By Jocelyn Visnov, Senior Writer
Lawrence Udeigwe, Ph.D., is an associate professor combining two of his passions, math and music, which has recently earned him a feature in the upcoming issue of Diversity in Action magazine.
An accomplished member of the MC community since 2014, Udeigwe indulges in musical endeavors after class and on the weekends.
Udeigwe is a trained vocalist and jazz musician, with the piano being his primary instrument. Throughout his career, he’s learned to balance being both a professor and a musician.
“My training in music is in jazz, so I learned jazz piano and jazz theory and jazz composition,” Udeigwe said. “Most of my songs have that underlying jazz element in it. But it also has some other influences, a little bit of soul influence and a lot of afrobeats influence, because I’m from Nigeria.”
Udeigwe noted that sometimes he would wake up early to practice music before coming to the college to teach each day, then later leave only to play again at night.
“It used to be very difficult for me, but it’s become a system I’m familiar with,” he said. “It’s difficult because being a professor is very, very time consuming, especially if you’re teaching and doing research.”
According to manhattan.edu, Udeigwe has also previously served as an Affiliate Research Faculty for brain and cognitive sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and has received a number of grants for his research. He has also explored areas where math and music theory intersect.
He was first approached about being interviewed for Diversity In Action over the summer and completed a phone interview with the magazine in the months to follow. Being highlighted in the Jan/Feb 2024 issue of the magazine not only expands opportunities but also diversifies these respective fields.
According to their website, “Diversity in Action is a digital and print publication dedicated to supporting and promoting diversity in science, technology, engineering, the arts and math.”
Udiegwe has also gone on tour accompanied by a drummer and a bass player, performing throughout New York and surrounding states such as New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware.
Udiegwe hopes more students and members of the community will consider listening to his music and looks forward to recording more songs in the future. You can give his music a listen on Spotify or Apple Music.
“I would like more people to listen to my music, to play live music and to support live music,” he said. “It’s very important. I do recorded music and I don’t play out that much anymore, but I would encourage students to go to listen to jazz. It’s a collective culture that we need to preserve together.”
Muhammad Ghaffar, an electrical engineering major, noted his excitement for his professor. “He’s always excited about what he teaches and I’ve noticed the more students are involved the more excited he becomes,” Ghaffar wrote in an email to The Quadrangle. “He’s one of the first math professors I’ve seen that genuinely cares a lot about the implications of math in real life. I’m glad he is getting this part in the magazine, the man deserves it!”