Friday
November 18, 2005
arts. michigandaily. com
artspage@michigandaily.com
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Courtesy of UMS
Concertante will perform at Rackham Auditorium tomorrow at 8 p.m.
UMS brings string
sextet to Rackham
By Jack Russo
Daily Arts Writer
Thousands, perhaps hundreds of
thousands of pieces, have been writ-
ten for four string instruments. So, for.
a string sextet like i
Concertante play- Concertante
ing a diverse and
exciting set can be Saturday, Nov.
more than an every- 19 at 8 p.m.
day trial.
However, the
ensemble, who will
be brought by the
Tickets $18-$36
At Rackham
Auditorium
University Musical Society to Rackham
Auditorium tomorrow, welcomes the
challenge, said Rachel Shapiro, violist
for Concertante.
The proactive Concertante takes on
the limited array of music with a few
strategies. First, the group performs less
familiar pieces by well-known compos-
ers. This allows the audience to simul-
taneously identify with the composer
while getting exposed by music they
have never heard before. "It is interest-
ing for the audience," Shapiro said. "The
come in here to hear a well-known com-
poser, but they get new music from that
composer."
Secondly, Concertante plays new
music by modern composers. Tomorrow,
Shaker Loops by John Adams will not
Monly be a UMS premiere, but also a high-
light of the evening: Although the ensem-
ble normally does not play the piece on
tour, Shapiro said, they made will be
making an exception at Rackham per a
special request from the University.
Shapiro said she is excited to play the
piece and that it will be as much of a
special occasion for the musicians as for
the audience. "(The piece) is patterns of
notes repeated and looped. The instru-
mentation is unique, with each instru-
ment having different loops. These loops
change but lock together, and you get this
... charged thing," Shapiro said.
Concertante has grown from a group
of visionary Julliard graduates to a revo-
lutionary string group with a core of six
members. The ensemble has thrived for
nearly a decade, keeping a deliberate,
progressive approach to their repertoire.
Aside from Shaker Loops, the perfor-
mance will begin with Strauss's "Sextet"
from Cappriccio, a piece with a "ni'e
length; it's romantic and lush for the
opening," Shapiro said.
Shaker Loops will come second, and
the finale is Brahms's String Sextet in B-
flat Major, Op. 18. There are strong con-
trasts between all the pieces, and Shapiro
anticipates the performance being "so
interesting to hear the beauty in very dif-
ferent ways."
Shapiro offered a more reflective
description of Shaker Loops. "You have
to go into this weird mindset. It is neither
romantic nor melodic. Yet, it is extremely
effective. I always enjoy the challenge
and the trips it takes," she said.
Concertante's modern spin on tradi-
tional string sextets will bring a distinc-
tive flair to Rackham Auditorium, while
John Adams's Shaker Loops shall enrap-
ture the auditorium with its novelty.
By Jessica Koch
Daily Arts Writer
Entering the University as an LSA freshman,
Ronald "Ronnie" Kendall needed to find his
niche. After taking part in
choir for four years in high
school, Kendall naturally
turned to the University of
Michigan Men's Glee Club.
"You can tell by how hard
they work and how they
strive to squeeze all of the
emotion out of what we're
singing that they love the
music," Kendall said.
Kendall will be a part of
the Glee Club's upcoming
Men's Glee
Club 146th
Annual Fall
Hill Concert
Saturday, Nov.
19 at 8:00 p.m.
Tickets $10-$15,
Students $5
At Hill Auditorium
JEREMY CHO/Daily
The Men's Glee Club will perform their first concert under the direction of new conductor Dr. Paul Rardin at 8 p.m. tomorrow at
Hill Auditorium.
MELODY MAKERT
MEN'S GLEE CLUB DEBUT NEW CONDUCTOR AT HILL
alum Dr. Paul Rardin. Rardin is also Associ-
ate Director of Choirs at the University, teaches
undergraduate conducting and leads the Univer-
sity Choir. Rardin took over after Prof. Stephen
Lusmann left in the spring to further his career
as a renowned baritone singer.
The Glee Club warmly welcomed Rardin: "I
remember at auditions when he took the time to
introduce himself and shake hands with every-
one there," Kendall said. "He is an energetic,
motivating person who strives for musical per-
fection while having fun."
