8.- The Michigan Daily - Weekend etc. - Thursday, January 12, 1995 Magazine helps keep eight tracks in mind UMS holds sale for students 4...P ,i Z v By TED WATTS Thinking of buying a new mini disc system? Or a DAT machine maybe? You obviously haven't spo- ken to the people at "8-Track Mind" ($2, quarterly). An unIssuming little fanzine hailing from East Detroit, "8-Track Mind"'s winter issue (#83) is a wealth of information concerning the underground community of people who dig those unwieldly plastic cartridges (or carts) that seem just so very trucker. Of course, a main thrust of the magazine is dispelling the myths surrounding carts. There are discus- sions in the pages that run the whole gamut of musical styles. There are mentions of recent finds of every- thing recorded from the Beatles, MC5 and Frank Zappa all the way to the more bastardized end of the spec- trum with Jimmy Swaggart. Apopu- lar topic of discussion that surfaces issue after issue is over the Sex Pistol's 8-track, which has a ten- dency to get more than $100 per unit. But the breadth of culture is not limited to the pre-Reagan era, either. A recurrent theme over several issues has been the existence of Madonna carts and the rabid reaction of several readers over them. Other snippets of information are also divulged. For instance, some carts also contain extra bits of music used to round out the end of the four paral- lel programs that make up the 8-track. Even more interesting is the fact that 8-tracks are still being made. One reader submits that Country Music Television ran an ad for Marty Robbins' "Number One Cowboy" on LP, CD, cassette and 8-track. With only a handful of these things being produced, the people who press them must not be on very sturdy ground. Maybe they make reel-to- reels too. Another major point of interest in the mag is the technical side of things. Gear heads probably sali- vate at the technical diagrams in- cluded to help you assemble a vacuum tube-based 8-track system. It's just a bit confusing for the non tech initiated, though. And this is for 30-year old technology! More accessible are the discus- sions in general terms about differ- ent ways trackers have found to re- habilitate damaged carts. Disinte- grating sponges and problems with pinch rollers might sound out there, but it's surprisingly entertaining. And I just know we can all relate to the problems of a quad system. Uh, then again, maybe we can't. The reasons for sticking with 8- track that come from the fanzine are a bit odd. Some contributors admit to a draw to obsolesence, but for the most part people express an affinity for analog music as opposed to digital. The arguments generally run along the lines that analog feels warmer sounding than digital. The levels of committment to this vary with the individual. Some are pretty easy going about it. Others refer to people who partake of digital media "CD traitors." In this issue, two ar- guments are presented about the soul of music and its closeness to 8- track. Brendan deVallance puts forth the argument that the tape in a cart is closer to the format that the music was recorded on than a CD, or even the similarly analog LP. Michael Tierney on the other hand goes off on a long diatribe against digital and for all things analog. He paints a grim (and fairly paranoid) vision of the music indus- try. Evil corporations killed analog, he whines, and the digital they re- placed it with is made up of modular pieces of information, not the con- tinuous grooves of a record or con- tinuous stream of magnetic particles on non digital audio tape. He claims that the music feels cold on a CD, because the music isn't a continu- ous wave, but only an approxima- tion. One of his suggestions of how to change this is by not buying music that is digitally mastered, even if it's on an analog format. This would seem to indicate that he cares much more about the format than the mu- sic. It's the less extreme and much more mystical philosophies es- poused in "8-Track Mind" that seem more enactable. The magazine is dedicated to analog and to the eight noble truths of the 8-track mind (al- though there actually seem to be nine of them; quite possibly a state- ment itself). There is an almost Aristotlian quality to the examina- tions of the parallel programs and self repeating nature of carts. The publishers of the magazine are soon to be breaking out into movies as well. "So Wrong They're Right" is a movie about 8-trackers from all over the place. There was a mention in response to a letter