PAGE SIX THE MICHIGAN DAILY TUESDAY, JANUARY" 10, 1967 PAGE SIX TIlE MICHIGAN DAILY TUESDAY, JANUARY 10, 1967 I SCHEDULE OF CLASSES announces B'NAI B'RITH HILLEL FOUNDATION Basic Judaism, Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m. Dr. Herman Jacobs, Instructor First meeting, January 10 Contemporary Jewish History, Thursday at 7:30 p.m. Joseph Ben-Dak, Instructor First meeting, January 12 Bet-Midrash classes start this Wednesday, January 11 Elementary Hebrew-Monday & Wednesday, 7-8:15 p.m. Advanced Hebrew-Monday & Wednesday, 3:15-4:30 p.m. Talmud-Monday & Wednesday, 7-8:15 p.m. Jewish Philosophy-Monday & Wednesday, 4:30-5:45 p.m. Across Campus TUESDAY, JAN.10 7:00 and 9:05 p.m. - Cinema Guild will present Jean-Luc Go- dard's "Une Femme Est Une Femme" in the Arch. Aud. WEDNESDAY, JAN. 11 7:00 and 9:05 p.m. - Cinema Guild will present Jean-Luc Go- dard's "Une Femme Est Une Femme" in the Arch. Aud. 8:00 p.m. - Mr. Iver Richard, member of Parliament, will speak on "Labour's Prospects in Britain" on the sixth floor of the Institute of Social Research. MUSIC UNINSPIRED, VAGUE: Detroit Symphony Disappoints Arnn Arbor Audience By RICHARD PERRY Except for introducing Leslie Bassett's "Variations for Orch- estra" to the Ann Arbor audience, the Detroit Symphony chose to present a most familiar bill of fare: Mozart's Overture to "Don Giovanni," Beethoven's Symphony No. 8, and Brahms' Symphony No. 2. Increasing the tedium of the Sunday afternoon, they performed these well-known works in a whol- ly pedestrian and uninspired man- ner, hardly indicative of the past accomplishments of this major or- chestra. Indeed, the only truly fine mo- ment of the afternoon came in the distinctive playing of the first movement of Beethoven's Eighth. This movement was marked by a lean, clean angularity which force- fully portrayed the propulsive geometry of the music. Unfortu- nately the orchestra could not sus- stain unity of ensemble and depth of feeling in the following three movements. Intonation problems arose in the second violin section, and the trumpets, whose accents are so important to the syncopa- tion of the third movement, rare- ly entered together with the re- quired precision. The lack of precision of en- semble playing which marks a me- OPEN TO ALL 1429 HILL STREET 663-4129 SOCIAL REVOLUTION IN ASIA diocre orchestra unfortunately also marred the Brahms. Most amazing was the temerity of the first flut- ist who mumbled instead of sang, though other members of his sec- tion also seemed to disavow re- sponsibility for the important in- ner voices which break the bore- dom of Brahms' gargantuan themes. Yet perhaps even with these flaws erased, Sixten Ehrling's choice of moribund tempos would have enervated the piece. Truly nothing is as dull, bloated, and mawkish as Brahms served with a heavy hand. If an inner tension can be effected, it will carry through the less than perfect bridge passages and involve the listener in the drama of the music. Not only was the plastic phrasing of these bridge passages missing, destroying the horizontal flow of the music, but also the main lyric themes were overstated in a most unsubtle and sentimental fashion. Because of all this perfunctory hacking out of the printed score, it was good to see the musicians actively engaged in creating Mr. Bassett's music. Whether or not one likes the music, one has to be excited by the real bending of minds and instrumental skills, try- ing to make and understand a new musical experience. If tradi- tional classical music may be lik- ened to a comfortable bed, mod- ern music is like a bed of nails. In the former you can rest, sleep, and be refreshed; on the latter' your mind and body