The Michigan Daily - Friday, October 15, 1993 - 9
.Music school's finest perform
By KEREN SCHWEITZER
The Contemporary Directions
Ensemble, directed by H. Robert
Reynolds isnotone ofthe most widely
known performing groups on cam-
pus. Nonetheless, it is one of the fin-
est, comprised of some of the best of
the music school. Its focus is on con-
*temporary works mainly for wind in-
struments usually in the form ofcham-
ber works. The Contemporary Direc-
tions Ensemble is a subgroup of the
larger University Symphony Band,
also under the direction of Reynolds.
In addition to hisjob as Director of
University Bands, Professor Reynolds
is Director of the division that in-
cludes the departments of Conduct-
ing, Instrumental Education, Strings,
*Winds and Percussion. He has been at
the University since 1975, and he
holds degrees from the University in
Music Performance and Education.
He has recorded for Pro Arte, Ca-
price, Koch International, and
Deutsche Grammophon. He is also
the conductor of the Detroit Chamber
Winds, consisting primarily of musi-
*CHAMBER
Continued from page 8
- a language new to most singers --
but one which came relatively easily
in comparison to the German in the
opening pieces. The style will also be
new to most listeners, unfamiliar with
what Morrison described as the "off-
beat, different feel" of Indian con-
*emporary music.
The evening's second half will be
performed entirely in English, and to
the accompaniment of organist Karl
Schrock. "Rejoice in the Lamb,
Op.30," is the largest piece on the
program, by acomposer equally great
in terms of 20th century music: Ben-
jamin Britten. What truly makes this
piece memorable though, is the text,
bind the unusual circumstances under
which it was written. Set to the words
of the 18th-century poet, Christopher
Smart, Britten selected the most bril-
liant of his sacred passages, all of
which were written while Smart was
hospitalized in a mental asylum.
Concluding the evening (which is
likely to last little over an hour), is a
song by the Edwardian composer
Parry, a grandiose romantic piece sung
t the coronation of Queen Elizabeth
the Second. Sure to be acrowdpleaser,
it serves as a royal end, to what should
be a truly majestic evening.
The CHAMBER CHOIR will
perform at 8:00 p.m. in the Hill
Auditorium on Saturday Night.
Admission is complimentary.
cians from the Detroit Symphony.
Reynolds is a committed cham-
pion of contemporary music. He feels
fortunate to be in a university envi-
ronment where, he said, "the goal is to
stretch knowledge and art and to re-
sist staying within the conservative
confines." Nevertheless, he is well
aware of the difficulties new music
has had in being performed to the
general public.
He admits that it is difficult for a
first time listener to fully appreciate
or even understand new music, but he
adds, "People are too concerned with
finding the melody - this worry hin-
ders them from finding what is there."
Reynolds cited that the current trends
in composition were encouraging
more accessibility to the audience.
"For along time the composer did not
consider his audience, but from the
late sixties up to the present, contem-
porary music has once again come
around for the listener." He contin-
ued, "Composers like William
Bolcom or Michael Daugherty write
music people like to hear."
The Contemporary Directions
Ensemble is not only concerned with
educating its audience, but also con-
cerned with educating its members.
Reynolds, said, "These players need
this type of experience ... the musi-
cians that I have seen succeed in the
professional world are those with the
most versatility." He added, "Educa-
tors today can't just train musicians
for the most conservative music, those
good old days are gone."
The concert tomorrow consists of
the premiere of "Piano Concerto for
the Left Hand" by Stephen Rush who
is an Assistant Professor of music and
the Director of the Digital Music En-
semble. The soloist is Howard
Watkins who is also a member of the
university faculty. Other works sched-
uled to be performed are "New Fan-
fares" by George Pearle, "Rain Spell"
by Toro Takemitsu and "The Great
Silences" by Nichoals Thorne.
The Contemporary Directions
Ensemble will perform tomorrow
night at 8:00 p.m. in Rackham
Auditorium. Admission is free.
