10- The Michigan Daily - Friday, March 17, 1995
M.Y.S.T.I.C. showcases its 'Bronze Elegance'
By Eugene Bowen
Daily Arts Writer
One of the longest-lasting and
well-known of the social events
planned by and for minority students
on the University campus has come
upon us once again. The 17th annual
Bronze Elegance Fashion Show, spon-
sored by M.Y.S.T.I.C., the
multicultural lounge of Alice Lloyd
residence hall, will be put on tomor-
row in the Michigan Union Ballroom
beginning at 7:30p.m. The theme this
year is "Imitation of Life."
"We're trying to show the past
fashion and musical styles of (differ-
ent ethnic groups)," said Josd
Acevedo, president of M.Y.S.T.I.C.
"So, we're trying to imitate what hap-
pened back then and today."
Thirteen women and eight men,
who competed with a wide range of
University students for modeling
spots, will sport a variety of fashions
influenced from African, Indian and
Asian sectors, among others. The
models are themselves of different
ethnicities.
BLUE
Continued from page 8
awards, but they recently returned
from a tour in California. Suzie
Bertman, the Music Director, talked
a bit about where they performed:
"The University of Michigan
Alumni Association in both cities,
San Francisco and L.A. were very
helpful, and the mayor of L.A. is a
graduate of U-of-M, so we sang at
City Hall."
While in San Francisco, Amazin'
Blue sang with the Stanford Fleet
Street Singers, and Scott told a story
of singing on the street: "When we
went to the Fisherman's Wharf in
San Francisco, we spontaneously
However, this year's Bronze El-
egance Fashion Show will be differ-
ent from all previous productions.
"This year, we
will be taking this
program to a new . BRO Z
height," said FAS
Bronze Elegance and
coordinator, Mark When:Tomo
Bloomfield. "This Whe
will be the first
time in recent Tickets: $
years that we've per L
done a runway $10 per per
show, similar to Tickets ar
the runways in Michigan.Ur
Paris. The models AlUnivers
will actually been- present the
tering the audi- tickets; all n
ence, feeling the be accompar
energy of the audi- The buffetis 1
ence."
The models will not mimic your
traditional, expressionless models
who walk, stop and walk again.
Dancing will play an integral part in
this show, and all the models will
have their steps. It is hoped that this
E
31r
!rs(
ire
ei~r
101
change from the "traditional" fash-
ion show will give Bronze Elegance
a new flavor.
Also, in con-
ELEGANCE junction with
Bronze Elegance,
lION SHOW the executive board
AZZ SHOW of A'subuhi, the
owat7:30m. multicultural
Michigan Union lounge of the West
Ballroom Quadrangle resi-
:er person, $10 dence hall, will
uple in advance present ajazz show
ona at the door. to begin following
available at the the fashion show in
>n Ticket Office, the Michigan
y students must Union ballroom.
1.D.s to receive, "The purpose
n-students mustof this joint ven-
ed by a student. ture is twofold,"
e to attendees. said A'subuhi
president Alan
Anderson. "Simply on a program-
ming level, cooperation of this type
is critical so as to avoid the problem
of different councils regurgitating
each others' programs." Anderson
cites the fact that Cameo, the
multicultural lounge of Couzens
residence hall, has already put on a
jazz show this school year.
"Most importantly," Anderson
continued, "we hope that this joint
venture will be a first step in promot-
ing a spirit of unity among all the
multicultural councils in University
residence halls." Acevedo agrees.
The jazz show, which is sched-
uled to begin at 10 p.m., will feature
PolyGram's newest Black recording
artist, Joya, a Detroit native. Also
performing during the jazz show will
be University junior, Patrice Petway,
who has already sung for a variety of
events this year, and jazz group, Art
of the Moment, led by saxophonist
Michael Henry, a recent University
alum.
A buffet-style dinner will also be
served to all in attendance at no extra
cost.
"This is going to be the biggest
and best Bronze Elegance ever,".said
DeJuan Woods, Minority Peer Advi-
sor for Alice Lloyd and M.Y.S.T.I.C.
advisor. "Just come."
decided to sing and in five minutes
there was a crowd of 100 people
around us."
But Amazin' Blue is about much
more than singing and tours. Though
they have sang for Jay Leno before
a show, performed with the Chief-
tains and at University events such
as Commencement and the Aca-
demic Convocation, there's a lot
more going on.
