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thursday, february 23, 1978
Jazz festival kicks off Black History celebration
0J
By Casey McCabe
Ragtime influenced popular swing, blues
gave birth to rock 'n' roll and jazz always
has been an American staple.
The fact is that American music owes a
great deal to the influence of the black
musician. -
But often the black music community
receives only sparse public attention. The
past weekend's Jazz Festival, as part of
UNL's Black History celebration, helped
showcase some of the area's fine talent
which doesn't always have an outlet in the
Lincoln area.
Featured were acts from the big band
sound of the United Afro Arkestra, to the
more traditional jazz of Omaha's Ice Quar
tet and the heavier soul of Betty Burrell.
Interspersed through the music during
the four-hour show were performances
by the Afro Academy Drama Ensemble,
Fabian Hayden and Age Unlimited Dance
Ensemble and comic Rig Brown.
Rich McCain, a senior at UNL, was re
sponsible for much of the unity and di
versity that surfaced in the program. The
festival's coordinator, he also played organ
for his group, 5th World Trip Ensemble,
and backed up the powerful voice of soul
gospel singer Betty Burrell, a discovery of
his that he said he is especially enthusiastic
about.
Variety
Approached by the Afro-American Col
legiate Society because of his knowledge of
the local music community, McCain went
about developing a variety that would best
exhibit the black experience in jazz music.
'There is a cultural awareness in a jazz
festival such as this," McCain said. "But it's
really more of a celebration, where people
come to enjoy. You don't have to be black
or white, it is entertainment in behalf of
blacks, for everybody."
According to McCain, there is no one
musical area that is the definitive black
sound, though he pointed that you'd
probably get a different answer on the
question from as many people asked.
'This is one of the problems," McCain
said. "People tend to categorize minorities
into one musical bag, such as jazz or blues.
There's Kiss, and then there's Buck Owens,
you don't ask which is more valid, they're
both part of the white experience. That's
the difference in categorizing."
No 'pure music'
McCain said his main interest is in jazz.
His personal favorites in the field are the
late John Coltrane, Eric Dolphey, Miles
Davis, and "or course" Herbie Hancock.
But he sees the different areas of music as
having a definite influence on each other.
"You can't hear pure music in America
anymore. A song may be in a European
key and yet have a strong African beat to
it," he said.
"When the music is free enough to give
each musician room for expression, that's
what jazz is all about," McCain said.
"I don't think you'll find a real defini
tion of jazz anywhere."
Jazz is experiencing it's highest popu
larity since the 50s, due at least in part to
the recent experimentation with jazz-rock
fusion. McCain says jazz has always been
"in ' to the jazz cult, but commercially it
goes through a series of ups and downs.
"Awareness of jazz often comes in the
crossing over of fields," notes McCain.
"Mick Jagger may choose to do a Miles
Davis tune, and suddenly everybody wants
to know where he got it."
A musician since three, McCain says he
has written around 350 songs that he
hopes to have a chance to use in the future.
One such song, "The Second Time
Around" was recorded by Betty Burrell on
McCain's own Highest Joy label, and re
ceived some national attention. But locally
he said he sees the jazz market to be a bit
bleak for the black artist.
"Job openings in jazz for blacks is hard
to get," he says. "I don't know if it's an
ego trip for white musicians to play black
music, but a local place that advertises the
best in jazz is - constantly hiring white
groups to play black jazz. An all-black
group has an especially tough time."
"Most groups in Lincoln are
integrated," says McCain. "There's a lot of
pride and satisfaction in the community.
My greatest satisfaction is simply being
able to play jazz. I can get off playing by
myself at home. I play for me as hard as
for a million, and I'm sure that the rest of
the group feels the same way. Jazz can vent
lot of frustrations. It's just beautiful."
' "we.:-- i iui-
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Photos by Lisa Paulson
THURS THRU WED
MORNING
(.00 OBOZO
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ffl ANSWER LOVE (WED )
69 CBS NEWS
tOS f FARM AND RANCH REPORT
no O NEWS
0:15 Q UNO SCENE (WED.)
