The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, September 08, 2003, Page 6, Image 6
Classical music can be
accessible to masses
I
A few choice
albums can
open classical
sounds to the
average Joe
BY KIT CURTIN
THE (IAMECOCK
Would you like to start listen
ing to classical music? Perhaps
you are taking a music appreci
ation class, dating a music stu
dent or just wondering why this
seemingly archaic musical genre
has lasted so long.
Sometimes classical music
can De more
difficult to en
joy than other
forms of music
because it ex
presses ^he
sensibilities of
another age -
or, perhaps,
because it ex
presses too
well the disso
nances of our
own.
One reason so few young peo
ple listen to classical music is
that learning to appreciate it
takes time.
Modern ears aren’t used to
the sounds of the orchestra, the
string quartet or the sonata. It
is almost impossible to fully en
joy a piece of classical music
upon first listen. You must re
turn to it many times before the
work begins to take shape inside
you.
Once this happens, however,
it becomes a part of you, as inti
mate as your own inner mono
logue. It is something that you
can return to over and over again
throughout your life.
Samuel Barber, an American
composer, has written music
that is at times both modern
and beautiful. His “Adagio for
Strings” remains a standout
classical work. This piece is a
musical journey that begins
with almost inaudible chords
that grow into one of the most
intense climaxes in classical
music.
When performed, the piece
leads its audience on a journey,
wnicn can De
interpreted
differently de
pending on
the listener.
This piece has
been recorded
countless
times, and
should be
very easy to
find at the li
brary or
store.
Another essential classical
recording is German pianist
Emil Gilels’ collection of Edward
Grieg’s short pieces for piano
called “Lyric Pieces.” These
short pieces are inspired by
Swedish and Norwegian folk
melodies and have titles such as
“Solitary Traveler,” “Home
ward,” “Gone” and “Remem
brances.” Each piece creates its
own atmosphere, every one
uniquely vivid and palpable.
Some are joyous, some peace
ful, others sorrowful. All have a
haunting quality of remem
brance and longing. Regardless
of how many times one listens to
it, this recording never loses its
intrigue.
Despite the richness of these
recordings, nothing compares to
attending a live concert. As USC
students, we have unique oppor
tunities to listen to live classical
music.
The School of Music Web site,
www.music.sc.edu, offers a list
of all scheduled performances for
this semester. There are several
concerts each week, and many of
them are free.
On Sept. 23, the USC
symphony is playing
Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto
No. 1 with USC piano professor
Marina Lomazov, as well as
Sibelius’ Symphony No. 2.
Lomazov’s recent perfor
mances have been enthusiasti
cally reviewed, and this con
cert might be one of the most
exciting performances of the
year. The show begins at 7:30
p.m. at the Roger Center for the
Arts.
Learning to love classical mu
sic takes time, persistence and a
desire to find beauty. If you take
the time to listen, what you hear
can inspire your imagination
and awaken your sense of
wonder.
Comments on this story?E-mail
gamecockmixeditor@hotmail. com
Spanning generations,
classical music bridges
the old with the new,
combining technical
expertise with raw
emotion within its
crescendos and epic
finishes.
VISIT THE GAMECOCK
ON THE WEB AT
; i ■
www.dailygamecock.com
/• • • ^ ‘ * ' ' ' ' • * > ' '■ '
"On behalf of the USC Visitor Center
we would like to welcome back the elite
organization of the
University Ambassadors".
Lindsey Adair
Sean Bishop
Whitney Bridges
Alicia Buddin
Ryan Cannon
Brooke Davidson
Katie Dreiling
Kimi Goodwin
Sarah Holloway
Ryan Holtz
Jacob Hunter
Courtney Ingalls
Meredith Kahl
Emily Koziol
Patrice Ladson
-if you are interested
University Ambz
come to one of our inf<
Sept. 10 & Sep
at the USC \
Frances McCartha
Amanda Marshall
Erin Nelson
Katie Page
Ameenah Pridgen
Emily Purnell
Katherine Rochelle
Jasmine Smith
Anna Stewart
Elizabeth Sutton
Travis Thompson
Takieya Williams
Jeremy Wolfe
Carla Wynn
Karen Zatkulak
in becoming a
issador please
trmation sessions on
it 16 @ 6pm
Visitor Center.
MOVIE REVIEW
‘Camp ’ captures adolescence
“CAMP”
Directed by Todd Graff
★★★★★ out of
BY MEG MOORE
THE GAMECOCK
For the kids at Camp Ovation,
summer.camp is more than just a
way of wasting lazy days - it’s an
escape. The characters in “Camp”
have never been and never will be
prom kings and queens. They are
seif-described “freaks,” albeit tal
ented ones, who embrace Camp
Ovation as a place where being a
“misfit” is the norm.
