Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (March 7, 2001)
Arts Page 8 Daily Nebraskan Wednesday. March 7,2001 Clarinetist speaks with music BY BILLY SMUCK Acclaimed clarinetist Richard Stoltzman brings his versatile talents to Lincoln for a two-night concert tonight and Thursday. Stoltzman teams up with the Nebraska Jazz Ensemble Wednesday on the Lied Center main stage. On Thursday, he will be playing with the UNLWind Ensemble. Tonight’s performance will be a big-band tribute to Benny Goodman, while Thursday’s per formance will be a combination of light and heavy music. Stoltzman said Thursday's show begins “very together and honest,” and later becomes more of a rhap sody. "It starts out simple,” Stoltzman said, “then it develops into some thing bold and exciting.” Stoltzman’s expansive abilities and innovation have made him one of today’s most sought-after concert artists. He has been a soloist with more than 100 orchestras, a recital per 7 use the instrument to communicate different levels of emotion. It’s about playing the instrument like a voice." Richard Stoltzman clarinetist former, a chamber music performer, a jazz artist and a recording artist. Born in Omaha, Stoltzman first took an interest in the clarinet when he was seven, tagging along to his father’s saxophone sessions and informal church concerts. Eventually, Stoltzman went on to receive degrees in music and mathe matics at Ohio State University. Stoltzman said the double major wasn’t indecisiveness about his intentions of becoming a musician. Instead, he said, it just kind of hap pened that way and later worked out to his advantage as a musician. Having tested out of calculus, Stoltzman decided to choose the major because it would supplement his musical aspirations. Stoltzman said both are abstract languages in a way. “They're sort of trying to achieve perfection through abstraction," he said. From there, Stoltzman got his Master of Music degree at Yale in New Haven, Conn., and his doctor ate from Columbia University- in New York. Throughout his career, Stoltzman has defied categorization by playing throughout many musical genres and making it hard to label his primary' area of concentration. Having established himself as a crossover artist, Stoltzman has been honored with two Grammy awards as well as five nominations in various musical categories. He said he’s enjoyed playing with different kinds of groups because the variety is good for his grownh as a musician. “I basically look for other musi cians that bounce ideas off each other.” Stoltzman said. “I don’t want to limit myself." Stretching his comfort zone and breaking new ground. Stoltzman has laid claim to a number of firsts. As the first clarinetist to perform concert recitals in both Carnegie Hall and the Hollywood Bowl, Stoltzman was also the first wind player to receive the Avery Fisher Prize in 1986. Despite his achieve ments, Stoltzman said he receives the most satisfac tion reinforcing his inner voice through his music and relaying it to other peo ple. c “I use the instrument to communicate different levels of emotion.” Stoltzman said. “It’s about playing the instru ment like a voice.” Richard Stoltzman takes hisGrammy winning music to the Lied Center. \ luriui ncusiey, right, takes an order from KarrieStenger, middle, and John Griffith on Tuesday night. The two came to eat after work ing late. David Clasen/DN Hi-Way Diner full of character, college students BY CASEY JOHNSON As the smell wafts through the yellow light, a yellow light that is a bit too yellow, one can see the charm that lies within the Hi-Way Diner. Hanging from the well-used walls of this hallowed eat shop is memorabilia akin to a Happy Days garage sale gone wrong. The only thing missing is Potsy. Camel signs and old clocks stare while neon cuts through the light smoke haze. As one steps to the counter, old candy machines, tricycles and pedal cars line the way. Place an order and find your way across the carpet that was surely torn out of a 1960s Vegas Casino before it was imploded. Go past the dining tops with grandma’s table cloths on them, past the wood-burning stove where the syrup is and take a load off in a booth that is ancient yet comfortable. The used-appliance section used to be in the far corner with the giant hanging swordfish. Nowadays, it lies dormant; it has seen its last washer/dryer combo. People giggle, study, play cards and shovel eggs or hot beef sand wiches down at tables and booths nearby. They are a testament to years of similar behavior. Maybe they came for a Hot Stripper, or a potato and ranch omelet. Perhaps they came to see friends, to study or to pick a fight. For whatever reason they came, they are here, 36 of them at 1:30 a.m. on a Tuesday. Michelle Christensen, a fresh man academic transfer student at Southeast Community College and Daniel Zemunski, a freshman pre-radiology major at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln both agreed the diner was a good place to study because it's less hec tic than at home. “It’s somewhat quiet here, and you can just get a drink, and they will let you stay as long as you want,” Zemunski said. Added Christensen: “And you can smoke while you study.” Studying seems to be a theme at the Hi-Way Diner on week nights. Almost every college in Lincoln is represented. Tom Augustine, a junior busi ness major at Nebraska Wesleyan, said he and his friends have been coming here since they started going to college. Dave Joekle, a junior commu nications major at Wesleyan, said that it is more laid back at the diner, located at 2105 Highway 2. “It’s one of the only places that you can come this late,” Joekle said. “You can’t go to Perkins because you can’t be loud there, and there is just something about the greasy spoon that gets me going." Joekle said he doesn’t think that he has ever been in the diner before 11:30 p.m., and although he and his friends can sometimes be loud, he has never gotten in any fights there. “If someone comes over here and says to keep it down, I do,” The Hi-Way Diner, 2105 Highway 2, serves food 24 hours a day.The diner provides a unique atmosphere and allows people to study into the wee hours of the morning. 3<iiu. l iiicciii, i dill iiUl licit to make beef with people.” The supervision issue is some thing that owner Scott Walker said he has made a conscious effort to improve upon in order to make the diner a place “everyone can feel comfortable coming 10.' Walker, who has had control of the establishment for about eight years, said he doesn’t mind stu dents coming there to study as long as they buy something and don’t cause too much trouble. Part of the reason for the peace and tranquillity among the many mixes of people is that they seem to come in cycles. Christensen, who ress at the diner for two years, said that during the week, the after-bar crowd was not that bad. She said the cycle begins with high-school students who stay until about 10 p.m. iiicii me tuuc^c iviua aiaii rolling in and stay until they are done or get frustrated.” she said. “And then the drunks come.” First-time diners Myndi Timothy, a sophomore fishery, wildlife and forestry major who attends both UNL and Union College, and Susie Reis, a physi cian’s assistant major at Union College, said they heard about the place before and liked the casual atmosphere of the diner. “You don’t have to respond to waiters every Five minutes, and the music is a lot softer here than at other places," Timothy said. Soft is not how Joekle would etxribe die seats in die diner, but he said he liked the character of the restaurant and only had one complaint. “I don’t know why they got rid of the used appliance center,” he said. “That was a fan favorite.” ! > David Qasen/DN Jan Fircke, a freshman in engineering at UNL, studies physics at the Hi-Way Diner on fuesday night. He said he likes to study at the diner because it is open all night