No, believe it or not, "The Beverly Hillbillies," is not as stupid a movie as many of us predicted it might be.
i lb les' pleasantly charmig
Rage Oni
In light of the recent release of "Age Of Innocence," everyone seems to
be catching the Martin Scorsese bug. This weekend M-Flicks is sponsoring
a double feature of "Taxi Driver" and "Raging Bull." Both films are
essential staples in any silver screen aficionado's diet. "Driver" is a seamy,
sometimes revolting exploration into the scum-infested streets of New
York as told by Travis Bickle (Robert DeNiro), a psychotic, horribly
introverted vigilante / cabbie. Harvey Keitel, Jodie Foster and Cybill
Shepard also star.
"Bull" retells the painfully depressing prizefighting career of Jake
LaMotta (DeNiro), the irreverent middleweight who degenerates from a
titleholder to a pathetic stand-up comedian during the 20-something years
that the film chronicles. Shot in black and white, the picture itself is a
ambitious, if incoherent project that seems to digress into strangely dull
subplots for huge chunks of time. Yet this seems to be Scorsese's point-_
the director manages to allow his story to dissolve into irrelevant Brando
impersonations and other such banalities, only to emphasize the nothing-
ness of LaMotta's post-pugilist life. DeNiro turns in what is beyond a
shadow of a doubt the single most gripping performance in film history as
afight-throwing misfit whodrinks his life into obscurity. "Taxi Driver" will
be shown tonight and tomorrow night at 7:00 in Angell A, while "Raging
Bull" will be shown directly afterwards at 9:30.
Dangerous?
In an exploration of love, lust, desire and degradation, the Performance
Network's Simon Ha directs yet another winner (after this season's "Yan-
kee Dawg You Die") with Heiner Muller's "Quartet". This postmodernist
reworking of "Dangerous Liaisons" covers four characters with only two
actors who switch off roles. A definite must-see tonight and Saturday at the
Performance Network at 8 p.m., and Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. ($10
general, $6 student/senior).
You are invited to
CAMPUS CHAPEL
1236 Washtenaw Ct./662-2402
(parking in Church St. structure)
SUNDAY, October 17
10am - Worship: "The Wonder of it All"
Guest Speaker: Dr. Dale Brown,
Prof. of English, Calvin College, Grand Rapids, MI
12:30pm Lunch
1-4:30pm - Workshop with Prof. Brown:
"Paying Attention to our Lives:
Christian Writers who Call us to Attentiveness"
(F. Buechner; Will Campbell; K. Gibbons; D. Giardina; C. Edgerton)
The Mystical Arts of Tibet
Sacred Music - Sacred Dance
Wed. Oct. 20 8pm
Rackham Auditorium
Ann Arbor
UM Major Events
a world tour by
9 lamas from Drepung
Loseling Monastery
"Sounds that seem
to come from the
womb of the earth..."
Michigan Union Ticket Office & all Ticketmaster outlets
By SARAH STEWART
What happened to the days when television's place
was in the TV room? Back then, viewers were fairly
confident that their favorite television show wouldn't
make it to the movies, and they liked it that way.
The Beverly Hillbillies
Directed by Penelope Spheeris; written by Lawrence
Konner & Mark Rosenthal and Jim Fisher & Jim Staahl;
with Diedrich Bader, Dabney Coleman and Jim Varney.
But they can like the new way too. In fact, they can
learn to love the idea of their favorite country bumpkins,
"The Beverly Hillbillies," up on the big screen. Granted,
"Hillbillies" is not an intellectual or even a comedic
masterpiece, but its outstanding cast and light-hearted
humor make it a lot of fun.
The story line is only slightly more involved than the
series and serves as a constant reminder that the actors
may be different, but the Clampett family will never
change. Like each television episode, the beginning of the
film chronicles Jed's (Jim Varney) oil discovery and the
Clampett's decision, much to the dismay of Granny (Cloris
Leachman), to move to Beverly ... Hills that is. Jed's
ambition is to find amother to help tame his daughter, Elly
May (Erika Eleniak). When his unadulterated naivete
allows him to fall into the gold-digging hands of Woodrow
Tyler (Rob Schneider) and his girlfriend, Laura Jackson
(Lea Thompson), the mad-capped "intrigue" begins.
