By Missi Christensen Production Coordinator With a slight nudge from her friend, a freshman business major timidly approaches the front of the dimly lit cafe. She suggests to the jazz ensemble a mood of love and romance. Candlelight flickers on her face as she begins speaking, her voice flowing with emotion. The musicians adjust to and accentuate the cadence of her voice, leaving her wondering if these are really her words, if she is really speaking. Together the musicians and the poet reach for the hearts of the audience until one member succumbs and begins snapping in approval. Then another and another, until the entire cafe extends its appreciation for her openness of heart. The conclusion is reached. She smiles shyly and returns to her seat, still glowing from her performance. A sophomore English major takes his turn, except he desires super hero music. The mood is changed instantly, and the audience is glad to experience the realm of human emotion. Among beatniks, this form of expression is known as Pong, a synthesis of poetry and song. Only, instead of a dark coffee shop in Chicago, the scene is the TCU Bookstore Cafe. The second semi-annual Pong Jam, co-sponsored by the English department and the TCU Bookstore, will take place from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday in the TCU Bookstore Cafe. Pong is a relaxed, light reading of poetry emphasized by improvisational music. The poet and musician are often strangers who will only meet for the few minutes of performance. Cathy Gabor, an English graduate student and co-organizer of the event, said she suggested the idea to Alan Shepard, English department chairman. "He asked me how the English department could have a bigger presence on campus," she said. "English is about enjoying words, so I suggested the Pong Jam." Gabor said she brought the idea to TCU from Chicago. "That's where the beatnik movement got started and where I got involved with Pong," she said. Once the funding was found and the basic organization was settled, Gabor proposed the first Pong Jam to Llisa Lewis, general manager of the TCU Bookstore. "We wanted the feel of a beatnik coffee shop," Lewis said. "We worked together to come up with the atmosphere." At last November's event, chairs in the cafe were turned to face the windows, allowing audience members to avoid bookstore traffic, Lewis said. Low light was emphasized by candles on each table. Gabor and Lewis estimated that 70 people attended the first TCU Pong Jam in November. "It's definitely an out-of-the-classroom experience," Gabor said. "It's using poetry as a form of fun conversation." A TCU Jazz Combo, led by James Buckner, a senior music education and theory composition major, will provide the improvisational music Thursday. "A major component of jazz is about listening to the other players and creating music off what they add," Buckner said. "The poet just adds another element." Buckner said the combo is preparing for the Pong Jam differently than it would for a performance. "We have songs categorized and arranged by mood, like happy, mystical, sporadic," Buckner said. "The dominant genre will definitely be jazz." The atmosphere of the Jam is quite relaxed, Gabor said. "Audience participation is encouraged," she said. "If the poet offends the feminist view, the audience is free to give the feminist hiss. If the poet offends the masculine view, the audience is free to give the masculine grunt." Gabor said the audience reacts positively as well. "A lot of times, the audience will snap along with the music to encourage the poet," she said. "That's real easy to do since there is music." Gabor said not just English majors come to read poetry. "It surprised me how many hidden poets are in the business department," she said. "Informally, I would say at least 70 percent of the performers read their own poetry." Alan Tolleson, a freshman graphic design major, attended and performed at the November Pong Jam. "There was a pretty good mix (of people)," he said. "I think there are a lot of closet poets on campus. It's really a good place to read." Elizabeth Brown, English department administrative assistant, was also at the November event. "I was surprised at how open everyone was," she said. "It was very informal. There was no pressure to perform." Gabor and Lewis said they are both looking forward to a larger turnout Thursday than at November's Pong Jam. "The one thing that is great about the Pong Jam is that this is not stuffy academic poetry reading where everybody golf claps at the end," Gabor said. "This is poetry about students' lives. It's like a conversation with someone in their dorm room, only with meter and rhythm."
Missi Christensen
By David Reese staff reviewer The 42nd Annual Grammy Awards honoring the best in music will be held at 7 p.m. today on CBS (Channel 11). For the second year in a row, the Queen of Nice, Rosie O'Donnell, will host the ceremony in the newly constructed Staples Center in Los Angeles. The comeback of the year, Santana, leads the way with 10 nominations that include Album of the Year for "Supernatural" as well as Record and Song of the Year for its single "Smooth," featuring Rob Thomas. The R&B divas, TLC, are also main contenders with nominations for their album "Fan Mail" (Album of the Year/Best R&B Album) and single "No Scrubs" (Record of the Year/Best R&B Song). Latin hip-shaker Ricky Martin has a nomination for Best Pop Album for his self-titled debut album as well as Record of the Year and Best Male Pop Performance for "Livin' La Vida Loca." The Backstreet Boys' 11-time platinum album "Millennium" will be in the running for Album of the Year, and their single "I Want It That Way" is nominated for Record and Song of the Year. Scheduled performers include Santana, Backstreet Boys, Dixie Chicks, Britney Spears, TLC and Ricky Martin. Here are some of the major nominations with my predictions for the big winners of tonight's telecast:
"Fan Mail," TLC "Fly," Dixie Chicks "Millennium," Backstreet Boys "Supernatural," Santana "When I Look Into Your Eyes," Diana Krall Should Win: "Supernatural," Santana Will Win: "Supernatural," Santana The Grammy voters have proved time after time that if you make a successful comeback, you'll be awarded with the Album of the Year. Established artists winning the album award happened as recently as two years ago, with Bob Dylan's "Time Out of Mind" and five years ago with "MTV Unplugged" by Tony Bennett. Again, the voters will select the perennial favorite, Santana's "Supernatural." But this might be the first year the old-timer truly deserves it.