"It's notjust the performing. You
get to try arranging things and be-
come a better musician that way.
The arrangers are the ones that di-
rect the songs that they've arranged.
So, they get the chance to be a leader,
and to convey what they want," said
Bertman. Bhagat added, "We have
two rehearsals per week, and that's
just the surface. It's huge commit-
ment ... It's definitely worth it."
Austin Quinn put things into a
different perspective: "If you com-
pare it to a play or something, people
are rehearsing like 10 hours a week,
but you get on stage, and if you have
the lead, you're on the stage for
half-an-hour, 45 minutes tops. Here,
you're on stage for two hours -
maybe two and a half or three hours."
Their current set list includes
arrangements of songs by Peter
Gabriel, Billy Joel, Sting, Sarah
McLachlan, Pink Floyd and Dream
Academy, among many others.
The members of the group en-
courages everyone with interest to
audition for the group. Members are
music students, medical students,
political science, English, math, en-
gineering majors -- students from
every school.
The Mass Meeting is on March
26 at 6 p.m. in the University Ac-
tivities Center (UAC) offices for
those who are interested.
"We're all very comfortable with
each other," said Bhagat.
"We have to be or we'd go com-
pletely insane," added Robbe.
A voice piped up, "We're a fam-
ily, bickering and all." Bertman,
Nathan, Jen, Andrew, Sheetal, Aus-
tin, Kelvin and Scott all nodded in
agreement: "Yeah, we really are a
family."
Louis Armstrong's music lives on In the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra.
Satchmo tribute soars
By Brian Wise
Daily Arts Writer
If the sight of summer dresses and
short pants at Hill Auditorium
Wednesday night were sure indica-
tions that the deep south had paid Ann
Arbor a visit, the hot New Orleans
jazz offered by the Lincoln Center
Jazz Orchestra furthered that sense of
geographic displacement. For nearly
three hours, this 11-member ensemble
offered a showcase of that Crescent
City's greatest musical achievement,
with a tribute to Louis Armstrong.
The LCJO paid homage to the
-ff Lincoln Center
Jazz Orchestra
Hill Auditorium
March 15, 1995
trumpeter, singer, bandleader, and
composer by focusing on four pri-
mary periods in his career. These pe-
riods were distinguished according to
his association with various bands,
including early stints in New Orleans,
to his legendary Hot Five and Hot
Seven ensembles, to big band works,
and finally the All-Stars of the 1950's.
This installment of the tour was an
all-star occasion of its own, with a
mixture of "young lions" and sea-
soned musicians, under the direction
of trumpeter Jon Faddis. Throughout
the evening, Faddis traded licks with
fellow trumpeter Warren Vache, cap-
turing aspects of Armstrong's play-
ing without attempting a carbon copy
of his patented sound. As a result, a
portrait of Armstrong emerged from
the contrasting styles of these two
musicians.
Indeed, Faddis seemed to capture
Armstrong the trailblazer, with a fierce
upper register that cut bold, jagged
patterns over a more mannerly ac-
companiment ; he was truly a
trumpeter's trumpeter. Vache, on the
other hand, seemed more versed in
the style and idiom of New Orleans
jazz, showing greater elaboration and
nuance in his improvisations. He pre-
sented Armstrong the journeyman,
frequently searching for a bold new
phrase or melodic combination in his
rendering of the tune.
While the trumpet naturally takes
center stage in a tribute to Armstrong,
by no means did the remainder of the@0
band sit on the sidelines and play
cheerleader. Opening with "Snake
Rag", the group showed off the thick
textures of the King Oliver arrange-
ment with focus and energy. The de-
scriptive title was made clear as whirl-
ing melodic lines in the saxophones
were joined by slithering trombone
glissandi, courtesy of the outstanding
slide work of Wycliff Gordon.
The individual personalities of the
group were allowed to speak in solo
vehicles such as "Wild Man Blues", a
piece that Armstrong co-wrote with
Jelly Roll Morton. Faddis approached
this blues with a bold swagger, while
Victor Goines gave an impassioned
clarinet solo, replete with growls and
smears, and pianist Marcus Roberts
imbued it with a mixture of modern
harmonies and styles that made for a
striking and sophisticated contrast.
Roberts was to repeat this feat
later in the concert with a solo rendi-
tion of"St. Louis Blues." The rollick-
ing stride rhythms of this piece were
steeped in a dazzling array of allu-
sions to contemporary piano idioms,
yet it never lost hold of its more capri-
cious foundations.
