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Arts ©Entertainment
Tuesday, October 4, 1994 Page 6
Taos Pueblo flutist woos UNL with music
Damon Laa/DN
Robart Mlrabal, aTaos Puablo musician In rasldanca at UNL, parfovms on
a hand-mada drum for a Natlva Amarlcan Utaratura class Monday at tha
Uad Cantor. Mlrabal will parform at Kimball Racltal Hall on Oct. 19.
By Jill O’Brian
Staff Reporter
Robert Mirabal, the Taos Pueblo flute
warrior with an international reputation, took
up residency Monday at the UNL College of
Fine and Performing Arts as part of the Art
ists Diversity Program.
Mirabal, who began handcrafting his own
Native American flutes at the age of 18, now
has several of his instruments on display at
the Smithsonian National Museum, Albu
querque Museum and Quast galleries.
After he bought his first flute at 13, his
grandmother told him that flutes were used as
courting instruments when she was a girl, he
said.
“The woman was at a disadvantage,”
Mirabal said. “She never saw who was play
ing the instrument, never knew who was
courting her.”
In the same way, Mirabal uses his flutes to
woo the world. Only he perceives the court
ship process as more of a hunt, he said, where
the music hunts down the spirit of the lis
tener.
Although he taught himself traditional
songs on the flute, Mirabal also studied from
a teacher at the Pueblo Day School who
played40different instruments,he said. Asa
result, he mastered a new instrument every
year and later took voice and piano lessons.
“I’m trying to expand because what I want
to express to the world demands that,” he
said.
The young warrior, 27, has traveled ex
tensively, giving workshops and perfor
mances throughout the United States, France,
Russia, Italy and Japan. Universities such as
the University of Nebraska-Lincoln recruit
him to conduct courses on cultural awareness
and creativity.
“We have our songs inside of us. and we
deal with them through experiences. You
have the ability to create sound.” he tells
students.
His own sound sometimes leaves him
wondering if he's on the right road, he said.
“I’m sometimes afraid to release my songs
to the public,” he said. “Maybe I don’t give
myself enough credit. What I’m into is a
world sound — a sound based on Aztec
drumming, Japanese drumming, native sing
ing and all kinds.”
While he learns techniques from other
musicians throughout the world, he teaches
them about Native American culture and
music.
“It’s a fascinating exchange,” he said.
His goal is to develop a cross-cultural
understanding with his music, he said.
Recently he collaborated on an album
called “Nomad,” which he said received a
good review by Billboard magazine.
“I’m singing more and creating more like
a Peter Gabriel enigma, based on more of a
melodic tribal beat instead of Euro-Ameri
can format,” he said.
Mirabal, who has accompanied many
Native American artists with his flute play
ing, also plays with a multicultural band
based in New York.
The Kraze Kunoe Tribesmen produce what
Mirabal calls a “tribal world, foot-stomping
groove” with reggae overtones.
“Kraze is a lead singer, a Haitian who was
really popular in the late 1980s,” he said,
“and Kunoe is Australian, our didgeridoo
player.”
The band also consists of a Jamaican key
board player, a bass player from Barbados, a
guitarist from England and a drummer from
Brooklyn, he said.
Mirabal and three female singers fall into
the “Tribesmen” category.
“It’sacolorful group—that’s what world
music is about,” he said.
Mirabal will take a short leave during his
UNL residency to record an album in Nash
ville for Warner Western.
Although he has collaborated on several
albums and has marketed three releases on an
independent label, this will be his first solo
project for a major label.
“When they called and told me they wanted
to sign me as an artist... I felt honored,” he
said.
Besides carving his niche in the music
world, Mirabal is a writer. His book, “Skel
eton ofa Bridge,” was published by Blinking
Yellow Books.
"These are stories of when l was growing
up. and stories I heard from different people,
funny and sad stories about life,” he said.
Mirabal views his writing, playing and
composing as one art. All three are layered
with emotions, designed to transport readers
and listeners to different levels, he said.
Mirabal was awarded the New York Dance
and Performance “Bessie" Award in 1992
for one of his compositions, “Land"; in 1993,
he was one of four artists featured in “Native
American Artists of the North Americas.”
