9 p
0 0
AV
V
a v
6B - The Michigan Daily - Weekend agazine - Thursday, February 5, 2004
IT'S ALL ABOUT THE MUSIC
A CAPPELLA COMMUNITY THRIVES IN UNIVERSITY SETTING
The Michigan Daily - Weekend Magazine -
JESS PISKOR - COOK'NP' ASTORM
BREAKFAST
- NOT JUST ANOTHER WAY TC
By Megan Jacobs
Daily Arts Writer
No instruments. No backup. No help
from synthesizers or production teams.
Unusual guttural sounds referred to as
"vocal percussion." But nonetheless, a
whole lot of music comes out. This is
no ordinary garage band: It's a cappel-
la, straight up. From the Italian for "of
the chapel," a cappella music originat-
ed in the resonant smaller chapels with-
in larger European cathedrals. Unlike
the choral masses that sang in the main
chapel, a cappella groups, usually com-
prised of eight to ten, did not have the
luxury of organ accompaniment.
Hence, this unique group style was
born.
"It pretty much started with glee
clubs on college campuses," said Music
graduate student Josh Duchan of
Amazin' Blue. "From there, you begin
finding barbershop quartets and people
who start putting their own spin on it
until you get to where we are now." The
University hosts an array of a cappella
groups: two all-male, two all-female,
one Christian, one Jewish, one Asian,
seven co-ed non-denominational secu-
lar groups, all adding up to 14 rhythmi-
cally superior sensations. One rookie
group and the thirteen returning cham-
pions fill practice rooms and auditori-
ums with new arrangements on famil-
iar pop songs.
They chalk up the Diag and bombard
unsuspecting students with flyers.
Michigan a cappella is more than just
names on flyers, however; it's a society
unto itself. Driven by their love of
music and their need to support them-
selves financially, each of the 14
groups performs a fall and spring con-
cert on campus, in addition to out-of-
town gigs around the continental
United States Michigan groups also
bring in other collegiate troupes to per-
form at conglomerate concerts such as
MACFest, the Michigan A Cappella
Festival. Opportunities abound, how-
ever, to experience this finger-snap-
ping, mind-boggling world for those
who may have missed the series of fall
concerts.
Welcome to "Friday Night Live: A
Cappella Style." Hosted by Circle K as
a charity event, GMen, Amazin' Blue,
The Sopranos and 58 Greene will per-
form musical selections and skits
tomorrow at Rackham Auditorium. All
proceeds from this comedically harmo-
nized show will go to the Bates House,
an organization in Ann Arbor that sup-
ports the tutoring of homeless children.
Looking for the top of the ladder, la
creme de la creme, the best of the best?
The search stops at the International
Championship of Collegiate a cappella.
Just a short road trip away, quarterfi-
nals are at Penn State University on
Saturday. It's worth the weekend out of
town to see Dicks and Janes, Amazin'
Blue and GMen compete as three of six
chosen groups from across the nation.
From there, the top two groups advance
to semifinals right here in Ann Arbor.
The Compulsive Lyres, winners of the
ICCA competition in 2001, are co-
hosting this year's competition with
Dicks and Janes at Rackham on March
20.
"It's fun, a chance to perform, a good
With no accompanying instruments, a cappella groups flex their vocal talents.
ey - want to stay for
breakfast?" Sure, it's a
pickup line used to
entice someone to spend the night.
But with a little planning and a little
kitchen know-how, people will want
to stay not just for a steamy night,
but for steaming breakfast.
Pancakes are a quick and simple
breakfast that you can almost always
whip up with ingredients on hand.
You'll need milk, butter, eggs and
pancake mix. Now you could make
your own mix, but as much as it
pains me to say this, Bisquik will
work just fine, and best of all, the
instructions are on the box.
However, plain pancakes are pretty
boring. After you whip up the bat-
ter, try adding banana slices. The
banana will cook along with the
pancake and release an amazingly
sweet creamyness that you won't
believe.