are united in the true confrontation of exper- iencing aliceness, the Now. Time, of course, slowly blunts these nails. I had not heard Mr. Bassett's "Variations for Orchestra" before, and, in spite of the fact that it won a Pulitzer Prize in 1966, I can't say I am dying to hear it again. In the program notes. Mr. Bassett states that he tried to "place the listener in the midst of a form he could perceive" and "in- volve him in the gradual unfold- ing of a thematic-motivic web." At the same time,, the composer states that "the variations are not based upon a theme" and that he strove to maintain "a backdrop of basically unimportant sounds." The result of this contradiction, it seems to me, is that the music never provides either an access to form or purely mood music. It wavers between form and form- less and thus serves up only col- oristic effect. Likewise, the piece stylistically rests somewhere in that vast realm between the rhythmic percussive- ness of "Sacre du Printemps" - without the latter's thematic and structural framework - and the pure sound music of Cage or Feldman-lacking the latter's mys- tic exhortation to examine time- lessness and spacelsesness. In a word, it is old-fashioned. The music certainly took place, however (the orchestra waking up to make it happen), and Mr. Bas- sett was there to receive applause. I wondered, do we applaud him for his music, or for his having the audacity to be a composer? the R. D. Merrill Lectureship presents PROFESSOR M. M. THOMAS of India Visiting Professor of World Christianity at Union Theological Seminary in { New York City. Mr. Thomas has served as Chairman of the World Council of Churches Dept. of Church and Society; Secretary, East Asia Christian Conference of Church and Society; and Director, - Christian Institute for the Study of Religion and Society (India). His publications include: PROBLEMS OF INDIAN DEMOCRACY MUD WALLS AND STEEL MILLS TRIBAL AWAKENING CHRISTIAN RESPONSE TO THE ASIAN REVOLUTIlON CHANGING PATTERN OF FAMILY IN INDIA COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT IN INDIA'S INDUSTRIAL y y ~URBAN AREAS "VIETNAM FROM AN ASIAN PERSPECTIVE' Tuesday, January 10, at 7:30 P.M. in Auditorium A, Angell Hall Panel Members: M. M. Thomas; Dr. Inis Claude, Prof. of Pal. Sci. and Mr. Yoshio Hida, graduate student in political science "COMMUNIISM, DEMOCRACY AND SOCIAL REVOLUTION" Wednesday, January 11, at 7:30 P.M. in Auditorium A, Angell Hall Panel Members: M. M. Thomas; Dr. Bishwanath Prasad of Bihar Univ.; and Dr. David Wurfel, Visiting Pr'of. of Pol. Sci. "INDIA'S POLITICAL OUTLOOK TODAY" Thursday, January 12, at 7:30 P.M. at the Presbyterian Campus Center 1432 Washtenaw Avenue Panel Members: M. M. Thomas and Mr. Manindra Mohapatra, graduate student in public administration The Merrill Lectureship is administered by the U. of M. Presbyterian Corporation and on this occasion is sponsored in cooperation with the U, of M. Indian Student Association. These lectues are open to the public. S USCRIBE TO THE ORGANIZATION NOTICES ."::^: ' 1.".y:lx:b}', "::-0..,'.:.SW:{.. . ?3 45'.{A....:iv?..Ys}'?.5.;....... .... ... .' ' . .... USE OF THIS COLUMN FOR AN- ing, Jan. 11, 7 p.m.. 2084 East Engineer- NOUNCEMENTS is available to offi- ing. cially recognized and registered student organizations only. Forms are available Deutscher Verein, Kaffeestunde, Wed., in Room 1011 SAB. Jan. 11, 3-5 p.m., 3050 Frieze Bldg. MICHIGAN DAILY I r7 F k c U .... o Outfitters to Ladies of Traditional Taste 1 II/ J11 MARILYN has f II'' II i I I. S PIRIT by J. P. STEVENS THE LUXURY HOSE YOU CAN AFFORD TO RUIN. .. Mesh 2 Pr. for $1 Heel and Toe 2 Pr. for $1 Cantrece 2 Pr. for $1.50 iPi -i ' ( ' I I I .... I I1 I