6
thursday, October 30,2008
Local bands rock the vote early
BY JORDAN LAWRENCE
ASSISTANT DIVERSIONS EDITOR
Rockers are notorious for,
among other things, partying late
into the night, making the prospect
of waking up early quite a hassle.
But a group of local rtiusicians
and one international artist are set
ting their alarms early for a 9 a.m.
concert Saturday on the terrace of
Graham Memorial.
A group of musicians including
England’s Billy Bragg, Chapel Hill
pop-punk legends Superchunk
and indie-rock forebears the dß’s
and folk acts Megafaun and the
Bowerbirds and the pop-rocking I
will play acoustics sets until 1 p.m. to
attract voters to the last day of early
voting at Morehead Planetarium.
Free coffee and doughnuts will
also be provided.
“I think it’s great for the rest of
the country to see a typically red
state like N.C. producing so many
great artists and that those artists
can get together to try and make
something happen that’s positive
for the state and the whole coun
try,” Mac McCaughan, co-founder
of Merge Records and member of
concert participants Superchunk
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and Portastatic, said in an e-mail.
Democratic presidential nomi
nee Sen. Barack Obama’s N.C. cam
paign is sponsoring the show and
another in Asheville, both dubbed
“N.C. Rocks for Change,” with orga
nizational help from McCaughan
and others in the Merge camp.
“We reached out to Mac, and
Mac was enthusiastic about put
ting something together,” said Paul
Cox, communications director for
Obama’s N.C. campaign.
But even the popular line-up
might not entice fans out to rock and
vote the morning after Halloween.
“When I first heard about the
show that’s what I thought, that’s
kind of a sketchy thing to do,” said
John Booker, singer/guitarist from
participating group I Was Totally
Destroying It.
“I have a feeling with the names
that are attached to it, people are
going to get up and check it out.”
Cox was also hopeful that stu
dents will still be motivated to come
out, enjoy the music and vote.
“I wouldn’t underestimate stu
dents,” he said. “I think UNC-CH
students are very excited about this
election.”
Diversions
ATTEND THE CONCERT AND VOTE
Time: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday
Location: Graham Memorial Terrace
Info: www.ncforchange.com
This isn’t the first concert in sup
port of a candidate or early voting.
Superchunk performed in support
of Obama with Arcade Fire at May
shows in Carrboro and Greensboro,
and Durham’s Hammer No More
The Fingers headlined a benefit
for Obama in September at Cat’s
Cradle. James Taylor performed
on campus last week.
“I think young people and voters
in general have gotten energized by
this election, and musicians have a
way to publicly express themselves,”
McCaughan said.
Booker said that his band has
been highly motivated by the heat
ed presidential campaign and is
worried about the outcome.
“The economy and the (Iraq)
War just create a lot of weight, and
it makes people want to contribute
in any way we can,” he said. “This is
the one thing we can contribute.”
Contact the Diversions Editor
at dive@unc.edu.
Picker tunes up for show
His original symphony to be played
BY JAMIE WILLIAMS
DIVERSIONS EDITOR
Ari Picker sighs when asked
about the past few months, spent
organizing the Project Symphony
concert, which finally takes place
Saturday after months of “lots of
coffee and e-mails.”
And all that is in reference to
securing a venue and recruiting a
60-piece orchestra made up entire
ly of volunteers.
It doesn’t even begin to address
the process of composing an origi
nal symphony, a project Picker
described as both “intimidating”
and “a spiritual experience.”
He admitted a little bit of trepi
dation at the beginning.
He was, of course, staring in the
face of the masters such as Bach
and Mozart who are often the only
names given consideration within
classical music.
“Those guys are almost mythi
cal figures,” Picker said. “They
were so good at what they did. I
am very humbled by the whole
thing.”
He tried to shape his mind to
fit the traditions of a genre that
is known for its discipline by
immersing himself, choosing five
specific pieces to study exten
sively.
“I learned to shed my modern
musical ear and try to think in
more traditional melodies suited
for traditional form,” he said.
“I was trying to write in a genre
that is absolutely horrifying to
write for.”
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Documentary and Feature Motion Picture Producer
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with a screening of the acclaimed
documentary
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Battersby is a partner at Reno Productions in New York. His 2008
film TRUMBO, about blacklisted late Hollywood screenwriter
Daltron Trumbo, features Joan Allen, Michael Douglas, Paul
Giamatti, Liam Neeson and Donald Sutherland.
His work includes:
BUBBLE (by Steven Soderberg)
ENRON (Academy Award nominee)
ONE LAST THING (starring Ethan Hawke, Cynthia Nixon
and Wydef Jean)
WHITE LIES (forthcoming) will star Amanda Peet
Sponsored by the Writing for the Screen and Stage Minor
“Some days I would just lock
myself in a room and come out
with a measure, and some days it
just poured out.”
That modern ear was honed by
a youth spent playing in pop bands
around Chapel Hill. A few years in
classical composition classes at
Berklee College of Music led him
toward more orchestral and clas
sical music.
He conceded, though, that some
pop influence sneaking into his
piece was not only unavoidable,
but intentional.
“I really wanted my melodies
to be classic and memorable,” he
said.
“I think people could walk away
humming it. It has a clear begin
ning and end. And that was on
purpose.”
Leah Gibson, a UNC senior
who will play cello in the orchestra
and has worked with Picker’s folk
project Lost In The Trees for the
past year, said those pop flourishes
shine through.
“You can still hear the styles
from his other projects,” she said.
“At times it sounds very much
like a film score, and other move
ments have elements that kind
of sound like hip-hop to me. I
would describe the whole piece as
catchy.”
Picker hopes his turn as com
poser will inspire others to both
develop an appreciation for classi
cal music and work on composing
their own pieces.
“Part of the mission is to create
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ATTEND THE CONCERT
Time: 7 p.m. Saturday
Location: Hill Hall Auditorium
Info: www.projectsymphony.org
resources for modem composers,”
he said.
“The more you know about
it the more you might enjoy.
Ultimately I hope Project
Symphony can bring this music
back into the mainstream by hav
ing the composers that are young
and energized.”
In addition, the event has a
charitable purpose, with half of
the proceeds from the event going
to Chatham County Together, a
mentoring and academic outreach
program.
“I think there are just so many
angles to approach this show,” he
said.
“There’s the fact that it’s for
charity, the fact that the orchestra
is made up of members of the com
munity and friends and also the
fact that it’s anew piece of music
that’s being performed.”
Ultimately he’s most excited
about the piece itself, describing it
as “bombastic.”
And, after all of the work that’s
been done in preparation, Picker
admits that he’s no longer ner
vous.
“I was nervous a few months ago
because there was just so much to
do,” he said.
“Now, it’s kind of just a question
of whether or not I studied enough
for the test.”
Contact the Diversions Editor
at dive@unc.edu.