0.30 O ROMPER ROOM
O LUCY SHOW
d O VARIOUS PROGRAMME
O BUNKY'S FUN CLUB
7:09 0 ARCHIES
f J O TODAY
O CBS NEWS
0 GOOD MORNING AMERICA
0 1 DREAM OF JEANNIE
0 MORNING SHOW
0 SESAME STREET
7:30 O FUNTSTONES
O MCH ALE'S NAVY
0:00 0POPEYE
O OCOD MORNING AMERICA
O 09 CAPTAIN KANGAROO
O FUNTSTONES
0 IN -SCHOOL PROGRAMMING
(UNT'L 3:30) Nova (FRI )
0:30 O LITTLE RASCALS
0 CARTOONS
0:00 0700 CLUB
O O SANFOfiO AND SON
O ALL MY CHILDREN
Q TATTLETALES
O PHIL DONAHUE SHOW
O NEW ZOO REVUE
0 ROMPER ROOM
0:30 O O HOLLYWOOD SOUARES
O 69 PRICE IS RIGHT
O BEWITCHED
10:00 Q O WHEEL OF FORTUNE
O HAPPY DAYS
O HAPPY DAYS (EXC.FRI.)
Martha- Kitchen (FRI )
O LOVE AMERICAN STYLE
0 M-SCHOOL PROGRAMMING
(UNTIL 3:30)
10:30 0 RELIGIOUS PROGRAMMING
0 KNOCKOUT
O O FAMILY FEUD
0Q LOVE OF LIFE
f NOT FOR WOMEN ONLY
11:00 O NOT FOR WOMEN ONLY
O 0 TO SAY THE LEAST
CI O KO.OOO PYRAMID
O O YOUNG AND THE
RESTLESS
O FATHER KNOWS BEST
11:30 0 O GONG SHOW
O CONVERSATIONS
O 0 RYAN'S HOPE
O 0 SEARCH FOR TOMORROW
O MAYBERRY R.F.D.
AFTERNOON
12:00 0 FOR RICHER, FOR POORER
flOOCD NEWS
O NOON SHOW
O ALL MY CHILDREN
0 JIM NABORSSHOW
8ESAME STREET
12:15 0 FARM ACTION
12:30 0 DICK VAN DYKE SHOW
0 O DAYS OF OUR UVES
O CROSS WITS
O 0 AS THE WORLD TURNS
1:00 O LUCY SHOW
OQONE LIFE TO LIVE
O MOVIE "Song Of The Thin
Man" (THUR I "A Yank At Eton"
(FRI ). "Son 0( Samson" MON ).
"Betrayed Women" (TUE ). "The
World Of Abbott And Costello'
(WED
0 IN-SCHOOL PROGRAMMING
(UNTIL 3 30)
1:30 0 BEVERLY HILLBILLIES
O O DOCTORS
0 GUIDING LIGHT
2:00 0 PLEASE DON'T EAT
DAISIES
0 O ANOTHER WORLD
O O GENERAL HOSPITAL
2:30 0 GOMER PYLE
0 0 ALL IN THE FAMILY
0 DENVER NOW
3:00 0 MICKEY MOUSE CLUB
0 0 FOR RICHER,
POORER
O O EDGE OF NIGHT
00 MATCH GAME
0 FUNTSTONES
3:30 0 TOM ANO JERRY
0 0 GILUQAN'S ISLAND
0 TATTLETALES
0 PHIL DONAHUE SHOW
0 1 LOVE LUCY
0MERV GRIFFIN
0 KALAMfTY KATE'S
TOONS
0 ELECTRIC COMPANY
4:00 0 GILUQAN'S ISLANO
0 MY THREE SONS
0 1 DREAM OF JEANNIE
0 DINAH
08UPERMAN
0 MIKE DOUGLAS
0 MISTER ROGERS
4.30 0 LEAVE IT TO BEAVER
0 BEWITCHED
O BRADY BUNCH
0 BIG VALLEY
0 FAMILY AFFAIR
0 SESAME STREET
5:00 O ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW
0 ODD COUPLE
00 ABC NEWS
0 1 LOVE LUCY
5:30 0 ROOKIES
OO NBC NEWS
O BEWITCHED
O0CBS NEWS
OEWS
O ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW
0 OVER EASY
THE
FOR
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Entertainment Editor Pete Mason. Cover Design: Liz Beard. Layout:
Kitty Pol icky
Ad lib it an entertainment supplement published by the Daily Nebras
kan. Editor in Chief Ron Ruggless. Advertising Manager. Gregg
Wurdeman Production Manager Kitty Policky Business Manager: Jerri
Hcussler
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Cover Photos by Tad KinV
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