e Hopwood Awards ceremony takes place t awards ceremony honors outstanding writing John Barth will give the opening lecture. The some of the finest writing talent this side of t ceremony begins at 3:30 p.m. at Rackham A is free. 'Hootenan By Curtis Zimmermann Daily Arts Writer Over the years, trends in popular music have come and gone, but country music has main- tained popularity despite the ever-changing musi- cal landscape. Anyone who doubts the music's incredible staying power would have been turned a full-fledged believer Saturday evening when the George Strait Country Music Festival came to the Pontiac Silverdome. The show's four headlin- ers, Faith Hill, John Michael Montgomery, Tim Country McGraw and George Music Strait, proved that not only Festival is country a very diverse Silverdome form of music, but that it is April 18, 1998 still a growing musical genre. In the parking lot before the show, there was a mas- sive traveling side show simply called Straitland, In this bastion of American country culture one could meet Jimmy Bedford, Jack Daniel's master distiller, get free samples of GPC cigarettes and Skoal chewing tobacco, look at the new line of Chevy Trucks, edance, and even sing all-country karaoke. Filling this massive area was a literal sea of cow- boy hats, tight jeans and large belt buckles. The first featured performer was Faith Hill who was probably the least country of all the acts. Most of her songs had more of an adult contem- porary feel with only the steel guitar bringing Panel discusse: creation of musical geniu By Christopher Tkaczyk Fine / Performing Arts Editor Yesterday marked the world premiere of a ne, r sical written by Music senior Sam Davis a goduate student Ron Nyren. "Mina & Colossu is based upon the life of Mina Loy, a poet a visual artist who fell in love with boxer / pC Arthur Cravan during the '20s. The show directed by Music professor John Nevil Andrews and is produced by Music Prof. Joa Morris. Mina Loy was born in London in 1882 and tra led throughout much of Europe, includit Munich, Paris and Florence, before settling in ti United States. Loy's frien included Man Ray, Jam Joyce, Gertrude Stein an The Making Marcel Duchamp. The st dents found inspiration fi of Mina and the musical in the bo Colossus "Becoming Modern : Tl 1534 Rackham Life of Mina Loy," by form Today at noon Berkely Prof. Carolyn Burk Burke arrived in Ann Arbc Saturday to witness the musi cal's premiere. Today at noon Burke, along with Davis at Nyren, will appear in a pane discussion about Mina L( and the creation of the musi al. Burke was first introduced to Mina Loy whe he was studying in Paris in the '70s. "I rea nany expatriate memoirs and her name was men ioned over and over. I did some research ar ound some of her poetry, which I discovered t, shockingly modern. I became more and mor i rested," Burke said. Burke's biography of Loy describes her as odern woman. "She was a woman trying 1t hrow off conventions of Victorian age," Burk xplained. "She was determined to live mor reely as an artist. She was a political social beir ebelling against artistic social upbringing." Mina's life was not entirely glamorous, as he ove life and career provided for an unhappy exis ence. "Much of the time Mina was disappointei Chef k out the) Dahe htt.ou/ .LbgaI oullb glad yc oday. This Bi-annual by students. Writer event acknowledges he Mississippi. The uditorium. Admission Ire £tdli$gan Daig fomorrow in Daily Arts: U It's the final Breaking Records of the semester featuring "The Player's Club" soundtrack. Monday April 20, 1998 11 rocks Silverdome them back across the boundaries. As she sang, she moved about the stage in a seductive manner, proving that pregnant women can be still be incredibly sexy. She performed all of her hits as well as her new single, "This Kiss," which had a rather psyche- delic feel. Two of her best numbers were actually re-worked interpretations of Leo Sayers' "When I Need You" and Janis Joplin's "Piece of My Heart." After a set that lasted nearly an hour, she left the stage to the howls of a crowd that was slowly starting to filter in from outside. Heartthrob John Michael Montgomery appeared next. He came on stage playing the upbeat "Be My Baby Tonight." After a few songs he slowed the pace of the show down playing mel- low hits "I Swear, "I Can Love You Like That" and "Angel in My Eyes." What seems to hurt Montgomery's live show is not his music as much as the fact that so many of his biggest hits have been slow songs. Too many of these plodding singles definitely hurt the singer's overall performance. But toward the end of the show he rebounded back from the part of a quiet balladeer and became a rocker again. After an intense "Cowboy love," he changed the pace of the show with the line dancing anthem "Sold!" But it was not until after he got the Silverdome worked up in a hoote- nanny-style frenzy that he changed paces again with the honkey tonk "Sweet Home Alabama." During this tune he dazzled the crowd with a final electrifying guitar solo. Next up was Tim McGraw, who was recently named Country Music Television's male artist of the year for 1997. McGraw's stage setup featured a two-story drum riser with a large sprawling stairway, look- ing more like something out of a Bon Jovi concert than out of Nashville. He blasted on stage with a rousing rendition of "Indian Outlaw." As he played the tune it became clear why he is one of Country's hottest artist's. His combination of a little bit of rock 'n' roll and a little bit of country unfurled in his dazzling on- stage persona. Throughout his show, McGraw combined his older material with songs from his current album "Everywhere." In addition to the title track, he played "One of These Days" and "Hard on the Ticker." Another thing that stood out during his show was the lead guitar player in his band whose rifs seemed to carry McGraw into an new level musi- cally. After a near flawless set he returned for an encore and sang the intro to "Its Your Love," the hit duet with his wife and fellow performer Faith Hill. It was no surprise that she joined him on stage for this