Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Sept. 24, 1981, edition 1 / Page 13
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, - sm think that jl show and e one gets :ude about i show and t stubs. If I an't be sat- how I ever pw is going hg with the listrating, it ms, as well allads that pnes. Cross ound him. plize situa- ut the what cks be be ing nyl . at- pm. ike pty to as hot fcut ket m EP. lav Isic the bid e x V i .J v: ' J i if s and imagine what could happen. I usually, in the past 3-4 years, take a story idea, write the story and then set it to music. The story, the anecdote, is the most important part. I try to create things that please me and records are an after thought." - As far as the future is concerned, Cross wants to learn more about music and to improve on what he already knows. When he has a break from touring he likes to learn songs that he has never played before. "I try to play a tune that I can whistle but that I've nev er played before, so I can learn and not constantly play what I play in concert." For those who missed Cross's concert at Duke Univer sity last Friday, his future shows in North Carolina are The Pier in Raleigh, Sept. 29-30, at Ovens Auditorium in Char lotte, Oct. 16, Cumberland County Memorial Auditorium in Fayetteville on Oct. 17. Asheville Civic Center on Oct. 24 and at UNC-Wilmington on Oct. 30. Also a possible con cert at Memorial Hall, on the UNC campus is being discussed for Jan. 1982. 3- Popular, though illegal, By DAVID ROME The musician is ready to perform. His mind blocks out the outside noises and concentrates on capturing the at tention and sympathy of a mobile audience with an aver age attention span of about 20 seconds. He fears chang ing weather conditions, stray bees, the I.R.S., merchants without rhythm and, maybe, law officers. He plays, not in Memorial Hall, the Station, or even in the Pit, but on Franklin Street at 12:30 on a Friday after noon. - ' .;0 ';A7: ' For as long as there has been music, there have prob ably been struggling musicians supplementing their in comes by finding abusy streetfcputting an open casg, hat 6bj5(usuallyj m us iciaipwi - soark5,uolerbtdolai3) w plain, view, sadT?ing vnusic: ' ' . . '. -. Street musicians are generally found in ar&&d$sVke New York, where the odds are high on finding at least a few beneficient music lovers in every crowd. But talented street musicians also have gravitated to Chapel Hill and found an outlet for their various musical experiences on Franklin Street's sidewalks. Why Chapel Hill? As street fiddler Barney Pilgrim said, "The whole town is a street scene." The professional musicians found on Franklin Street play a variety of instruments, play with others or alone unanimously enjoy playing on the street, and have a number of different reasons for giving 'free' concerts to . pedestrians. . - . All of the musicians downplayed the role of money in their decision to play on the street "The money is reaJ va riable," Pilgrim said. When asked his main reason for playing, he responded, "! like to play." John Root, who plays saxophone, flute or piccolo on the -street, listed his non-financial reasons for playing. "I see it as providing a service. . . . I'm able to meet people." He likes also the role of "a catalyst for budding musi cians." He has met prospective students on the street and given others exposure to jazz. He said he believed he was doing something to eradicate the man oh the street's "mis conception of jazz-" . Dave Holt, plays fiddle with his wife and brother, or by "himself, playing bluegrass or Irish tunes on an ancient forerunner of the piano called a hammered dulcimer. He said he played, "half for money, half for fun." Holt is the most frequent performer on Franklin Street, and in his three years of playing there, he has not had any trouble with the police or any storeowners. He said Frank lin Street audiences were real nice, and when he played the unusual looking dulcimer, "Everybody comes up and asks what it is." Root has had a few memorable experiences. UNC stu dents may remember him as the versatile musician with the sign at Union Day, Sept. 11, who played piccolo as Jon Tsung Hwa of the Tai Chi Center in Carrboro demon strated the Chinese martial art and exercise form of Tai Chi. Root has had his right to play in the street questioned by the police and mayor's office. The first confrontation they perform nightly was with one of the mayor's associates who told him there was an ordinance against what he was doing. Root had previously called police headquarters and was told that playing and accepting money on the street was acceptable and no license wasTequired. But, one day, the police chief sat next to Root while he .". was playing outside the NCNB building. Root said, "Chief Stone let me know he was displeased (and Stone said) he wanted me off the streets. He said it looked like begging " Despite the disapproval of the authorities, Root has "continued to play (and from everyone else, he has) got ten nothing but positive feedback," he said. A. , f!.Even on Franklin Stretthere is a science to stceet-play- v . ing for money. All MfUHe performers mentioned -follow tne ineory cnac vtne oesi time to piay is rnaay, payaay between 11 .00 and 1.00 or on Saturdays after; football ;games.. v-V-N . ' - The preferred location is on the northern side of Frank lin Street outside of the Oasis Health Food Store. The spot outside Oasis is not accidental, however. Holt said the store's staff was real supportive. Oasis employee and UNC student Ester Cruikshank at tested to the general approval of the store, its customers and neighboring stores to the music coming from the side walk. "(It) adds to the atmosphere," she said. : What does a street-musician do when he is not playing on the street? All of the regulars on Franklin Street per form somewhere else andor teach music full-time. Holt plays full-time with the Red Rose Flyers who play at the Station every Tuesday night. He teaches also at Oxbow Music on West Franklin Street. Root-teaches at the St. Thomas More School, per forms, gives private lessons, and "sits in at the Station." Pilgrim does club work and teaches at Oxbow Music. Jerry Brown, who works also at Oxbow, summarized the relationship between street music and Chapel Hill when he said, "It adds character to the town." S Davjd Rome is a staff writer for The Daily Tar Heel. iiy for local performers Si":- - o r "F,ri " ' '.. '-Wx.-.Vv T j . sv s vs j cost. An. advantage to the consumer is that an EP costs less than an average album, maybe $3.99. vs. $8.99 or more. TGS Studio is located off Highway 54 West There is a country atmosphere that Gronback claims many musicians prefer to the plush studios of LA or Nashville. The re cording studio is located in the basement of Cronback's home, a log house designed by him and. built by himself and friends. The control room is separated from the record ing area by a large glass window. The musi cian cart settle down at the beautiful grand piano which is surrounded by oriental rugs hanging on the walls. And there is a fireplace for use on cold days. The relaxed atmos phere is something Gronback feels is benefi cial to the musician's peace of mind. " like to maintain a comfortable, creative atmosphere for the musicians. I think it helps them to work better." Gronback is a self-taught engineer. He was assistant manager at Stereo Sound in Chapel Hill and learned a lot about record ing equipment while working there. He was also in a band in New York about 10 years ago. One of Cronback's goals is to have a 24 track tape machine and this goal is now a re ality. The machine was delivered to Gron back last weekend and makes him the only recording studio in the Chapel Hill area to record on 24 tracks. He ultimately wants to get into video and believes it will be "an im portant media aspect in the future." Once a band records it needs a label for its album. The label is the name on the al bum itself, located on the disc. The label is the name that the band wants to use for pro motional purposes. Two local label compa nies are Moonlight Records and College town Records. Moonlight records is located in the Chapel Hill area on Highway 54-by-pass in Carrboro. Anna Tuttle, Moonlight's vice president, said that they start a promo tional campaign by sending newly released album to college radio stations. See STUDIO page 8 Making music Steve Gronback, TGS Studio owner, works the sound board. TGS is a local recording studio located in Cronback's home. J O c s 8 c ii Spotlight September 24, 1981 7
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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Sept. 24, 1981, edition 1
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