It
Evening presents future with poetry
By Bret Schulte
Assignment Reporter
The White House is nodding a bndge to the
future, and Lincoln residents can watch it happen.
Tonight, the president and his wife will host
the third Millennium Evening - a series of lec
tures by top artists, educators and scientists cele
brating the past and future as we cross the thresh
old into the 21 st century.
Broadcast live via satellite from the White
House, the program will be downlinked in 228
Andrews Hall free for the public.
Celebrating literature and creativity, this
Millennium Evening features three American
poet laureates: Rita Dove, Robert Hass and the
current laureate Robert Pinsky.
Combining poetry w ith education, the three
internationally recognized writers w ill read
poems representative of the American voice fol
lowed by a question-and-answer period.
Jane Hood, executive director of the Nebraska
Humanities Council, which co-sponsors the
event, has attended the past two Millennium
Evenings downlinked at the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln.
“I couldn't think of a better way to introduce
the century than with some of the world’s greatest
thinkers in a discussion with the American peo
ple,” she said.
Initiated at the beginning of the year, the con
cept is the brainchild of Hillary Clinton, who said
this series “will feature prominent men and
women, not just from .America but from around
the world, who can provoke our thinking about
the past and the future.”
The first Millennium Evening featured
Bernard Bailyn of Yale University, a history pro
fessor and a former instructor of Vice President
A1 Gore.
Last month, world-renowned author and
physicist Stephen Hawking led a discussion on
the future of science, technology and humanity in
the 21 st century.
In Lincoin, the third program will be hosted
by nationally recognized poet and Lincoln resi
dent Ted Kooser. who recently published his
eighth book of poetry, “Weather Central.'’
Kooser believes artists will continue to play
an essential role in the upcoming era.
“One of the missions of artists is to accurate
ly reflect the society in which they live,” Kooser
said. “I think the more technology there is, the
more reason there is for art to balance it and
humanize it ”
Kooser will follow the program with a discus
sion based on the poet laureate readings.
Robert Pinksy, who will remain poet laureate
until 1999, is assembling a tape of the American
people reciting their favorite poems. The video
will archive 1,000 Americans from every state
and economic bracket for a time capsule as a
“Gift to the nation s future.”
He is expected to discuss the project tonight
as well as reciting poetry with former laureates
«
I think the more
technology there is, the
more reason there is for
art to balance it and
humanize it ”
Ted Kooser
poet
Robert Hass and Rita Dove, the first black person
to hold the position.
The live satellite broadcast cannot be seen on
network television or cable but is available free
through UNL at 228 Andrews Hall. The broad
cast begins at 6:30 p.m.
i a _
Courtesy Photo
FOR MORE THAN A DECADE, Fugazi has been building a fan base without
the assistance of commercial radio or video airplay. “End Hits” is the
band’s sixth full-length release on Dischord Records.
Fugazi
“End Hits”
Dischord Records
Grade: A
Since 1987, the Washington.
! D C.-based band, Fugazi, has made
high-quality music available for
low prices. With its $10 compact
discs and $5 all-ages shows the
band has formed a tradition of
excellence and integrity.
With the release of “End Hits,”
Fugazi’s sixth and latest album on
Dischord Records, the band has
once again created a collection of
songs sure to become instant clas
sics to any Fugazi fan.
The album’s 13 songs continue
where Fugazi’s previous release,
“Red Medicine,” left off.
Just as in “Red Medicine,” a
number of the new songs take a
minimalist approach to music by
employing elements of broken
down song structures consisting
mostly of bass and drums layered
beneath obscure sounds, guitar
noises and vocals.
“No Surprise,” a standout on the
album, starts off with a scream fol
lowed by a slow, delicately picked
guitar rhythm and Guy Picciotto's
throaty vocals. In the middle of the
song, the band’s minimalist tenden
cies take control with a series of
five quick drum beats between five
seconds of silence. The song comes
together in the last 40 seconds with
a collage of sounds and rhythms
that really make the song whole.
The band’s rock roots are dis
tinctly felt throughout the album
with up-tempo, hard guitar riffs,
quick fingering and fast and techni
cal drum beats.
