Wednesday, November 12, 2014 • page 13
St
STYLE
Drumming along to cultural beats at Elon
Brett Gubitosi
Senior Reporter
Boom-pat, boom-pat!
Tliat sound is a drumbeat performed by
Elon University students practicing for the
“World Percussion Ensemble” concert.
This semester’s .performance will include
instruments such as the chekere, dumdum,
bongos, congas, clave, cajon and the cow
bell, among others.
“World Percussion Ensemble” is a
one-credit course that culminates with a
live performance. The course is taught and
directed by Jim Roberts, adjunct music in
structor and university accompanist: in his
seventh year directing the program.
The official title of this year’s perfor
mance is “From Cuba to Brazil: Rhythms
of the Caribbean and Beyond.”
Students and faculty have the oppor
tunity to enjoy these diverse cultural beats
at Yeager Recital Hall 6:30 p.m. Thursday,
Nov. 13.
Story behind the course
Roberts began playing drums at an early
age and bought his first drum set at age 11.
Intrigued by music, he earned his master’s
degree in performance at Northern Illinois
University. After graduation, he became
band director at Southern Nash High
School in Bailey from 1985 to 1987.
Roberts said his perspective on cultural
music changed in 1987, when his friend in
vited him to an African dance class.
“The second I walked into that class, I
didn’t understand it, but I knew I had to
do it,” he said. This began his journey of
learning.
He quit his band directing job and
joined the Chuck Davis African-Ameri
can Dance Ensemble group. Although he
was not an official member, he was a per
forming drummer for the group from 1990
to 1995. During this time, he met Khalid
Saleem, a well-known African music spe
cialist who was a faculty member at Duke
University and performed in the American
Dance Festival. He greatly influenced Rob
erts’ passion for world percussion.
Roberts became aware of the unique
cultural styles of drumming and ethnic
music. His understanding and apprecia
tion only increased further when he visited
West Africa in 1991. While there, Roberts
“World Percussion Ensemble" adjunct instructor Jim Roberts teaches juniors Evan Gaskin, Danielle Williams and sophomore Tyson Glover.
took a two-week class on rhythm, dancing
and songs of the culture.
Roberts said one thing he learned is
in his studies is drumbeats and rhythms
are related to a nation’s language. Certain'
syllables in a language translate to music,
such as the tals, a certain type of rhythm
in Indian music. He wanted to share this
knowledge about world percussion and
spread cultural music diversity, so he began
the Elon course.
“This class is the epitome of diversity,”
he said. “It’s experiential learning, not just
theory.”
New experience for all
Roberts said one aspect of the program
that makes it so special is its openness to
students with or without any drum or mu
sical experience, as well as non-music ma
jors.
“Sometimes I train people from scratch,”
said Roberts. “I take anyone who has the
willingness to play.”
This semester’s beats are from Afro-Cu-
ban, Latin American, South American and
Brazilian traditions. In previous years, the
ensemble has performed drumbeats of the
West African Gi Djembe style. One spe
cific style the group is focusing on this se
mester is Yoruba music, which originated
in Nigeria and was adapted in Cuba as a
result of slavery in the 18 and 19 centuries.
One section of the performance will
feature drumbeats with call and response
vocals in Eurabbie, a Nigeriah language.
Roberts acknowledged the difficulty of the
performances, especially learning the vocal
parts.
“It is not just going to morph into your
mind,” Roberts said. “It’s something you
have to work at.”
Jon Metzger, professor of music, said
there are 18 different performance ensem
bles over the course of the academic year.
He enjoys attending their performances,
including the “World Percussion Ensem
ble.”
“This performance is especially [diverse]
in the different world cultures and tradi
tions that are represented,” he said.
Junior Evan Gaskin is a strategic com
munications major with little musical
background, but he has enjoyed the course’s
challenges. Prior to enrolling in the course,
he was nervous about the live performance,
but he feels more confident now.
“If you don’t practice, you’re not allow
ing yourself to [get] the most enjoyment
out of it,” he said. “It’s nice to have a me
dium that allows you to access your inner
rhythm even if you don’t have the technical
skill.”