The highlight of Mirabal’s stay at UNL
includes an Oct. 19 program at Kimball Hall.
Taos Pueblo drummer Reynaldo Lujan will
join the flute warrior on stage.
“We’ll do world music sounds, keyboard
stuff, possibly some traditional songs. ... I
really haven't decided yet,” he said. “It will
be like picking the brain of a Native (Ameri
can) composer. People will hear our music as
a new sound — a new interpretation.”
r .---•—'—. ; • :
Faulkner to perform
organ concert tonight
From Staff Reports
Quentin Faulkner, a UNL pro
fessor of organ and m usic theory,
will perform tonight at Kimball
Recital Hall.
He will perform four pieces at
tonight’s concert, including
“Komm, Gott Schopfer, Heiliger
Geist, BWV 667” by Johann
Sebastian Bach.
Faulkner, in addition to teach
ing organ classes at the Univer
sity of Nebraska-Lincoln, com
posed a series of courses in church
music. Faulkner and his wife,
Mary Murrell-Faulkner, served as
parish musicians for the Roman
Catholic Cathedral of the Risen
Christ in Lincoln.
Faulkner studied Bach and his
works extensi vely and published
abookin 1984 titled “J.S. Bach’s
Keyboard Technique: A Histori
cal Introduction.”
The organist also wrote a book
on the history of ideas in church
music. His articles have appeared
in “The American Organist,” “The
Diapason,” and “The Christian
Ministry and Liturgy.”
Faulkner took his studies and
related them to his teachings. He
served as co-founder and co-co
ordinator ofthe UNL Organ Con
ference. The university honored
him with a distinguished teaching
award in 1992.
Tire conceit will begin at 8
p.m. Admission is free.
Concert: Quentin Faulkner,
organ
At: Kimball Recital Hall
Time: 8 p.m. today,
admission is free
“Betty”
Helmet
Intcrscope Record!!
Grade: B
The cover of Helmet’s “Betty"
calls to mind the idyllic suburbs of
childhood. The front shows a fine,
young lady of the 1950s holding
flowers. The back shows a quaint
suburban home.
But don’t judge this CD by its
cover. The tumult inside sharply
contrasts with those outer images.
Helmet does its best sonically
and lyrically to portray the transi
tion from youthful innocence to
disillusion and hopelessness.
It appears Helmet head Page
Hamilton is bitterly looking back
on his wonder years. That is evi
dent on the song ‘‘Rollo,’’ which
states, “the neighborhood’s been
spoiled, but I know what 1 know.”
And in “Sam Hell,” Helmet tells
the story of an upstanding commu
nity leader who dies of a heart at
tack.
What would suburban reminisc
ing be without cookouts? In “The
Silver Hawaiian/’“the steak is still
ali ve.” And in “Biscuits for Smut,"
a neighborhood girl is “cooked too
long on high in the backyard.”
The introduction to “Beautiful
Love” sounds like music from a
1950s lawn party. But in true Hel
met style, it devolves into an orgy
of noise and violence.
The pastimes of suburbia pass
through Helmet’s hands and be
come quite sordid in the retelling.
Helmet recal Is chi Idren' s tele vision
of yesteryear with references to
“Mr. Ed” and “The Flintstones.”
If there is any one reason for the
downfall of suburban civilization.
Helmet doesn’t quite come out and
sayit. Perhaps, as“Rollo" and “Sam
Hell” imply, it’s the vain quest to
get ahead and the worship of the
almighty dollar.
Or maybe, as “I Know” says,
it’s just because the suburbanites
are “mean and hard and bored.”
Helmet has very tight, bare
bones arrangements. The guitar riffs
are staccato and harsh, but some
what sterile because of Helmet’s
characteristic stripped-down style.
The vocals are very minimalistic
as well. They are deadpan and con
vey little emotion, no matter how
personal the subject matter of the
song may be.
But Helmet seems reluctant to
stray far from the sound it estab
lished in its first two albums. The
album would be more effective with
more sonic experimentation. Per
haps the band feels it must satisfy
the fans with a recognizable se
quel.
“Betty” certainly stained my
happy images ofchildhood. It only
goes to show that the hallmark of
any good Generation X band is its
ability to make a person nihilistic
just from listening.
—Jason Gildow
