Community members, students, and faculty and staff are invited to attend an exhibit showcasing Jewish songwriters who helped to shape American music and culture.

The nationally touring exhibit, entitled “A Fine Romance: Jewish Songwriters, American Songs, 1910-1965,” will be on display at the University of Central Florida Library, East Orlando Campus beginning Sept. 8 on the UCF Library’s main floor.

UCF Library is one of 55 sites in the country to host the exhibit.

“We thought this exhibit would embrace the idea that libraries are a place where people of all backgrounds gather for reflection, discovery, participation and growth,” said Carole Hinshaw, marketing and program officer at the library.

The exhibit will take observers on a visual and educational journey through images from Broadway musicals and classic films that feature timeless songs written by Jewish writers and composers.  Attendees can learn about the history and life of talented musical icons who wrote classic songs including, “Over the Rainbow,” “That Old Black Magic,” and “It Had to Be You.”

As part of the exhibit, there are two free public programs.

At 7 p.m. on Sept. 27, Michael Lasser, writer, broadcaster, and critic, will give a presentation entitled “They Happened To be Jewish: Creating American Popular Music” on how Jewish musical icons created distinctly American popular music while growing up in the cultural melting pot of New York’s Lower East Side.

At 7 p.m. on Oct. 20, Cantor Jacqueline Rawiszer will perform a concert of songs written by many of the composers featured in the exhibition.

Free parking for these events is available in Lot B3 next to the Progress Energy University Welcome Center.

The exhibit was developed by Nextbook Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting Jewish literature, culture, and ideas, and the American Library Association Public Programs Office. The national tour has been made possible by grants from the Charles H. Revson Foundation, the Righteous Persons Foundation, the David Berg Foundation, and an anonymous donor, with additional support from Tablet Magazine: A New Read on Jewish Life.

The exhibit is free and open to the public through Oct. 20 during the library’s regular hours from 7:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. Monday through Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, and 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday.

For more information about the UCF Library, visit http://library.ucf.edu/.