Junior Danielle Williams has had expe
rience with the viola and piano in the past,
but playing percussion was new to her. She
has embraced the challenge and relished
the class’ atmosphere.
“It’s a good way to unwind and let frus
trations out,”' she said. She was also im
pressed with her own drumming ability. “I
never thought I would be kind of good at
it.”
Sophomore Christopher Greene usual
ly plays the saxophone, but he said playing
drums in the “World Percussion Ensem
ble” has improved his inner tempo, which
he can apply to the saxophone. He was
shocked when there was no sheet music for
any of the music played in the class, but he
learned to adjust to this difference.
This is sophomore Tyson Glover’s sec
ond successive semester in the ensemble.
He previously performed in drumlines and
in band at Elon, but he had never done
hand drumming, which is a vital compo
nent of the “World Percussion Ensemble.”
He said he is looking forward to perform
ing.
“You want to give it your all when per
forming onstage,” he said. “You want to
give them a show. You practice to perform.”
‘Dancing in the Black Box’ creates strong emotion, powerfui imagery
Ally Feinsot
Senior Reporter
Nine' pieces were performed at the
Elon University dance program’s fall
dance concert, “Dancing in the Black
Box”Nov. 6-8.The show included cho
reography by both students and faculty
members as well as a guest artist, Hel
en Simoneau, who choreographed the
final piece, “Flight Distance IT” Each
work allowed
DANCE REVIEW the audience to
“Dancing In th© gtasp a certain
Black Box” emotion that was
Our Rating: expressed through
★★★★ the choreography,
music and physi
cal appearance of the dancers. The dances
also portrayed specific themes, and while
some were quite obvious, others had the
audiences puzzling over what a specific
piece implied.
The show opened with “2.5 Children,”
choreographed by senior Sophie McNeill,
which depicted women in the 1950s and
their conformity to the role of a house
wife. The dancers were dressed according
ly, with ’50s-inspired hair and costumes.
Much of the number consisted of slow
movement back and forth onstage, rather
than a choreographed routine of leaps,
kicks and pirouettes. A standout moment
from the dance was an eerie yet graceful
wave, which irked the character repre
senting the rebellious women of the time
period. As the piece’s music faded and
the lights dimmed, the dancer ran fever
ishly in a circle, attempting to push the
remaining dancers’waving hands down.
Artistic Director and Assistant
Professor of Dance Jen Guy Metcalf’s
piece, “Fragmentations,” emphasized the
extraordinary abilities of the dancers’ en
pointe. The piece had a darker tone with
black costumes and dimmer lights and
was full of fast-paced movement and im
pressive choreography, with each dancer
perfectly in sync.
Sophomore Lucas Melfi executed
each move with control and showcased
his strength and flexibility. It was easily
forgotten that this difficult work was
being performed en pointe as the trio
effortlessly transfixed the audience with
their abilities.
The use of upper-body strength
was a key component in “From One to
Seventeen,” choreographed by senior
Kate Phinney. At one moment, a dancer
gracefully plunged to the floor into plank
position, while another dancer lay over
her.
Both moved as one body while the
dancer in plank pressed down to the floor.
The fluidity of the piece was seen through
the dancers gracefully running across the
stage in a.semicircle. Simultaneously, a
mysterious tone was felt, as it seemed
like the dancers were running away from
something or someone.
What was so intriguing about “Danc
ing in the Black Box” was the emotional
responses from each performance vastly
differed from piece to piece, such as
feelings of liberation, order, control and
confusion. The intensity and drive of each
dancer to perform to the best of his or
her ability furthered the emotions felt
throughout the performances.
A black box theater can often feel
restricting, but the fluidity and eloquent
movements of the dancers made the
space feel infinite. The technical aspects
of the performance were also ahtighlight
of the showcase.
The dim lights throughout each piece
allowed the audience to really focus
bn the intricate choreography and the
portrayal of emotions, while the carefully
orchestrated music correlated beautifully
with each dance.
“Dancing in the Black Box” highlight
ed the incredible talent of Elon’s dance
program. Dance can tell stories, express
emotions and explore various themes.
Each of these components was portrayed
in a small, intimate black space filled
with adrenaline, strength and remarkable
talent.