“Camp” opens with the sound
of instruments being tuned; it
quickly erupts into a gospel-fla
vored musical number that es
tablishes the featured kids as
soon-to-be stars. Initially, such an
introduction seems unfittingly
sensational; movies do not usual
ly begin with musical numbers
unless they are, well, musicals.
Yet the musical number is dotted
with real-life snippets from the
characters’ lives — slivers of ex
perience that define a different
side of their lives. These snap
shots reveal the persecution and
insecurities that plague Camp
Ovation’s finest in their day-to
day lives; the performance
footage exemplifies the escape
and acceptance that summer
camp affords them.
Early on, by way of on-screen
titles, the audience is introduced
to the film’s self-proclaimed cen
tral characters — Vlad, Michael
and Ellen. Vlad stands at the mir
ror, looking debonair in a tuxedo;
Ellen is preparing for her junior
prom, which she is attending with
her older brother; Michael, who
cross-dresses, is attempting to en
ter his prom, only to be turned
away and attacked by a group of
his peers.
Although brief, these scenes in
troduce us to three individuals
having three different but related
high school experiences. By the
end of the film, the characters’ di
vergent backgrounds inevitably
still stratify them, yet they recog
nize one another as equals.
“Camp” does not concentrate on
defining differences, but on find
ing common ground.
The characters all struggle
with typical issues from weight to
family relationships to sexuality.
Although peppered with song and
dance scenes, the film centers on
those struggles and their subse
quent repercussions. The kids are
not only at camp to perform to
their hearts’ content, but to learn
a little about themselves and each
other along the way.
In the midst of capturing the
adolescent struggle, “Camp”
iiiius a wdy iu
deliver witty
one-liners and
comic mo
ments, as well
as a number of
show-stopping
dance scenes,
that keep the
film light-hearted despite its
sometimes weighty issues. From
the “If he’s gay, I’m Tyne Daly”
characterization of Vlad to the
antics of a vengeful ex-lackey, the
film plays off the characters’ cir
cumstances as well as it portrays
them.
The film’s dazzling stage scenes
also add flair, completely captur
ing the otherwise outcast youths
within their element. The Camp
Ovation kids can sing. And dance.
And act. The campers perform
numbers from various produc
tions, masquerading as every
thing from Follies to
Shakespearean tragedians. They
have flawless voices and amazing
poise despite the fact they are all
in the thick of their troubled
teenage years.
Adults play important parts on
screen as well. The aspiring actors
idolize the stories of Stephen
Sondheim, who appears as him
self in the film, sponsoring
Ovation’s end-of-the-summer ben
efit show. Vlad’s hero, Bert
Hanley, is an instructor at the
camp — as well as a washed-up al
coholic songwriter. He arrives at
the camp two days late after
“drinking for 72 hours straight.”
Although Bert is still spiking his
Shasta colas by the film’s end, his
enthusiasm for the stage is reju
venated by the kids’ inspired re
view of his works.
Overall, the movie aptly infus
es the comic with the serious
never veering into the realm of
“typical teen comedy,” yet steer
ing clear of overwrought drama
tization. “Camp” doesn’t resort to
violin-backed breakdowns or
“touching” scenes that overextend
their reach to engage audiences.
Instead of starring Jennifer
Love Hewitt as an outcast, mis
understood youth, the film em
ploys unknown, relatively every
day faces in original but recog
nizable roles. The characters are
naturally sympathetic — they are
not super human, Broadway
bound machines but genuine
.ttJiit;! iuu i ieeii£>
who only hap
pen to have ex
traordinary tal
ents.
Ultimatei- m
“Camp” d< ^
not solve any
mysteries of the
teen experience or even com
pletely explain the main charac
ters’ motivations. Yet it depicts
adolescence — especially among
the outcast — in a truthful light
as a period of learning, yearning
and self-doubt. The characters
never completely comprehend
why they do what they do; the au
dience is left similarly in the dark.
“Camp” refreshingly allows the
teen years to remain an enigma,
instead of offering ideal solutions
and a Cinderella ending. Things
may not always proceed as
planned, issues may not always
be flawlessly resolved, but
“Camp” is a place that at least
some inner part of us all has been ^
The movie is a worthy waltz back™
through those adolescent years
where, even amid the toughest of
times, summer was always on the
horizon to lure us forward.
Comments on this story?E-mail
gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com
The characters in
‘Camp’ are not only
talented, but believable,
average American
teens.
BRIEFLY
Simon and Garfunkel
plan concert tour
NEW YORK (AP) - Unless
they get in yet another squab
ble, it looks like Paul Simon and
Art Garfunkel are reuniting for
a concert tour.