The majority of selections by the
LCJO were standards that Armstrong
made famous, including the classic
"West End Blues", the blazing "Swing
that Music", and the sentimental
"Stardust." An educational as well as
artistic endeavor, both sets were
supplemented by film clips of
Satchmo at various points in the per-
formance. Each was a treat to watch
and hear.
Education also took on the form of
commentary by Faddis, as he joked,
"Louis Armstrong originally titled this
tune 'Spartan Blues', but he later
changed it on advice from his friend
King Oliver. It is now known simply
as 'Wolverine Blues."'
Along with attributes of musical
discipline-Faddis and company never
lost sight of the spirit that Armstrong
brought to jazz, with a lively sense of
humor and creative spontaneity.
Rise of the Robots
Time Warner Interactive
PC CD-ROM
For all the one-on-one fighting
enthusiasts out there, Time Warner
Interactive has released another CD-
ROM that once again pushes the
boundaries of sight and sound. In
the new virtual reality thriller "Rise
of the Robots," players take each
other on as robots in the future, and
attempt to mangle each other into
scrap metal.
The year is 2043, and robots have
taken over the universe. It is your
duty as a cyborg to destroy the other
evil machines. Aside from the cool
intros and other animated sequences,
this is simply a one-on-one style
fighting game, similar to the dozens
of other Kung Fu games, but set in
the future with robots.
Among the various playing op-
tions, players can choose to fight
the computer, or fight with another
human. The game features six dif-
ferent superbly animated robots,
each with their own special moves.
Other special features include op-
tional shadows for the robots, and
screen shake, which shakes the
screen each time a robot is knocked
to the ground, adding to the reality
of the game.
The action and fighting are fun,
but it is the computer animated clips
that blow "Rise" out of the water.
With super graphics and a thunder-
ous soundtrack by Queen's Brian
May, "Rise of the Robots" makes
for a somewhat simple and exciting
game.
- Brian A. Gnatt
I
Please return by best restaurants/bars for...
coffee_
March 31 to
the Daily at
420 Maynard,
48109. Results
will be printed in
the April 13
b,rgers
french fries
pizza
hot doge,
wgs
cheap beer
bar drinks
ice cream/frozen yogurt
chipati
sandwiches
subs
cookies
italian food
middle eastern food
chinese food
korean food
men's clothing
women's clothing
thrift/used clothing
bicycle sales/repair
books
textbooks
used books
haircut
first-run theater
video store
liquor/party store_______________
photocopying
sporting good
groceries
florist
travel agency
magazines
michigan items (sweats, mugs, etc.)
fraternity to party with
sorority to party with
coop
ugliest building
bathroom
lecture hal
best (and worst) entertainment
local band
dancing spot
concert in the past year
radio station
place to go when in an altered state
best (and worst) dating stuff
place to meet a mate
pick-up line
IRISH
Continued from page 8
decided to move my search into the
Alice Lloyd library. After pouring
through several hundred reference
books with no luck, I was beginning
to think that St. Patrick's Day didn't
really exist. After an hour of research,
the only useful information I had ac-
cumulated was that if I ever needed
info on Satan, I should look under
"Devil, the."
But, alas, I found it! In the last
book I could possibly look through, I
found a whole page and a half on St.
Patrick's Day!
It turns out that St. Patrick was
born in Scotland, of all places, and his
big claim to fame is that he overran all
the Druids when he introduced Chris-
tianity to Ireland.
(Can you imagine a bunch of Dru-
ids stairin a St. Patrick's Day oro-
Along with Molly's snake story,
the book also told a legend of how
demons in the shape of vultures at-
tacked St. Patrick. These demons
were subsequently drowned, in an-
swer to the saint's prayers. Some
people might explain these stories
by saying that St. Patrick was a
great man with supernatural pow-*
ers, but I have another theory. St.
Patrick was hallucinating because
he was DRUNK!
Yeah, that's right, everybody. I
tried to find some greater meaning
behind the holiday, but I finally just
came to the conclusion that many
patrons of local bars have been com-
ing to since they woke up this morn-
ing: there is no greater thing than a*
holiday which celebrates the art of
drinking. Beer, beer, beer and more
beer. That's the true meaning of St.
Patrick's Day.
So... throw on your favorite green