In the upcoming months, Rardin will com-
pose a new Michigan song for the Glee Club
to sing for the first time in a decade. The new
composition will be based on lyrics for which a
contest has been created. Open to all students,
alumni, faculty and staff, the contest seeks lyrics
that celebrate different aspects of the University.
For more information, go to the Men's Glee Club
website: www.umich.edu/-ummgc/lyricscon-
test.html.
Under Rardin's direction, the Glee Club will
perform a variety of music at Saturday's per-
formance. "This concert will be particularly
interesting because of its enormous spectrum
of different styles of music," Glee Club Pub-
licity Manager Eric Bidelman said. "We have
named different sections of the show. Some
highlights include 'Psalms,' 'Sin,' 'Syllables,'
'Pseudo-South Africa,' and 'Spirit.' And, of
course, we'll end the show with a handful of
Michigan songs."
In the second half of the concert, octet a capel-
la group, The Friars, will join the Glee Club on
stage. As the oldest a capella group on campus,
The Friars are known for their rich voices and
charismatic humor. With five new members, the
group is sure to have a fresh sound that retains
the tradition of those in the past.
As he continues his freshman year, Kendall
will undoubtedly feel at home in the Men's Glee
Club. "It's nice to get out of the daily grind and
have fun just singing with one another ... We all
love to sing and we're all not too shabby at it ...
It's a perfect fit."
146th Annual Fall Concert this Saturday at Hill
Auditorium. It will be the first concert that will
be conducted by new director and University
Performance
addresses men
with eating
disorders
By Megan Jacobs
Daily Arts Writer
In his multimedia one-man showcase, "Muscle-
Bound, " Michael Feldman paints a sharp, more
detailed picture of men with body image disor-
ders, asking what drives them, what scares them
and why they hide their issues. His performance
on Wednesday night at Rackham Amphitheater
examined these questions through three charac-
ters: Josh, a 19-year-old gay male who is an exer-
cise bulimic who binges and then purges through
exercise; Jim, a muscular trainer who secretly
takes steroids; and Nicholas, a filmmaker who, in
documenting gym culture, falls victim to the dis-
orders he seeks to expose.
As if to parallel Nicholas's documentary, clips
from Feldman's own interviews are interspersed
throughout the theatrical performance. Men from
all walks of life - gay and straight, steroid users
and anorexics - reveal how their eating and exer-
cise disorders have developed, how much weight
they have gained and lost, and why, despite know-
ing the risks, they continue their behavior.
"Nothing tastes as good as being thin," admitted
one exercise bulimic.
In a courageous move, Feldman appears in the
documentary clips and tells the audience of his
own personal battle with eating disorders and
exercise bulimia. Added to the film are advertising
clips celebrating the Adonis-like ideal male image
and a fictional reality, show, "America's Next Top
Stud-Muffin."
Audiences responded well to Feldman's innova-
tive use of film as well as the humor that peppered
the performance. Feldman lightened the mood
with scenes of the love affair between Josh and ice
cream and Jim's extreme workout routine amid the
serious messages warning against the dangers and
motivations associated with these disorders.
University Health Service has opened up a
'wealth of new resources that address body image
A2 music venues vary in
attendance by students
By Gabe Rivin
Daily Arts Writer
It's Friday night. Students all over Ann
Arbor entertain themselves through the
town's cultural offerings. Engineering
senior Blair Willcox and LSA senior Julia
Farber are eating at Jimmy John's; they've
just come from Hill Auditorium, where
the Indian American Student Association
put on a cultural show. LSA freshman
Chelsea Allspach is getting a late dinner at
the Michigan Union, figuring out how she
will be spending her night.
Ann Arbor is a cluster of activity. Necto
is a club that serves as a dance spot and
weekend hang out. The Michigan The-
ater and The Ark host musical acts rang-
ing from indie-rock to blues and jazz, and
University Musical Society presents the-
ater and dance performance. A progres-
sive Episcopalian church, the Canterbury
House, hosts regular jazz performances.
According to Farber, however, it seems
that students pigeonhole themselves with-
in campus culture. "I think it's really sad
that people don't take more initiative," she
said. The degree to which students take
advantage of Ann Arbor's eclectic offer-
ings shapes their college experiences. And
it seems that most students simply aren't
experiencing Ann Arbor's diversity.
