FEATURES 8 WWW.GUILFORDIAN.COM Guilford^s taste in music is just downright eclectic BY CHLOE LINDEMAN StmffWmtbk Music could not occupy a more important role for Guilford. Shows at the Greenleaf and in downtown Greensboro, Guilford's radio station WQFS, music department performances and even impromptu jam sessions not only entertain students but also bring them closer together. "Sharing music can be a method of transferring ideas that are not easily conveyed through speech," said senior Bonnie Hardie, a piano major, in an email interview. Joshua Rodriguez, a junior music major who listens to everything from rap to bluegrass, tunes in to local artists at Guilford and jams on the viola. "There are tons of people I have connections with musically," said Rodriguez. When a new student at Guilford was playing her fiddle outside, Rodriguez stopped and exchanged some tunes, getting to know her because of a shared interest in fiddle music. Known for its eclectic interests, Guilford does not fall short when it comes to music. Indie rock, metal, electronic, opera, lo-fi, alternative hip-hop, bluegrass and rap all come up in conversations about music on campus, and many stress that they listen to multiple genres. "I kind of listen to everything, actually," commented senior Caroline Loftus. By tuning into WQFS at 90.9 FM, listeners can enjoy the many kinds of popular music at Guilford, including both commercial music and more independent and local music. "As unique as Guilford is, there is such a range of interests musically," said junior Kate Schwab, WQFS general manager. A lot of people enjoy "really high-energy music like dubstep," Schwab added. "(People like) what's going to be the most fun to listen to. (At the same time,) we try to get as many local artists played as possible." This way, listeners have access to the best of both worlds. "What blew me away most about starting to listen to WQFS is how diverse it is," said Kami Rowan, assistant professor of music and WQFS station manager. "I can't think of a genre thaPs not really covered." "If you hear music, go and check it out, and be adventurous," said sophomore Camille Lindsley, a manager at WQFS and a member of the Greenleaf's events committee. As for the future of music on campus, Kami has noticed this trend: "I see all the Guilford’s radio station, WQFS 90.9 FM, offers a variety of music ranging from dubstep to opera. boundaries of genres fading ... I think we're going to have less of those boundaries (in the future)." In the past, people listened to music more within specific categories, according to Kami. Now, "you'll hear a much broader mix of genres than you used to hear, so that's exciting!" Interested in how to become more active in Guilford's musical scene? There's a WQFS DJ interest meeting at 7:30 pm on Sunday, Feb. 10th in the Founders Upstairs Gallery. If DJing doesn't interest you, check out the events booked around Guilford, like Mykki Blanco's March 26 concert at Glenwood Coffee & Books or the show featuring Cop Problem, Votnut, Demands and Retina at the Greenleaf on Feb. 15. "Braving the stage together with individual talent" What: Performances by Guilford College students, faculty, staff and alumni When: March 29,2013 @ 7:00 p.m. Where: Dana Auditorium Can you rap? Sing? Dance? Play a musical Instrument? Make your body become one? Eat a banana or orange, peel and all? t Email Randy Smith at gc.bravethestage@yahoo.com The community is encouraged to attend this FREE event! Sponsored by Erin Fox, director of student activitites Munich reunion: an extended German host family BY KELLY KEEGAN Guest WwTER Imagine a family reunion where all of your favorite aunts and uncles show up and are as happy to see you as you are to see them. Family drama is checked at the door. You get a chance to sit down and chat with those cousins whose names you always forget and find out that you have a surprising amount of things in common. The food, drink and laughs seem boundless. You have such a great time that even before the reunion ends, you find yourself looking forward to the next time you and your family get together. As unlikely as the scenario may seem, that is exactly how it felt to spend two weeks with my extended Guilford family this past summer at the Munich study abroad reunion. Our group of exactly 100 hailed from both sides of the Atlantic — 50 from Germany and 50 from America — and was organized and led by Professor of Foreign Languages Dave Limburg. We were professors, host families and alumni ranging from the class of 1983 to the dass of 2011. Each day, we went on an excursion with a professor or host family, and each evening we descended en masse on a Biergarten to relax, reminisce and trade stories. As we got to know each other, it became apparent that the alumni who partidpated in the reunion are caring, thoughtful people who not ordy keep up with current global issues but also look ahead and take action to shape a better tomorrow. Everyone in our group went on to become world travelers, as if our time in Munich was the catalyst for a lifelong journey to explore the unknown. Most importantly, we all got to spend time with the professors and families who had guided and taught us while we lived abroad, and who became like favorite aunts and imdes to us. Our German mentors were surprised and touched by the number of alumni who made the trip to see them. They had expeded only a few of their former students to show up for the daily excursions and were shocked to find themselves at the center of attention in a group of 30 or more alumni on any given day. The Yngbom family took us on a typical kind of German outing — a hike through picturesque countryside with stops at a small chapel and palace grounds. Our feet were glad to reach the benches of the Biergarten that night! On our excursion to Freising, our art history professor Dieter Kiihnel simultaneously educated and entertained us with his vast knowledge and his ability to deliver jokes with a completely straight face. For example: 'This is near the place where I met my wife Gabi, and every year we come back here to commemorate that tragic day." Wait, what? Our German history professor, Bernhard Lehmann, has a wide smile and an easy manner that quickly made you forget that history is supposed to be boring. Leo Brux, whom I remember from intermediate German, took us to the Franz Marc museum in Kochel, where he reacquainted us with his love of art and philosophy. If you think of the German psyche as being overly mechanistic and industrialist, you should hear Leo speak about the importance of untamed nature and imagination. Barbara Hundshammer is the teacher whose beginning German class dispelled for good my fear of learning a new language. At the reunion nearly 20 years after that semester of German 101, I had the chance to sit with Barbara in the Biergarten at Andechs and proudly converse with her auf Deutsch. Finally, there was the memorable afternoon we spent with Karl Fischer, a long-time friend of the program and one of its first organizers. He passed around his collection of postcards, papers, photos, and other memorabilia from the Munich study abroad program. Flis keepsakes dated back to the very beginning of the program in the early 1970s. Although Karl's age is advanced, he still delights in good conversation and in teaching students risqu^ German phrases. Spending two weeks in Munich in the company of some very special people made this one of the best reunions I've ever experienced. It makes me wish that everyone could have an opportunity like the Munich study abroad program to challenge their stereotypes and add wonderful new people to their Guilford family. Check out the full article online at: WWW.GUILFORDIAN.COM

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