Record of the Year "Believe," Cher "I Want It That Way," Backstreet Boys "Livin' La Vida Loca," Ricky Martin "No Scrubs," TLC "Smooth," Santana featuring Rob Thomas Should Win: "Livin' La Vida Loca," Ricky Martin Will Win: "Smooth," Santana featuring Rob Thomas The Record of the Year category is usually awarded to an uplifting ballad or mid-tempo song such as past winners "I Will Always Love You" by Whitney Houston and Eric Clapton's "Tears in Heaven." The closest nominee this year would be Backstreet Boys' "I Want It That Way," but there's no way they will win. In my opinion, 1999 should be considered the year of Ricky Martin. Even my father enjoyed "Livin' La Vida Loca," and that is saying a lot. But I have a feeling that Santana might sweep the Grammys, which means he may smooth his way onto the podium for Record of the Year.
Song of the Year "I Want It That Way," Backstreet Boys "Livin' La Vida Loca," Ricky Martin "Smooth," Santana featuring Rob Thomas "Unpretty," TLC "You've Got a Way," Shania Twain Should Win: "I Want It That Way," Backstreet Boys Will Win: "Smooth," Santana featuring Rob Thomas The distinction between Record and Song of the Year are quite simple. Record of the Year is awarded to the producer and performer of the track, while Song of the Year is presented to the songwriter. "I Want It That Way" is a classic pop ballad which voters tend to select, but I'll say that if the voters are on a Santana streak, "Smooth" will win.
Best New Artist Christina Aguilera Macy Gray Kid Rock Britney Spears Susan Tedeschi Should Win: Britney Spears Will Win: Christina Aguilera or Macy Gray The Best New Artist award can be seen as joyous yet possibly deadly. Although some very famous artists like Mariah Carey, Sheryl Crow, and LeAnn Rimes have had much success after their Grammy win, what about the others? Do you remember Arrested Development? Marc Cohn? Paula Cole? The sad fact is that these performers received the Best New Artist with the last decade. This year the award is a battle between the Teen Queens. Susan Tedeschi is eliminated because who is she? Kid Rock is eliminated because solo male artists have not been successful in this category. Macy Gray is a highly respected newcomer, but she is not well-known among voters, and they view her as a Lauryn Hill wannabe (who happened to win this award last year). But I would not count her out as of yet. In my opinion, Britney Spears should win the award because she really spearheaded the Teen Pop Princess movement. But lately, Christina Aguilera has been promoted everywhere from the Super Bowl to MTV to the Miss USA Pageant. I would place my bets on Spears or Aguilera, but they could cancel each other out, leaving Macy Gray with the trophy.
Best Male Pop Performance Marc Anthony, "I Need to Know" Lou Bega, "Mambo #5" Andrea Bocelli, "Sogno" Ricky Martin, "Livin' La Vida Loca" Sting, "Brand New Day" Should Win: Ricky Martin, "Livin' La Vida Loca" Will Win: Ricky Martin, "Livin' La Vida Loca" This might just be the most boring category of the evening. "I Need to Know," "Mambo #5" and "Livin' La Vida Loca" are all somewhat similar. Andrea Bocelli has not made enough of a crossover from opera to win a pop award. I would assume Grammy voters will chose Ricky Martin, but do not count Sting's "Brand New Day" out of the race. Sting has already won Grammys in the double digits, and although his current album was not as commercial as previous ones, the voters love him.
Best Female Pop Performance Christina Aguilera, "Genie in a Bottle" Madonna, "Beautiful Stranger" Sarah McLachlan, "Mirrorball" Alanis Morissette, "Thank U" Britney Spears, "Baby One More Time" Should Win: Madonna, "Beautiful Stranger" Will Win: Sarah McLachlan, "I Will Remember You" "Genie in a Bottle" and "Baby One More Time" are not typical Grammy winners in this category. "Thank U" was not one of Alanis Morissette's most popular songs, so I think she does not have much of a chance. Last year, the Grammys finally embraced Madonna for the first time. "Beautiful Stranger" is a cute and clever, but not overdone, pop song, which means she has a good chance of winning. Past winner in this category Sarah McLachlan is nominated for a live version of her classic tearjerker song, "I Will Remember You." Her song is exactly what this category is made of when remembering past winners such as Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On" and Toni Braxton's "Un-Break My Heart."
Best Pop Album "Believe," Cher "Brand New Day," Sting "Millennium," Backstreet Boys "Mirrorball," Sarah McLachlan "Ricky Martin," Ricky Martin Should Win: "Millennium," Backstreet Boys Will Win: "Millennium," Backstreet Boys No one knows as of yet who will take home the gramophone, but I have a feeling whatever the outcome, the award ceremony will be filled with great performances and many surprises. Don't forget to watch at 7p.m. tonight on CBS to see how our predictions turned out. If you would like further information on the Grammy awards, check out the NARAS Foundation Web site at (www.grammy.com). |
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