Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 27, 1992)
Arts & Entertainment McFerrin joins classical and impromptu By Steve Pearson Staff Reporter Friday night, a sold-out Lied Center audi ence was the secondary recipient of a present Bobby McFerrin gave himself for his 40th birthday. That present was a prom ise to devote four to six weeks a year to conducting engagements, and his performance with the Nebraska Cham ber Orchestra was a fulfillment of that prom ise. Those expecting to hear McFerrin’s vocal acrobatics may have been disappointed when they first read the program, but minutes into the first number, they had to agree with McFerrin that, “It’s all jazz!” McFerrin’s association with classical music comes naturally. Both of his parents were clas sically trained vocalists, and his father was the first black man to sing in a principal role for New York’s Metropolitan Opera. McFerrin took the stage in informal attire and engaged the audience in a casual repartee not often found at classical music concerts. The moment McFerrin began conducting the orchestra strings in Mozart’s “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik,” his vivacious style(became read ily apparent. His conducting was actually more like dancing, as his joy of the music radiated from every move. That enthusiasm continued after the number was over and McFerrin shook a fist in the air and embraced orchestra mem bers. The rest of the orchestra took the stage for Gabriel Faure’s “Pavane.” McFerrin conducted this piece with a baton in one hand and a microphone in the other. While conducting, he sang the main theme, normally taken by the violins. Up next was Bach’s Air on the G string. McFerrin conducted this piece very informally, sitting down and vocalizing with the orchestra. McFcrrin displayed his innate musical abil ity by singing a short ditty to each section of the orchestra — in the range of the instrument — that it then would begin to play. By the time the whole orchestra was playing, McFerrin had created a rich sound to which he added his vocal improvisation. No McFcrrin concert would be complete without at least a taste of McFerrin ’ s a cappella vocal magic, and after dismissing the orches tra, McFerrin obliged. He began his vocal exhibition by introduc ing members of the audience to one another and singing their names. He then involved the audience in his vocal improvisation, teaching each half of the audience a short phrase to sing on his command. An improv tunc about “drivin’ my car” followed, in which McFerrin displayed his smooth jazz tones and imitated the sound of an accelerating car. It was during this song that McFerrin accomplished the nearly impossible — singing two notes at once. After thunderous applause, McFerrin en See MCFERRIN on 7 David Badders/DN Familiar melodies greet students between classes Mueller Tower’s format excludes today’s Top-40 hits By Garth Lienemann Staff Reporter Between Bessey and Morrill halls, the Ralph Mueller Tower on the University of Ncbraska-Lincoln City Campus rings out every Monday, Wednesday and Friday and adds music to student journeys. The manager of the tower’s music is Jim Klein, a maintenance electri cian with the facilities management department. Klein is responsible for the general upkeep of the lower as well as the music that emanates from it. At 11:23 a.m., the tower begins its day. It chimes a tune for a minute or two and then plays hourly until 5:23 p.m. The tower’s working day ends at 6 p.m., when it signs off — once again with a tune. The tower used to sound at the top of the hour, Klein said, but students and faculty in Bessey Hall complained that the music disturbed class. In response to these complaints, the facilities management department adjusted the lower’s playing time to coincide with the breaks between classes. The tower began its musical pres ence in 1949 when it was dedicated to the university by Ralph Mueller for .. ihc free education given him by the state of Nebraska,” as its plaque reads. When Klein came to the univer sity in 1970, the lower’s music came from a player piano amplified through a pipe system similar to a church organ. The piano aged and suffered from constant problems, he said. Eventually, it look too much time and effort to keep the piano functioning properly. “That (piano) was a lot of trouble,” he said. The tower was renovated in 1980 and the system was replaced by a sophisticated tape player. A pre-re corded cassette is now the source of the bell sounds. Audio signals travel to a system of intricate bells no larger than an inch in diameter. Once the bells are struck, the sounds are ampli fied by a 400-watt amplifier con nected to eight 60-watt speakers in the top of the tower. Klein said he