, the judge said the federal crimes charged here were serious.

“The defendant was living a life of crime and enjoying the fruits of that crime,” Robreno told the Daily News. “This is not a case of somebody who is so mentally ill that we should mitigate the conduct because of it.”

**Media Credit: Philadelphia Daily News

After releasing a duo CD in September, Grammy Award winners Chris Thile and Edgar Meyer reunite on a tour scheduled to set up camp for one night in Philadelphia on Oct. 22. Thile, a former mandolinist of Nickel Creek, invites all music lovers regardless of musical preference—in other words, it is perfectly fine if bluegrass is mixed in with rap and hip hop in your CD collection—to join him and Meyer at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts on Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. The event will take place in the Perelman Theatre of the Kimmel Center.

“My goal is to attract a music audience,” Thile said, “people where music is as vital a component as air. Having a variety of people in my audience means not being a demographic, but appealing to everyone.”

When speaking of his music as a demographic, or lack thereof, the 27-year-old mandolinist heightened his tone a notch or two. “Music making [today] revolves around music as a lifestyle accessory just as a certain person wears Louis Vuitton handbags, with such a clear cut musical agenda as opposed to making music that’s fun to write and fun to play. I have a much commoner agenda,” Thile explained.

Thile’s intense passion for music parallels that of his partner’s. It is no coincidence that these two musicians have come together.

“I look for musicians to collaborate with on what music really is and what it means to make it,” Thile said.

This is not the first time the duo have joined forces.

“I met Edgar when I was 16 at a Bluegrass Festival in Colorado. He was my hero since I was 12. I made a solo record called ‘Not All Who Wander are Lost’ and we played on that together and had a duo concert three years after that.”

Meyer, 48, a double bassist and composer, is predominately known for his album “Appalachia Waltz,” in which his talent on the bass earned him recognition throughout the music industry.

The duo’s concert at the Kimmel Center will feature styles of country/bluegrass along with jazz and classical influences from their self-titled CD. Tickets for the event are $30 and $42. Students with ID on the day of the performance may be able to take advantage of Student Rush, depending on the availability of tickets.

***Media credit: Michael Wilson