number, which was both corny and also mesmerizing. After Hill left the stage, he closed the set with "I Want Some More of It," He then left with the howling crowd screaming the song's chorus, "I like it, I love it, I want some more of it." After three amazing performances, George Strait, country music's reigning king, came on stage. His style of music was much more tradi- tional compared to the other performers on the bill. Complete with twangy guitars and dueling fid- dles, he seemed to belt out hit after hit with the entire crowd signing along to songs about love, gtourtesy or Warner Bros. George Strait brought down-home country to the Pontiac Sliverdome this past Saturday. love lost, rodeos and even a "Song About the Heartland." What was equally amazing about his show was his the widespread appeal of his songs, from the traditional blue grass number "Mama Tried" to his newest hit "Check Yes or No:' It seemed like the man could do no wrong. After a two-hour set, Strait left the stage, thus ending the Detroit stop of one of the most hyped mega tours of the summer. The show was a success because it combined more established artists such as Strait and Montgomery with relative newcomers Hill and McGraw who are just starting to reap the benefits of commercial success. With the death of Lollapalooza, this could very well be one of the nation's premiere touring package. Whitley proves talent By Gabrielle Schafer Daily Arts Writer Chris Whitley's show at the Magic Bag in Ferndale was proof both of his incredible talent and his relative obscu- rity. Many in the crowd at Magic Bag had never even heard of Whitley before coming to the show, but by the end of his set, the crowd was cheering him back onstage for encores. Whitley's opening act, Melissa Sheehan, was spunky spitfire to Whitley's cool, mysterious onstage per- sona. Sheehan was raw and confident, sounding at times like a young Sinead O'Connor. Her talent is obvious, even underneath all the sarcasm she threw at the crowd. After Whitley thanked his "smart aleck" opening act, he played a two-hour set that captivated the audience. He shared his signature blend of blues, country and rock, singing melancholy songs about love, loss and wanderlust. He started the set with "Long Way Around," a track off of his most com- mercially successful album, "Living With The Law." Most surprising about Whitley's performance after listening to his studio recordings is the incongruity between his powerful voice and his diminutive size. In person, Whitley is slender and shy, keeping his eyes towards the floor and pushing his hair away from his face every 30 seconds. But when his gospel preacher-esque voice and superb guitar stylings take over, he seems larger than life. Between each song, Whitley rotated between an acoustic guitar, a banjo and a National Steel guitar. Whitley is most renowned for his deftness with a National Steel, an instrument very few musicians can still play masterfully. His guitar playing is nothing short of awe- inspiring, and it is no wonder that it has brought him critical acclaim. Playing his guitar, keeping the beat by tapping a floorboard in front of the mic, it sounded like Whitley was play- ing with a full back-up band behind him. He played with such depth and variety and his voice was so powerful that the resulting sound was over- whelming. It seemed more than one man could create by himself. The highlight of the set was Whitley's a capella version of "Big Sky Country," as he changed one of his most recognizable songs in an unpre- dictable way. Relying solely on the sen- suality and power of the lyrics, Whitley had the crowd hanging on his every word. Women were swooning as Whitley sang of watching "lovers as they slip and slide" "Kick the Stones," which is best Chris Whitley Magic Bag Aprii 16, 1998 known as the song played dur- ing Brad Pitt and Geena Davis' love scene in the movie "Thelma and Louise" was another crowd favorite. Whitley played songs from all four of his albums, including his newest release, "Dirt Floor." He fin- ADRIANA YUGOVICH/Daily Amanda Satchell and Matt Witten star as Mina and Arthur In the musical "Mina and Colossus." and sad. She may be a role model in the idea that she was a risk-taking experimentalist. She was a remarkable poet, a brave woman who I looked up and to wanted to learn more about," Burke stated. As for "Mina & Colussus," Burke hadn't seen any version of the musical until this past week- end. "I was contacted by John Neville Andrews, and I thought "This would be so much fun. How delightful!" Burke exclaimed. "I was sent the first draft, which I read. I extremely like the lyrics. (The students) definite- ly got the spirit in their medium," Burke said. "A musical is such a hard thing to tell a story with because factual details have to be condensed. But 'Mina & Colussus' seems right and feels right." As for Burke's novel, the book has received wide acclaim. "Many critics have said that this is a good introduction to the modern art movements of the '20s. Dadaism, futurism, and surrealism are all explored. There were many left-wing political types in that era. My book explains the differ- ences in the radical political and radical artistic circles. It gives a lot of help to understand aspects of modernist art. - "Mina & Colossus" will be presented tonight and tomorrow in the Media Union on North Campus at 8 p.m. Tickets are free, but a reserva- tion is required through the League Ticket Office or by calling 764-0450. On Friday it was report- ed that most of the performances were sold out. ished the performance with "Loco Girl," a slow and quiet ballad about soulmates. Watching Whitley perform with such power in front of such a small crowd, it is clear that his talent isn't fully realized or fully appreciated. His performance was completely organic and real. He gave a performance based on the power of his playing and his vocals, without any gimmicks. Whitley proved to the crowd in Ferndale that he is the real deal. 0 ATTENTION STUDENTS ARE YOU A MARKETING MAJOR, BUSINESS MAJOR OR FUTURE ENTREPRENEUR? 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