that it could be shown in Ann Arbor. We can only dream. "8-Track Mind" can be ordered from 8-TM Publications, PO Box 90, East Detroit, M1 48021-0090 for $2 for a single issue or $8 for a four issue subscription. Make checks out to Russ Forster. The University Musical Society (UMS), an organization responsible for bringing numerous world-re- nowned orchestras, vocalists and in- strumentalists to the Ann Arbor area, is holding their half-price student ticket sale on Saturday beginning at 10 a.m. at Hill Auditorium. At previous student ticket sales, UMS has kept students in line for eons, but spokespeople guarantee that this semester will continue the im- provement begun last semester when students had finished the entire pro- cess in under an hour. Student tickets for these events are not on sale for half-price because they are poor seats; rather, many excellent seats are still available for many of the Winter Sea- son shows. The following is a brief calendar of some of the events being offered on Saturday. Jean-Pierre Rampal, flute, January 25, 8 p.m. The Romeros, guitar family, Janu- ary 27, 8 p.m. The Society Bank Cleveland Or- chestra Weekend, February 3,8 p.m., February 4,8 p.m. (with Emanuel Ax, piano), February 5, 4 p.m., "Chamber Music with Members of The Cleve- land Orchestra" Noa, vocalist & Gil Dor, guitar, February 9, 8 p.m. Anne-Sophie Mutter, violin February 11, 8 p.m. Freiburger Barokorchester, Febru- ary 12, 7 p.m. Kodo Drummers, February 13, 8 W p.m. and Tuesday, February 14, 8 p.m. New York City Opera National Company presents Rossini's "The Barber of Seville", February 28, 7 p.m. (Family Show), Wednesday,- March 1, 8 p.m., Friday, March 3, 8 p.m., Saturday, March 4, 8 p.m., Sun day, March 5, 2 p.m. Hagen String Quartet, March 2, 8 p.m. Warsaw Sinfonia, March I1, 8 p.m. The Complete Solo Piano Music of Frederic Chopin, Part I, Garrick Ohlsson,piano, Sunday, March 12,4. p.m. Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra pre- sents "The Majesty of Louis.. Armstrong", March 15, 8 p.m. Berlin Philharmonic Woodwind Quintet, March 17, 8 p.m. Maurizio Pollini, piano, March 20, 8 p.m. Bill T.Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Co., March 24, 8 p.m., Saturday, March 25, 8 p.m. Cleveland String Quartet, Giora Feidman, clarinet, March 26, 4 p.m. The Complete Solo Piano Music of Frederic Chopin, Part I, Garrick Ohlsson, piano, March 31, 8 p.m. Anonymous 4, April 1, 8 p.m. Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, April 6, 8 p.m. Julian Bream, guitar, April 25, 8 p.m. Detroit Symphony Orchestra, May 14, 4 p.m. UAC is looking for motivated individuals for its executive board for a variety of positions DESCRIPTION:. friendly responsible team-oriented dynamic professional in attitude LAST SEEN: wandering on campus REWARDS: friends, fun, great satisfaction, excellent business experience If you fit this description, please turn yourself in to the UAC office at 2105 Michigan Union to pick up an application, or call 763-1107 for more information. Applications are due Fri, January 20th at 4:30 pm UAC, the University Activities Center, is the largest student-run organization on campus. We provide educational and social programming for the student body. Ohlsson breathes new life into beloved Chopin classics '0 CHOPIN Continued from page 1 Chopin was the master of small 19th century piano compositions known as miniatures. The majority fit into distinct categories, and many, such as the dance forms of the ma- zurka and polonaise, point to his Pol- ish nationality. He is also the com- poser of 27 etudes, 22 nocturnes, 18 waltzes, four scherzos, four sonatas and four ballades. He wrote other solo piano pieces as well (over 200 published works), many of which demand considerable dexterity and technique from the per- former. Yet unlike many other com- posers of his era, Chopin generally avoided the more flashy, virtuosic showpieces. Rather, he is known prin- cipally as a great stylist whose musi- cal temperament ranged from deeply introspective to picturesque to boldy heroic. Later composers such as Liszt, Scriabin and Debussy were influenced by Chopin's richly decorated melo- dies and opulent twists of harmony. He is also unique among composers because he has always been as highly esteemed by musicians as by the pub- lic. "Chopin has seemed to have main- tained his popularity since he wrote his music," Ohlsson related. "What's funny is that the critical estimation of him has gone up. There were a lot of serious-minded German critics in the 19th