For a richer pancake you can
also add a handful of chocolate
chips along with the banana to the
batter. If you are looking for a little
more healthy option, feel free to
throw in some sunflower seeds -
COMEDY
Continued from Page 10B
there's nothing like it... there's sim-
ply no job that compares with the
excitement, the thrill, the respect."
O'Donnell said, "It's the best stu-
dent job. You need to be irrationally
drawn to it though, because, while a
lot of my friends are going to grad
school or getting jobs, I'll be strug-
gling for awhile." O'Donnell plans on
relying on his other skills as well,
such as his screenwriting and play-
writing skills, adding, "Stand-up
comedy is the hardest industry to
break into, and I want to be able to
have other things. I want to use com-
edy as a platform to break into other
creative endeavors."
No matter how difficult the busi-
ness aspect of comedy is, everyone
seems to agree on the incredily
encouraging nature of the area comic
scene.
without shells of course! When
cooking pancakes, the lower the
temperature, the better. If the pan is
too hot, the outside will burn and
the insides will still remain gooey.
Pancakes can fill you up, but
sometimes they are a little too fill-
ing for a light breakfast. Grapefruit
has long been the symbol of diet
breakfasts and are somewhat derid-
ed for it. One way to spice up a
grapefruit is through the use of
anise sugar - keep reading, this is
worth trying.
You'll need to get some star anise.
It's a spice that comes in a star shape
and tastes like licorice. Crush one
star into a powder any way you can
(preferably with a mortar and pestle
you stole from the chem lab) and
mix it with four tablespoons of
sugar.
Take two ruby red grapefruits and
slice them in half horizontally like
you normally would. Use a knife to
separate the sections, cutting
between each membrane to separate
them a little so it is easier to get out
the sections, but leave them in the
peel. Arrange the four halves on a
Mikala Bierma, Music sophomore
and stand-up comic, said, "It's a sup-
portive network of people, like
Alcoholics Anonymous . . . except
we laugh more. It's a good place to
practice and grow. It's really fun and
lighthearted."
Vince Paparelli, an area comic,
explained, "After the performances,
the comedians are like a team.
Everyone wants to see everyone do
well." This message seemed to
repeate itself frequently.
Whether on a first date or just
hanging out with friends, live comedy
is a great way to be entertained. Once
you give it a chance, you'll be a fan of
it for life. To sum it all up, O'Donnell
reflected and said, "I was onstage and
I was just looking around at the audi-
ence, all packed in around these little
tables in a smoky basement, and
they're laughing and having a great
time. We're entertainers and it's
great."
baking sheet and dump one table-
spoon of the anise sugar on each
grapefruit half. Broil in the oven for
at least two to three minutes, until
the sugar begins to bubble. Remove
from the oven and eat with a fork -
the flavor is truly unusual.
Also, I imagine a lot of you don't
have star anise or a mortar and pes-
tle, but I really think everyone
should try this recipe - so if you
email me I'll be happy to supply you
with some anise sugar.
No breakfast would be complete
without eggs somewhere. I'm going
to assume everyone can fry and
scramble eggs. Another good and
filling egg option is to first saute up
a bunch of thinly sliced onions, then
add some other chopped stuff, like
broccoli, mushroom, spinach, pep-
per or whatever else you have and
cook until everything is nearly done.
Crack in about five or six eggs and
mix them up a bit to break the yolks.
Cook covered, on low heat until the
eggs become mostly solid -- try to
flip the whole mass over if you can
to cook the runny eggs on top. You
can always add a big handful of
shredded cheese. Some good sea-
sonings to add to the eggs include
salt, pepper, basil, oregano, sage,
red pepper flakes, chili powder and
ginger.
Okay, these ideas are great, but
really, with a few exceptions, how
often do we really have time for
breakfast anyway? What is needed
are quick and easy breakfasts that
you can make on the run.
