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Campus News
The Clarion | Dec. 10,2010
Steep Canyon Rangers to play at Porter Center
Brevard College and Mountain Song
Productions will present an evening with the
Steep Canyon Rangers at 8 p.m. on Thursday,
Dec. 16 at the Porter Center for Performing
Arts.
This show marks the beginning of a new
partnership between the College and Mountain
Song Productions, producers of Mountain Song
Festival. There will be a pre-show reception
with complimentary beverages starting at 6:30
p.m.
“It seems appropriate to have the Rangers
inaugurate the new beginning for the Porter
Center; local artists with strong connections
to the community and national recognition,
celebrating 10 years as a band,” said John Felty,
talent buyer for the Porter Center
The past year has taken the Steep Canyon
Rangers to new heights. During that time, their
latest record. Deep In The Shade, stayed on
the Billboard Bluegrass Top Ten for 18 weeks.
Along with actor/banjoist Steve Martin they
have headlined Merlefest and Bonaroo, and
appeared on Late Night with David Letterman
and Austin City Limits. Known for their smooth
vocals, smart songwriting, ferocious instruments
and jaw-dropping harmony, the Rangers are
Library hours for
exam week:
• December 9-10 (Friday):
8:00 am to 11:00 pm
• December 11 (Saturday):
8:00 am to 6:00 pm
• December 12 (Sunday):
Noon - 11:00 pm
• December 13 (Monday):
8:00 am to 11:00 pm
• December 14 (Tuesday):
8:00 am to 6:00 pm
Study, ask a question, find informa
tion, worl in a group, print a report,
meet a friend.
Free coffee available most days —
bring your own mug if you like, or
cups are available.
Space for rent!
For advertising rates and more
information, visit us online:
www.brevard.edu/clarion
bringing bluegrass to music lovers across the
USA and around the world.
The Steep Canyon Rangers include Brevard
College alum Mike Guggino '98 (mandolin),
Charles Humphrey III (bass). Woody Platt
(guitar), Nicky Sanders (fiddle) and Graham
Sharp (banjo). A true band of brothers, the
Steep Canyon Rangers have developed from
college picking buddies in Chapel Hill, N.C.
to one of the premier acoustic ensembles of the
day. For the last 10 years they have dedicated
themselves to creating a new and powerful brand
of bluegrass that is distinctly their own.
The Rangers have shown a willingness to
take bluegrass beyond its traditional borders,
performing 120+ shows a year, ranging from
bluegrass venues to rock and roll festivals, from
opera houses to the Grand OF Opry. In 2006,
the International Bluegrass Music Association
named the Steep Canyon Rangers Emerging
Artist of the Year
“This show will be really nice in that we
get to perform a whole show without the time
constraints we usually are under in a festival
setting," said Woody Platt of the Steep Canyon
Rangers. "It gives us the chance to try out new
material and also gives the opportunity for the
audience to experience the full spectrum of our
performance. This makes for a special evening
with the hometown crowd."
All seats are reserved and tickets for the
performance are available at Rockin’ Robin
Records, Celestial Mountain Music and online
at www.theportercenter org. To order by phone
call 800-514-3849.
The Steep Canyon Rangers are scheduled
to play at the Porter Center on Dec. 16 at
8 p.m. For ticket information go to www.
theportercenter.org or call 800-614-3849.
Southerners remember SC secession
Chardston, SCplans to hold Secession Ball to honor Confederate soldiers
By Zack Christy
Staff Writer
It’s hard to imagine the brighter side of
the Civil War, but several states have shown
initiative in doing just that. Events will range
from a ball in the port of Charleston, a former
slave port, to a mock swearing in of Jefferson
Davis as president of the Confederacy.
According to the blog site for Sons of
Confederate Veterans, the Dec. 20 ball in
Charleston will highlight key moments from
the signing of South Carolina’s Ordinance of
Secession 150 years ago, an act that severed
the state’s ties to the Union and put the nation
on the path to the Civil War
Supporters say it honors those who stood
up for their rights. Others, such as the South
Carolina state chapter of the NAACP, plan to
protest the ball.
It does raise an eyebrow to celebrate one of
the darkest moments in American history, but
as Michael Givens said “We in the South, who
have been kicked around for an awfully long
time and are accused of being racist, we would
just like the truth to be known.”
Ty Foxx, a local resident whose family has
lived in Western North Carolina since before
the Revolutionary War, said, “It can be hard to
rationalize such actions, but those of us who lost
family in the Civil War haven’t forgotten.”
Foxx went on to describe the circumstances
of his Great, Great Grandfather’s death in the
Civil War, in which “Yankee cowards” shot him
in the back while he was trying to transport food
to his family. “I’m not on board with slavery,
not at all, that was horrible, but at the same time
I do support the South’s right to secession, and
honoring the soldiers that fell. You celebrate
WWII and Vietnam, why not the Civil War?
Americans died in that war, right?” said Foxx.
Many supporting the secession parties
exemplify Foxx’s comments and continue to
claim that the parties are not in favor of slavery,
but are in remembrance of soldiers who fought
and died in the Civil War. The states putting
these parties are hoping for increased tourism
revenues and to bring about a reverence within
the United States for the South.
It is an interesting prospect, but it is not
without controversy and is being met with strong
opposition from the NAACP. South Carolina’s
NAACP president Lonnie Randolph said “I
can only imagine what kind of celebration they
would have if they had won.”