Fortunately, a profound plot is not the purpose of the
film. The point is to entertain the audience with the
Clampett's remarkable ignorance of what most would
consider mainstream living. The beginning scenes are
scarred by gratuitousjuniorhigh humor, but the Clampett's
introduction to Beverly Hills opens up a world of witty
misnomers and clever mistakes; the indoor swimming
pool is a "cement pond," bowling consists of "rolling"
yourself down the lane andJethro's (Diedrich Bader) first
experience with an intercom system has him punching
holes in the wall in search of the source of Jane Hathaway's
(Lily Tomlin) voice.
Without an accomplished cast, these same successful
jokes might just as easily have bombed. Surprisingly;
none of the characters lose their quirkiness in the transfet
from television to film. Notably, Varney, of Earnest P
Worrell fame, maintains the warm-hearted, paternal in-
stincts integral toJed'scharacter, whileDabneyColeman's
history as the "bad guy" makes him ideal for the role of the,
money loving bank president, Mr. Drysdale.
Bader, who plays the Clampett's gooney cousinJethro,
stands out as the funniest amongst a cast of more experi-
enced and well-known actors. He heightens the film's,
humor with his sincere but futile attempts at adapting to
the Beverly Hills way of being. Bader's hilarious double
role as Jethro's sister, Jethrine, is further confirmation of
director Penelope Spheeris' bold decision to choose a
newcomer for the role. Jethro would be so lucky to have
half as much talent as Bader.
Maybe "The Beverly Hillbillies" should not be top on
your list of "must sees" for the month of October, but
taken for what it's worth, it's as good as it could be.
THE BEVERLY HILLBILLIES is playing at Showcase.
U
GARRISON KEILLOR
The Story of Guys
an evening of duets & stories
WITH KATE MACKENZIE & RICHARD DWORSKY
NOVEMBER 5
HILL AUDITORIUM ANN ARBOR
UM MAJOR EVENTS k WDET
1
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Y
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763-TKTS
MICHIGAN UNION TICKET OFFICE
& ALL TIC KETMASTER OUTLETS
awareness
week
learn and live
october 18 - 24, 1993
supported by the City of Ann Arbor &
The University of Michigan
XEROX COPIES
4and
less
(NOT BOOKS)
ACCU-COPY
402 MaYnard 768338
EXHIBITIONS/EVENTS
NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt display
Michigan Room, Michigan League
*Opening event will be Oct. 20, 6pm
Portraits of the Quilt (photography exhibit)
Michigan League Buffet
Red Cross African Proverbs poster display
Leonardo's, North Campus Commons
The Individual's Response to AIDS: Materials
from the Labadie Collection of radical social protest
Hatcher Graduate Library, Special Collections, 7th Floor
"AIDS Friendship Tree", Tree Planting Ceremony
UM Hospital Courtyard (between Mott & main hospital)
PERFORMANCES
"QUILT, A Musical Celebration"
Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre
"QUILT, A Musical Celebration"
Final Dress Rehearsal Benefit Performance
(benefitting local AIDS service organizations)
Talk to Us (anxieties concerning HIV testing)
LECTURES/PANEL DISCUSSIONS
Living with AIDS
East Conference Room, Rackham Hall
Democracy Under Siege:
The Dismantling of Civil Rights
. Suzanne Pharr, speaker
HIV/AIDS Education Session
Bursley Hall, North Campus
1Af-.n .,r. fT)0
Sep. 28-Oct. 24
Su-F 11:30-7:30pm,
Sa 4:30-7:30pm
Oct. 1-31,
8am-10pm
Oct. 18-24
Oct. 22, 1pm
Oct. 21-23, 8pm, Oct. 24, 2pm
$14 & $10; students $6 w/ID
Oct. 20, 7pm
$10 minimum donation
Oct. 26 Bursley Hall, (N. Campus)
Oct. 21-24
oam-11pm
State College. PA
Oct. 21, 7:30pm
Oct. 24, 7pm
Rackham Auditorium
Oct. 26
immediately following
"Talk to Us" performance
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