The former duo has reserved
dates at concert arenas across
the; country, said Gary
Bongiovanni, editor of Pollstar,
a concert industry trade publi
cation. And they were scheduled
to make a “very special an
nouncement” at a New York
nightclub on Tuesday, publicists
said.
There has been talk of a tour
since Simon & Garfunkel per
formed together to open the
Grammy Awards ceremony in
February, and they’ve done the
logistical groundwork,
Bongiovanni said.
“Everyone’s been expecting
it,” he said. “It was still in the
speculative stages, because you
never know when Artie and
Paul will get in a fight and call
the whole thing off.”
The mega-selling folk-rock
duo broke up more than three
decades ago and they’ve had a
fractious relationship since.
They put their arms around
each other after singing “The
Sound of Silence” at the
Grammys.
They’ve reunited periodical
ly, most notably for a concert
tour of stadiums in 1983 and for
a series of shows in 1993,
Bongiovanni said.
The duo’s publicists wouldn’t
say anything Friday about the
announcement, to be held at the
Bottom Line.
The New York-bred duo,
known for Garfunkel’s angelic
voice and Simon’s writing
prowess, scored hits with “The
Boxer,” “Mrs. Robinson” and
“Bridge Over Troubled Water.”
Offstage, these old friends
had trouble creating the same
harmony. When he was induct
ed as a solo artist into the Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001,
Simon said of Garfunkel, “I re
gret the ending of our friend
ship, and I hope that one day be
fore I die we will make peace
with each other.”
After the audience applaud
ed warmly, Simon deadpanned,
“No rush.”
The Boss takes over
Fenway in Boston
BOSTON (AP) — Long before
the glory days, Bruce
Springsteen was just an opening
act at a small theater here, play
ing to a crowd that did not yet
know each word of his songs.
Watching one night in May
1974 was a Boston music critic
who would soon write: “I saw
rock and roll future and its
name is Bruce Springsteen.”
Now the Boss is traveling
the well-worn path back to his
Boston roots, to play a venue
whose legend matches his own.
On Saturday and Sunday
nights, Springsteen will per
form the first-ever rock con
certs at Fenway Park, bringing
his working-class ballads to
the quirky 91-year-old home of
Red Sox heroics and heart
break.
“Boston’s become over the
years just one of our really spe
cial places,” said Jon Landau,
the writer who penned the
famed review and became
Springsteen’s manager in 1978.
“I’m guessing that we won’t
have any shows that are any bet
ter than the shows at Fenway.
We just felt like it would be a
special thing.”
The chance to see a rock leg
end on Fenway’s near-sacred
turf has led to fierce demand lo
cally, with the 36,000 tickets for
each show selling out in less
than an hour.
“Literally, as fast as technol
ogy could handle the demand,
the tickets were gone,” said
Dave Marsden, a vice president
at promoter Clear Channel.
“This is a level above Bruce
Springsteen. This is ‘Bruce
Springsteen at Fenway Park.’
It’s a magical combination of a
very special artist and a unique
setting.”
As for Springsteen’s widely
known predilection for *he New
York Yankees, who are
serendipitously hosting the Red
Sox this weekend, the less said
the better.
Springsteen and his en
tourage have a special feeling
about Fenway, where many of
the band members played an im
promptu game of softball a few
years ago during a tour of the fa
bled park.
In winning permission from
the Red Sox’ new owners,
Springsteen will tread where
musicians as illustrious as Sir
Paul McCartney and Boston
Symphony Orchestra legend
Seiji Ozawa have tried but
failed to go. The last concert at
Fenway was 30 years ago,
when the Newport Jazz
Festival relocated there for a
two-day event that drew about
15,000 people.
‘Grand Ole Opry
Live’ leaving CMT 0
NASHVILLE, TENN. (AP) —
The live telecast of the Grand
Ole Opry is moving from
Country Music Television to its
smaller competitor, Great
American Country.
The hour-long country music
show, “Grand Ole Opry Live,”
has appeared on CMT every
Saturday night since 2001. It
draws 1.5 million to 2 million
viewers and was CMT’s highest
rated weekly series.
The move means the TV
broadcast will reach fewer view
ers. Great American Country,
started in 1996, reaches only 25.2
million U.S. households, com
pared to the more than 70 mil
lion households reached by
CMT. £
“There isn’t a bigger, longer^
running music show on TV to
day,” said Jeff Wayne, president
of Great American Country,
whose parent company is Jones
Media Networks of Englewood,
Colo. “It really puts us on the
map.”
Great American Country will
air “Grand Ole Opry Live”
Saturdays at 8 p.m. EDT and in
crease the number of repeat tele
casts. Repeats will be three
times on weekends and twicexm
Tuesday.