century who considered him ba- sically a salon composer, and he was not that important for that reason. Now he's considered by serious mu- sic writers in all countries to be one of the greatest composers, period - not just a beloved composerof piano mas- terpieces." Ohlsson undoubtedly considers the composer's enduring popularity an asset to his mission. He likened the scope of this upcoming series to a museum retrospective and admitted that "You can take Chopin's pieces and make an absolutely fantastic pro- gram for one or two recitals, but to do six really good programs, you can never make the ideal program." Ohlsson added that there are cer- tain considerations concerning the programming of 200-plus works over six installments. "For example, you need a contrast of mood between the various groups of pieces. You don't want to have three mournful noc- turnes in a row because the particular tragic quality of each will get buried. "Or within each opus of mazur- kas, you get a variety of music - lively, sad, tragic - and therefore they often go together very nicely in their opuses. So once I decided to play the mazurkas within their re- spective opuses, I had figured there are 11 different opuses containing mazurkas. Thus, each recital has to have 2 opuses of mazurkas, and one recital has to have one opus." This skillful balancing act will be evident with Friday night's program. As centerpieces he will perform the Four Mazurkas.from Opus six, Two Nocturnes from Opus 27, the Scherzo No. 3 in C-sharp minor Opus 39 and the Waltz in A-flat Major, Opus 42. The subsequent Ann Arbor dates for Part One of the series are March 12th and March 31st. The second half of the cycle will be completed in the 1995/96 UMS season. Aside from Ann Arbor, Ohlsson will give public performances of the cycle in New York's Lincoln Center and SUNY Purchase, located just outside of New York City. He cites the wide range and flexibility of the UMS concert series as a incentive for choosing Ann Arbor, as well as its location. "There is the fact that it is a very strenuous series to play, and traveling makes it difficult, so if one of them were in Los Angeles or Se- attle, that might get awfully compli- cated." For all of its difficult aspects,.,, Chopin is still as rewarding as ever for Garrick Ohlsson. "It's a wonder- ful opportunity to get to know they works of a great master in such de-r tail," he noted, "You really get a sense of how his mind thought. His music has so much structure as well as sur- face beauty, and I find myself getting more excited about the subtle details." He added, "People have been ask- ing me lately, 'Won't you be glad when this is over?' I said that while I might be relieved, I won't be glad because I really feel so saturated with Chopin's music and his musical think- ing. I'm having no trouble at keeping a fresh approach." GARR!CK OHLS$ON will perform thefirst of six installments of The Complete Piano Music of Frederic Chopin at Rackham Auditorium, Friday at 8 p.m. Tickets are $26 - $14 and student rush seats are $8, available at UMS Box Office in Burton Tower. 764-2538. ACTUARIAL EXECUTIVE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM SENIORS & JUNIORS. 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Individuals with strong math, analytical and communication skills should attend our Information Session to discover the fastest track to the top. We're also interested in talking with individuals who are considering an actuarial summer internship program. An equal opportunity employer. Thursday, January 19 at 7:00 p.m. Michigan Union, Wolverine Room From The Top of Your Class to The Top of The Rock. The-Young Women's Health Project University of Michigan Medical Center FEMME VOLUNTEERS NEEDED The Young Women's Health Project is conducting an ongoing, federally-funded study of nutrition and its impact on menstrual function. Subjects are needed who have experienced or are regularly engaged in any of the following behaviors: " binge eating " intense dieting or fasting " vomiting or other types of purging If you are interested, and you are a sophomore woman, you may be eligible to participate. For further information, please contact Eva Rosenwald, Project Coordinator at 936-4867. All subjects will be paid for their participation in this project. *. . ......... . . . "Sn'.iv .. . +..:."$:v :.{}r:"'"'.y': "}f. .......................... ..........:.... ...............:. ..... ?f "I'.r. ... .:1 f j NII i Save on pictures 1 y} j: ..:".:..;* ?:v:' iiit}-v :""i i. ..} I .. m . ..