had no idea how far the music travels. The cassette tapes that produce the tower’s music are replaced at least every other week, Klein said. Some times, they are changed weekly. The tower’s music collection con sists of about 25 tapes, Klein said. Christmas music, school fight music, and Beatles songs are among the musical features. Some of the indi vidual titles include “Yesterday,” “Over the Rainbow,” “The Sounds of Silence" and “On Wisconsin.” “There’s nothing to it,” Klein said See TOWER on 7 ^^^^^jHacTMcKee/DN Jim Klein, a UNL maintenance electrician, programs the Mueller Tower on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln City Campus. The system is programmed with a clock timer and various cassette tapes. Friendships ripen in fresh film “Fried Green ^Tomatoes” — By Anne Steyer Staff Reporter What is life all about? Well, ac cording to Ninny Thrcadgoode, it’s about friends — best friends. Friendship and small-town sister hood are the basic themes of “Fried Green Tomatoes,” (Cinema 1 & 2, 201 N. 13th St.) although a little ofd fashioned murder mystery is tossed in for fun. Based on Fannie Flagg’s book “Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe,’’ the film takes place in and near the back-country town of Whistle Slop, Ala. it centers on the friendships of four women in two different stories. Story No. 1 is the developing relationship between Evelyn Couch (Kathy Bates) and Ninny Threadgoodc (Jessica Tandy), and subsequently, Evelyn’s personality transformation. Evelyn stumbles upon Ninny at the Rose Hills Convalescent Home in modern-day Alabama. Evelyn is an overweight, lonely and emotionally unfulfilled woman. Ninny is also lonely, but definitely has a more positive outlook on the world. Their relationship is an important aspect of the film, but it lakes a back seal to story No. 2, told to Evelyn by Ninny through a scries of flashbacks to the 1930s. The lead characters in the flash back story arc Idgie (Mary Stuart Mastcrson) and Ruth (Mary-Louise Parker), dear friends who see each other through joy and hardship in pre World War II small-town America. They arc initially brought together through tragedy and their friendship blossoms. Together they experience joy and hardship — and murder. The story is sot up to explore the relationships between the women, but writer Flagg also incorporates the compelling whodunit into the pic ture. Both the audience and Evelyn end up completely charmed by Idgie and Ruth and enthralled with their story. In fact, story No. 2 makes up the bulk of the film, but Bales and Tandy were both nominated for Golden Globe awards for their performances as best See TOMATOES on 7 Ratings on a 1-5 real scale to the speed of celluloid are: 5 reels - Run 4 reels - Jog 3 reels - Racewalk (See It If you've seen the others) •. W, : :<X r* L ■ f ; 2 reels r Stroll (Bring |tternate entertainment source) 1 reel -- Crawl ' "x^Scott Maurer/D N Fresh ideas stimulated by Fifth Column revolutions By Bryan Peterson Staff Reporter The most revolutionary music is that which we make ourselves. That sentence has been ringing in my head for som^ time now, and when things like that will not go away, it is time to examine them with more scrutiny. The Fifth Column is about revolu tionary music, although it has branched out to look at related catalogs, maga zines and books. Initially, only punk bands were covered, but over the semesters the range has broadened to include nearly every genre of music. But who could write with consis tent freshness and vivacity about screaming punk rock demons across 11 semesters and nearly 40 Fifth Columns? Eventually the theme goes stale, unless invigorated with new ideas and energy. I wou Id con sidcr m yscl f to be more evolutionary than revolutionary these days, but it was in the second area that the Fifth Column got its start. To quote a previous introduction: “In writing this column I have been, and will continue to be, concerned primarily with music that has some sort of social or political message. Fifth Column: music as a subversive activity.” The term “fifth column” comes from the Spanish Civil War. At that time, it referred to those working to overthrow the stale by aiding the fas cists and monarchists against the Spanish Republic. According to my dictionary, it was first used by the Spanish Nationalist General Mola who, “besieging Madrid with four columns from the outside, boasted of having a ‘fifth column’ - within.” 1 have no intention of supporting fascists in any way, but 1 do find interesting the idea of working to overthrow the stale from within, es pecially as the state takes 6n fascist tendencies. Even overthrowing the state is a rather narrow interpretation — any music (or other medium, for that See FIFTH on 7