Smoothies are remarkably filling,
nutritious, portable and speedy.
Grab a blender and throw whatever
you've got fruit wise into it - mak-
ing sure to remove any peels or
rinds or anything. Oranges, bananas
and canned pineapple or peaches are
always great starters and are usually
around. To add a little more flavor I
keep a bag of frozen fruit in the
freezer such as blueberries or rasp-
berries. These fruits add a nice fla-
vor and good color.
Mix it up in the blender with
some yogurt and some fruit juice to
keep it liquidy. If you want it cold-
er, add some ice, and if you really
want a rich thick smoothie don't shy
away from adding an extra big
BOSTON UNIVER
show. And you can make a little money
on the side," said Music sophomore
Rebecca Blinder, a member of the
Compulsive Lyres.
U. U
UM School of Music
Univ. Dance Co. & Various Musical Artists
04
Out-of-town groups crash in Ann
Arbor. "I'm assuming they are staying
at our houses," said LSA sophomore
and Dicks and Janes member Stephanie
Fajuri, "unless they are paying for the
hotel themselves."
The final round will be held at the
Town Hall Theater in New York City on
April 25. "It's a high stakes game that
can be a lot of fun to play," said
Duchan.
If winter semester class schedules do
not allow a moment of time for
extracurricular activity, the a cappella
crews have you in mind. Once again,
the Best Of College A cappella is
releasing a BOCA CD this spring.
Groups from far corners of the United
States submit recorded tracks by Nov.
1, which are narrowed down to the top
16. Two Michigan groups are featured
on this year's CD, Dicks and Janes with
Moby's "Porcelain" and Amazin' Blue
singing Tori Amos's "China." Amazin'
Blue is one of two groups tied for the
most appearances on BOCA. Since
most a cappella music goes unrecorded,
this is a somewhat unusual venture for
most groups. BOCA features tastes of
the best live acts, as well as those who
specialize in recorded work.
Additionally, several groups on campus
record their own individual CDs every
few years.
Ready to jump on the bandwagon
with thousands of other college stu-
dents across America? Pay attention to
flyers and chalk art around campus, or
check group websites to find out spring
concert dates. Tickets for most events
are available at the Michigan
Underground Ticket Office in the base-
ment of the Union.
"We do this because we love to sing
and love to sing with others who love to
sing" said Duchan.
ENGLISH SPEAKING PROC
LONDON
SYDNEY
DUBLIN
AUCKLAND
LOS ANGELES
WASHINGTON, D.C.
mmm"
FO &W
* Guaranteed internships from over 3,000 active sources
" Customized internship placements; broad selection of cours
* Guaranteed housing in furnished apartments or homestays
" Easy credit transfer
* Full-time administrative staff at all program sites
* Exciting excursions and cultural immersion
www.bu.edu/abroad
Financial aid is available
F
YTI C E S
Choreography by guest Alonzo King and faculty
Delanghe, DeYoung, Fogel, Leney-Midkiff, and Sparling
Music by Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, Shostakovich &
Prokofiev under the direction of Jonathan Shames
Feb. 5 - 7 at 8pm - Feb. 8 at 2pm * Power Center
Tickets $20 & $15 * Students $8 with ID
LeagueTicket Ofice 734-764-2538 .
r
IMPORTANT REMINDER!
Wolverine Access will be unavailable from 5:00 p.m. on Thursday,
February 5th until 7:00 a.m. on Tuesday, February 10th while the
system is being upgraded.
Contact your school or college, or the appropriate central office, if
you need assistance while Wolverine Access is unavailable.
Thank you for your cooperation,
Michigan Administrative Information Services
Nl
Boston University
International Programs
232 Bay StateRoad
Boston, MA 02215
617-353-9888
Fax: 617-353-5402
abroad@bu.edu
At
I
r
..3
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
c 4 0 ; i 4 4
. r r
___ u 71
l