.. ARTS The Michigan Daily - Friday, December 8, 2000 - Brubeck proves why he's outlasted critics in Jazz' The Hartford Courant Curtesy of A m lue Amazin' Blue will perform selections from its latest CD, Raising the Bar, tonight. Go 'Blue'* A cap elia jtMichigan tonight When Dave Brubeck utters a heartfelt sob as he recounts his shocking boyhood encounter with the horror of racism in America, Ken Burns' documentary "Jazz" soars to its most emotionally wrenching heights. Brubeck's moving cry from the heart on camera is one of the darkest, most soulful blue notes struck on TV in years. It is a rare, genuine piece of reality tele- vision that is about something of sub- stance. It's about our past, present and future. This fleeting yet powerfully mov- ing moment pops up out of the blue in the seventh episode in the ten-part, near- ly 19-hour documentary, which pre- mieres Jan. 8 on PBS. Looking lean and stoic, Brubeck was interviewed in the quiet sanctuary of his Wilton, Conn., home where he and his wife lola raised their six children. After talking about his experiences as an infantryman in World War II, he recalls the first time he faced the mark of racism when he was a boy growing up on a California ranch managed by his father, a rugged harmonica-playing cow- boy and state champion steer roper. The silver-maned, craggy-faced jazz legend tries desperately to hold back his tears but can't. "The first black man that I saw," he remembers, "my dad took me to see a friend of his and asked him to 'Open your shirt for Dave.' There was a brand on his chest. And my dad said, 'These things can't happen.' That's what I fought for," Brubeck says. A pianist, composer and band leader, Brubeck is one of the most successful and famous jazz musicians. He also has been one of the most unfairly maligned figures during jazz's 100-year history. When he soared to success in the 1950s, writers savaged his music, declaring it bombastic. Other critics damned it as effete. Some critics groused that recognition had come far too easily. It was almost as if this "cool West Coast" musician - a meaningless description he despises - never paid dues. Others charged him with being a usurper, a kind of Great White Hope basking in the media limelight that should have been reserved for black giants such as Duke Ellington or Thelo- nious Monk. Just three years after his quartet was formed, Time lauded Brubeck for his "deep, almost mystical seriousness," with which he made "some of the strangest and loveliest music ever played since jazz was born." Even with the magazine's huge boost and purple prose and praise, Brubeck still says making the cover was "a mixed blessing." It was "mixed," he says, because of the reaction from critics and because he and Ellington were great friends. Critics declared that Brubeck's music, with its "European elements" - actual- ly, the odd time signatures and drummer Joe Morello's polyrhythms were more like African elements -undermined the rich black heritage of jazz. Yet Brubeck has always acknowledged his debt to the music's bedrock black legacy and its incomparable black masters and innova- tors. For Brubeck, his friend Duke is, was and always shall be the greatest of American composers. "I heard a knock on my hotel room door first thing in the morning, and there was Duke standing in the doorway: 'Dave, you're on the cover of Time mag- azine.' My heart sank. I wanted to be on the cover of Time after Duke. It was the worst thing for me to be before Duke and to have him deliver it to me and say, 'Here it is, Dave."' Brubeck's piece, "The Duke" his lyri- cal homage to his friend, has become a jazz standard. Sometime later, Ellington became the next jazz musician to make Time's cover. Perhaps because of that boyhood experience of seeing a branded black man, Brubeck always took a stand against racism. Jazz, he says, is "free- dom music" In the 1950s, sacrificing many lucra- tive concert dates in the South, Brubeck refused to go along with racist laws and customs that banned white and black musicians from playing together in pub- lic. Eugene Wright, a black bassist, was a member of the classic DBQ, taking over in 1957 from white bassist Norman Bates, remaining with the group until it disbanded in 1967. On one Southern tour, he canceled 23 of 25 dates because they didn't want Wright on stage. For Brubeck, turning 80 is certainly not a sign to take five Although he has had triple bypass surgery in recent years, he still plays more than 80 nights on the road annual- ly and makes European tours the way more ordinary folk make jaunts to the mall. Will the maestro, who as pianist and composer has bridged the gap between jazz and classical music as few. have, ever quit? "Not yet. Not as long as I'm healthy, Travel is the hardest part. Playing is the easiest and most fun," he says. s sa Rajt Q T: its Writer Covering everything from Dave Matthews to Wyclef Jean to the Dixie Cicks, the University's oldest co-ed a' cappella group Amazin' Blue rarely disappoints at live shows. Continuing this tradition of excel- ledt; musicianship tonight, Armazin' i ll perform "Iron Clef," in their 1 5th year here at the University of Michigan. What can one expect y Amazin' to hear at the Blue: Michigan The- ron Clef' ater tonight, J irn 0>f ' besides the rous- Michigan Theater ing harmonies Tonight at 8 and well- those their voices to make diverse sounds. In Amazin' Blue, members of the group arrange the songs in this non-instrumental style themselves. Founded by graduate student Mike Wang in the mid-80's, the group has had some amazin' successes. Their recently released CD "Raising the Bar" is currently at number seven on the "Mainly A Cappella" charts. This marks the first time in history that any college a cappella group has ever been in the top 10 of the charts. Yet another success has been amongst their peers in the college a cappella genre. Each year a CD called the "Best of College A Cappella" is com- piled and includes 15 of the most out- standing college a cappella songs in the nation. This year, "Millennium," originally a Robbie Williams song, was selected for the compilation. David Reiser, Amazin' Blue's Musi- cal Director, says, "they pick 15 songs, and we've been on there every year except for one." No single group in the country has been on more often. At "Iron Clef," expect to hear some old Amazin' favorites including "Mil- lennium" and "Why Should I Cry for You;' as well as some new soon-to-be classics. Here are some hints about what to expect: Devoted Barenaked Ladies and Counting Crows fans are in for a treat. Classic rock fans, sur- prisingly, will not be let down, either. I I N arranged songs that the group is known for? In addition to the usual feast of eclectic tunes, added some fea- Want A Challenge'? .a experience the magic! he' Tempst By William Shakespeare UM School of Music M Dept. of Theatre & Drama December 14 -16, 2000 at 8 PM + Power Center Tickets $20 and $15 " Students $7 with ID League Ticket Office " 734-764-0450 Amazin' Blue has tures to their live show that are sure to make it even more engaging: The highlight will be choreography and skits not previously seen at Blue's live s 's, now possible due to a recently based sound system. T,he a cappella musical style is characterized by a lack of instru- ments. Instead, the members use Enroll in the Air Force Officer Training School. 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