“Five Corporations” is one of
the album’s pure rock tunes and one
of the few that Ian MacKaye sings
lead vocals on. His signature blunt
yells and a repeated five-syllable
chorus creates a powerfully driving
two-and-a-half minute rock song.
“Place Position” is another
powerful rock ’n’ roll number that
crescendos into the chorus and fol
lows with a quick transition into a
slower, quieter intermission.
Picciotto sings with his tell-tale
vibrato style, pleading throughout
the song.
As a whole, the album is very
crisp and flows from beginning to
end. The technical elements of each
song fit together tightly just as each
song fits in with the others to make
a complete network of music. Joe
Lally’s bass lines tie songs together,
and Brendan Canty’s percussion
skill is evident through original
beats and techniques.
Fugazi has come a long way
since its self-titled debut EP, and
the music has undoubtedly
changed. But the same underlying
elements that made Fugazi’s early
releases great remain intact to cre
ate one of their best albums yet.
— Jason Hardy
Dance founder
subj ect of panel
By Sarah Baker
Senior Reporter
He’s one of the best-kept
secrets in the city of Lincoln.
But in the world of modern
dance, he has anything but a low
profile.
Charles Weidman, one of the
founders of modern dance, is the
subject of the latest Paul A.
Olson Seminar in Great Plains
Studies, which will be held
Wednesday.
Entitled “Dance and the
Work of Charles Weidman,” the
discussion will explore the work
of the late Weidman, who was
born in Lincoln in 1901.
In addition to choreograph
ing on Broadway and for the
New York City Opera, Weidman
also founded a school of dance in
New York.
Some of Weidman's students
included Sybil Shearer, Jack
Cole, Jose Limon and Bob Fosse.
Ron Bowlin, director of
Kimball Recital Hall and special
assistant to the dean of the
College of Fine and Performing
Arts, said this panel discussion is
a preview of similar events
planned for the future.
“Weidman is probably one of
the most important choreogra
phers of the 20th century in the
world of modern dance," Bowlin
said. “He was one of the modern
dance pioneers and really made
it what it was. He helped it have a
world-wide impact.”
Bowlin said although
Weidman is from Lincoln, not
many people are aware he is
from the city.
“There has really never been
a sufficient amount of attention
given to him in Lincoln, and he is
from here,” Bowlin said. “We
wanted to at least have a discus
sion where we talk about his con
tributions to dance, so we decid
ed to do a panel about some of
the things he's accomplished.”
Among the classics Weidman
choreographed are “A House
Divided,” “Fables for Our Time,”
“Lynchtown” and “Flickers.”
Bowlin said most of the pan
elists have some connections to
Weidman.
“This is really cool because
most of the people on the panel
knew members of the company
or have talked to people connect
Please see OLSON on 12
UNL Jazz Ensemble
highlights students
By Barb Churchill
Assignment Reporter
Jazz talent at the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln is at an all-time
high.
So says Dave Sharp, jazz
instructor and guest conductor of
the UNL Jazz Ensemble which is
performing a concert this evening
along with the UNL Jazz Small
Group.
“These are the best groups we
have (at UNL). This concert is to
showcase the musicians because
many of them play at a profession
al level already,” Sharp said.
“And, of course, this concert is
free, which you can’t say about a lot
of the other gigs our musicians
play,” he said.
Sharp specifically referred to
guitarist Janies Valentine and tenor
saxophonist Mike Cain as musi
cians with bright futures.
“James (Valentine) is in the
conducting rotation for the
Monday Night Big Band at the
Ramada, which should tell you
something right there,” Sharp said.
“And Mike (Cain) knows a lot of
different jazz styles and plays most
of them really well. He is a gifted
jazz improviser.”
The UNL Jazz Ensemble will
play jazz repertoire from many
stylistic eras, including modal,
blues, swing and samba styles,
Sharp said.
“These pieces are very charac
teristic jazz works that the audience
will really enjoy. There are two
pieces either written or arranged by
Please see JAZZ on 12