One problem that students face, All-
spach said, is accessibility. "I don't know
how to go about getting information," she
said. But it's not only freshmen who feel left
out. Kinesiology sophomore Darren Cun-
ningham echoed those complaints, saying
"(promoters) don't advertise enough."
Necto, a nightclub that can pack up to
600 people into its bi-leveled premises
each night, has a unique mode of market-
ing. Necto utilizes a small army of stu-
dent interns who contact their peers' cell
phones with text messages promoting the
club. Necto also has dedicated facebook.
com and myspace.com pages that promote
upcoming events. Head promoter Jon Rob-
inson said Necto takes advantage of "the
pack mentality." Relying on the tendency
for people to follow group decisions, Rob-
expensive shows attract few University
students. Necto only charges a $5 cover, if
any at all. And UMS offers student rush
tickets at an annual half-price ticket sale.
Location also plays a role in guiding stu-
dents. As the temperature drops, students
sacrifice activities that require going out
for the comfort of staying home. "Unless
things are very close, people are very dis-
couraged from going," Farber said.
According to students and promot-
ers, far fewer students than non-students
attend sit-down events. While last month's
performance by legendary saxophonist
Sonny Rollins drew about 1,080 students
- a relatively successful turnout for a
UMS show - to the 4,500-seat Hill
Auditorium, the numbers are still small
considering University enrollment. LSA/
Music sophomore Nils Klykken attributed
this to the perceived high-culture mental-
ity associated with such events. "It has to
do with musicians being very pretentious
- we have to prove that our field is valid,
that our art is valid and is there for a rea-
son ... It alienates lots of people," Klyk-
ken said.
Robinson attributes Necto's success
to its lack of social division. "We cater to
the common person, not just one type of
person," he said. Much of Necto's success
relies upon its socially inclusive attitude.
"When Nomo plays here, an intellectual,
artsy crowd will come ... You also get
nights where a stretch-Hummer will pull
up with sorority girls," he said.
Events at Hill or the Power Center may
lack student attendance because of stig-
mas associated with high-cultural events.
The Canterbury House's jazz shows only
draw in small crowds of the musical
avant-garde, and UMS shows at Hill tend
to be populated by an older, non-Uni-
versity audience. At the Michigan The-
ater, the poppier shows this season have
drawn in considerable student attceidance
- about half of the each show's audience
was populated by University students,
according to the theater's marketing
director, Lee Berry.
By senior year, students like Farber
nrZllrn~ a aescie aapeani
Michael Feldman performed In the one-man show "F
Dodde, health educator for UHS. "We brought
'MuscleBound' to campus because (Feldman's)
performance is compelling, theatrical and hard-
hitting. We hope his performance will help stu-
dents to see that all genders struggle with eating
disorders and body image issues."
"MuscleBound" also explores the double-stan-
dard regarding appropriate eating and exercise
habits for both men and women.
"I look at what we do when we're alone versus
otherwise ... the issues men hide so that they are not
marked as feminine or homosexual," Feldman said.
Feldman recognized himself in the subjects he
studied while compiling a piece on gym culture,
sparking a new self-awareness and motivation to
produce "MuscleBound." While researching, he
saw men struggling, undiagnosed, with body dys-
morphic disorder, a sensitivity to imagined bodily
flaws. This frequently leads to fixations on physi-
cal appearance or inverted anorexia - also called
muscle dysmorphia or "bigorexia" - in which men
PETER SCHOTTENFELS/Daily
Musclebound."
long-term consequences, to achieve perfect pecto-
rals or six-pack abs. Side effects typically refer-
enced as scare tactics, such as shrinking testicles
or acne, neglect to address the inevitable psycho-
logical changes that occur with steroid use. "When
a truly nice guy shatters someone's jaw, it makes
you realize that steroids really change a whole
psyche," Feldman said. "They make you someone
you never thought you'd become."
Recent controversy, particularly in Major League
Baseball, has-led to more public discussion of the
negativity of steroid use. Though the MLB has
fined and suspended players, the publicity has also
made steroids a topic of household discussion.
"It's frightening because, to a certain degree,
it's OK or accepted for an athlete to use steroids.
When it becomes acceptable to take drugs to
change a body,' where does it end? What effects
will that have on kids?" Feldman said.
Wednesday's well-attended performance of
"MuscleBound" was undoubtedly successful in