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THE GAMECOCK ♦ Monday, April 7, 2003 5 CONTACT US ™EY SA1D IT UU1' 1 ARISTOTLE: “While both friends and Story ideas? Questions? Comments? truth are dear, piety requires us to E-mail us at gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com honor truth above our friends.” r Rivers Music Festival SHOW REVIEW Left: Ludacris performs on the Coors Light Stage on Friday night at the 3 Rivers Music Festival. Above: Acoustic Syndicate jams out during its set on Saturday. Festival brings flood of music fans to Columbia for three days of concerts BY MARIANNE PARRISH AND CHRISTOPHER COYLE THE (iAMECOCK Despite the weather, the 3 Rivers Music Festival brought a mix of national talent to Columbia this past weekend, providing en tertainment for a variety of tastes. The festival kicked off in the' Vista on Friday with acts includ ing the Ohio Players, B.B. King and Ludacris. And besides playing host to various musical acts, the festi val featured the South Carolina Artisan’s Marketplace and a Kid’s Musical EdVenture. At the State Farm Stage, the S.C. Jazz Allstars, featuring Ron Westray, were less than impressive — their treatment of straight-up jazz bordered on clumsy. Meanwhile, Lakeside, a high volume R&B group circa the 1970s, was playing on the WOLO/BellSouth Stage. The best number was the band’s only stu dio-album success, “Fantastic Voyage,” which really got the crowd of 40-somethings movin’ and shakin’. Onstage, the band mixed fancy footwork with a unique blend of soul and funk sprinkled with melodramatic vocals, so the crowd knew when to cheer in those instances when the audi ence-flashing lights weren’t enough. Following Lakeside was anoth er Dayton, Ohio, group, the Ohio Players. As the show started, it be came increasingly difficult to nav igate between the vendors and the thousands of people carrying fold mg cnairs. While the par ents set up an impromptu chair city, their children walked across the festi val to see the more controversial acts Bubba Sparxxx and Ludacris, the night’s headliners at the Coors Light Stage. While Sparxxx, a white country boy from Georgia-turned rap star, put on an energetic and en thralling show, Ludacris’ act was less than stellar. While he per formed his more popular songs, in cluding “You’s a Ho,” he disap pointed avid fans with a ho-hum delivery devoid of his usual origi nality and style. Not disappointed were the pa trons of the Art Bar, who were treated to a free show, though from the bar’s parking lot, they were un able to enjoy the aroma of ganja floating through the air. Police broke up at least one documented fight, and undercover officers bust ed a number of individuals for pos session. Saturday’s festival events start ea in tne rain. Vendors strug gled to pull down tarps dur ing the brief showers that spurted across Columbia. The streets were nearly empty, and event staff and police huddled in small groups under umbrellas while devoted fans wandered, wait ing for the music to start. During the periodic showers, festivalgoers clustered in tents sponsored by var ious groups including theWational Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, the Free Times and the Girl Scouts. The Artisan’s Marketplace, however, was in full swing, with vendors selling work from local Despite the bad weather, the 3 Rivers Music Festival entertained thousands with its various musical genres. artists such as Ernest Lee, Columbia’s semi-famous chicken artist, who showcased new works on the Columbia shuttle explosion and the war in Iraq. The Blue Cross/Blue Shield Gospel Fest also provided visitors with a covered seating area that in cluded about 750 seats, while the South Carolina Education Lottery Stage was inside the Big Apple spe cial event building, behind the pub lic library. At the Gospel Fest, traditional gospel singer Debra Bailey enter tained a small crowd during the bad weather, including a number of festival employees who had noth ing to do because of the small turnout. Salty Roots, a funk-rock band, also played, and were fol lowed by Master’s Table, an old school rap group with a heavily evangelical message: “Yo, who you represent?” answered with shouts of “Jesus!” The South Carolina Lottery Stage provided an intimate setting, seating around 100, for quieter artists, such as the Laura Blackley Trio and John Fohl. The Trio’s ♦ 3 RIVERS, SEE PAGE 6 International Festival entertains and unifies \ BY GABRIELLE SINCLAIR TIIEUAMECOCK Although the world rides on in conflict and misunderstanding, a sense of unity pervaded the State Fairgrounds this weekend. The Columbia International Festival, in its eighth season, brought together the culture, food, history and language that create the quiet mosaic that is Columbia. The air was thick with the scents of spices — and with the smells of beef borek from Turkey; Squirrel Candy from Russia; ap ple crumb cake from Germany; Almojabano, a mouth-watering combread from Panama; and cof fee from Ethiopia. Designed for families and cer tainly kid-friendly, the festival has expanded since its inception. The first year, 30 countries participat ed; this year, more than 60 were represented, and this year’s event cost more than $100,000. The festival is held during the first weekend of April, and is a prime opportunity for South Carolinians to partake in the as sortment of faiths, cultures, foods and music that make up this often-stereo typed state. Raj Aluri, an Indian American, said the annual cele bration was started because “we have such a diverse commu nity in Columbia and we don’t re alize it.” “This is to ed ucate, to make known the for eign businesses in the area and to appreciate and celebrate cul tures and back grounds,” he said. Irina Ponomarev, who ran both the Russian and the Ukraine booths with her husband and daughter, said there is a signifi cant Russian population in the city. She estimates there are about 500 people of Russian descent, plus “perhaps 200 that we don’t know of.” Ponomarev returns home two to three times a year. She pulled out an inflatable globe to point out her hometown of Vinnitsa, Ukraine. This is her seventh fes tival. The entertainment began at 10 a.m. and lasted through 8 p.m.. the day ending with a tae kwon do exhibition. Dancers repre senting the Philippines also took the stage. They had been practic ing since February for their per formance, the highlight of which was the Tinikling, more com monly referred to as the Bamboo Dance. a :i.i_a i_ __s_ j. nun, a oowiiu gcuu a tion Filipino, has been participat ing in the dance for almost eight straight years. “I’ve been dancing it since the second grade,” she said. “It’s really fun and get to share my culture.” Dancers imitate the tikling bird’s legendary grace and speed as they skillfully play, chase each other, run over tree branches, or dodge bamboo traps set by rice farmers. This version of the dance is done between a massive pair of bamboo poles. The dancers risk being caught by the bamboo in their ankles. “I hope the parents of these children know they’re coming up here,” called out the emcee, only half-kidding. “Anyone can learn. But just so you know, we aren’t responsible if you get hurt.” Attendees were able to not only observe the sights and sounds of various cultures, but they could actively engage the exotic through language classes and other ex hibits. The most poignant of the events was the parade of nations, during which the flag of each rep resented country was marched through the congregation of on lookers. “Seeing all of those countries parading together brings tears to my eyes,” said Shel Ogbum, a vol unteer at the festival for the past five years. rm_ : __:_a_ai__1_ x iixj wimug lugcuiti ui pv.wpiu is essential for the improvement of relations between countries, Aluri said. “When people don’t know each other, this creates more problems than there are to begin with. When people come to gether like this, they can move past the stereotypes and resolve problems amongst themselves.” Comments on this story ?E-mail gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com PHOTO BY TRISHA SHADWELL /THE GAMECOCK Above: Angela Kim,10, giets ready before performing a Chinese cultural dance. Left: Nuzhat Hamed, from Indonesia, passes oht pretend passports to visitors and explains how they work.