Arts Handel Oratório Performs Messiah Tune-Up for Christmas

Page4 The Observer Dec.12, 1984 Arts The Tradition Continues Handel Oratório Performs Messiah by Kay Denney In mid-October, while most Au- the Society feels theyre influenced week before the performance, they gustana students were struggling to by the choir. They sometimes feel join together to see how it sounds. study for midterms, approximately like they can't do it without us. but we The orchestra, under the direction of 70 students were adding to this pres- ali really work together." Dan O liver, must get used to playing sure when practices for HandeFs In the past years, the ticket sales with ;. choir, and the choir must get Messiah began. Aside from the have been down because, according used lo following an orchestra. And choir's usual practice time of one to Bitter, "A lot of people here although it is actually one of the hour daily, an additional two or more think that if you've heard it minor concerts the choir gives during hours was spent rehearsing on Mon- once, you've heard it. Every year it is the year, Morrison takes it very seri- day nights, under the direction of the same thing. You've got to have an ously. When ali 300 members of the Donald Morrison, the choir's conduc- understanding of the music — of Oratório Society band with the 40 or- tor. what it says...Christmas is so com- chestra members, the sound is índe- Why do they go through it? Jon mercial. If vou want to get back to scnbable. Johnson, the president of the choir the Christmas story, and can appreci- The actual performance time of this year, stated, "Well, it's our 104th ate the music, I think you'll find it en- the Messiah is between two and two year of doing the Messiah. It is defi- joyable." and one-half hours. There is a ten nitely a tradition that we want to The Messiah does teU the story of minute intermission about halfway keep up." Because the choir com- Christmas. Through its many pieces, into the work. With so much music to poses almost one-fourth of the Hand- the Messiah attempts to put people in learn. the choir feels more comforta- el Oratório Society, which numbers the spirit of Christmas and think ble their seconu night of performing. about what Christmas is really about. 300, the choir's absence would have Bitte. aiaieu, •• i he first night is usu- an impact on the sound of the con- The Messiah itself is approximately 200 pages long, and choir members ally kind of shakey or unsure...our cert. Augustana, as a choir, singb are given a book containing the b?st performance is the second night many of the solo spots, and profes- songs. — Saturdav. sional soloists are called in to sing the To prepare themselves for this en- This yo ir, the Handel Oratório So- rest of the solos. Carol Bitter, secre- deavor, the choir and orrhpçtro first ciety will present the Messiah on Fri- day the 14th, Saturday the 15th, and tary of the choir, added, "The rest 01 practice on their own. Then, one Sunday the 16th. The Friday and Sat- urday performances begin at 8 p.m. and the Sunday performance begins Zayner, the Red Nose Music Critic at 3 p.m. Ali performances are in Centennial. Tickets are on sale at the Ticket Office and reservations are Tune-Up for Christmas required. is where its strength lies. However, it masterpiece, as Partridge's voice is and how a child to the virgin carne falis short of maintaining the same isolated to convey the hopelessness Will you tell them that the reason consistency as the last two LPs. and horror of nuclear war: why we murdered 1 by Chris Zayner Ray Davies songwriting is as "Will you smile like any mother everything upon the surface of the good as ever, from "Good Day" as you bathe your brand new world Editor's Note: In a stunning dis- (strongly reminiscent of "Sunny Af- twins so we can stand right up and say play of service above and beyond temoon") and the whimiscal "Too Will you sing about the missiles we did it in his name?" the call, and/or reach, of this editor, Hot," both U.K. hits this summer, to as you dry odd-numbered limbs... This grimness isn't for everybody, Zayner contínued his mission to the more socially concerned "Do It Will you tell them about that far off nor is the rapid-fire style of Par- guide readers safely through the Again" and "Massive Reductions." and mythical land tridge's vocais. But they should be. hazards of album-shopping this The álbum also contains the beauti- week, despite a near-fatal case of fully touching "Missing Persons" the Rock Island cold. Having once (perhaps a loving goodbye to the The Sequei to 2001 again managed to defend the virtue Pretenders' Chrissie Hynde?). Dave of the music industry, Zayner may Davies contributes two numbers, and now rest in peace (untíl next week's "Living on a Thin Line" is one of his deadline). best ever. A Space Adventure Okay, has everybody finished This isn't the best example of their Christmas shopping yet? No? what the Kinks are capable of, but from star to star in a couple of hours, Well, in that case, we'll proceed with thafs only because so much is ex- and Captain Kirk would be lucky to the second of our series on finding pected of them. Word of Mouth is, meet a single extraterrestrial culture an ideal álbum for that special quite simply, a good Kinks álbum. in his entire career, let alone once a Christmas gift. Back in 2001: A Space Odyssey, week." the U.S.S. Discovery journeyed to the So, Clarke went to work to "finish" Bruce Foxton—Touch Sensitive XTC—The Big Express vicinity of the planet Júpiter, follow- the Space Odyssey story, without de- Bruce Foxton will probbly always If only side two of this fine record ing the trail of a signal sent to Júpiter fying the laws of physics. be best known as "the bass player were as good as side one — but I from an alien monolith discovered 2010 answers ali our questions for the Jam," the superb British trio guess it couldn't have been, be- under the moon's surface. It acted as about 2001, teaches us a little science, that disbanded last year. However, cause side one is one of the best ex- a sort of "alarm" to signal that man, and gives us state-of-the-art and con- this álbum is impressive enough to amples of a períect synthesis of who it had nudged along in his primi- vincing special effects. Most people build Foxton a following of his own music and lyrics that l've ever en- tive stages of evolution, had reached will either cut this movie up — or — if only people will buy it. countered. the capacity to traverse space. sleep through it. But I loved it. For example, consider "Freak," Not that there aren't any good Commanded by David Bowman The acting in 2010 is good with the Foxton's hit U.K. single about John songs on side two. Far from it. "The (Keir Dullea), and guided by the so- American debut of some very fine Merrick, the Elephant Man. It serves Everyday Story of Smalltown," "I phisticated HAL 9000 computer, the Russian actors. This is not a "shoot- as the best example of Foxton's writ-, Bought Myself a Liarbird," and Discovery runs into a proportionately em up" space story, but an intriguing ing ability, and the rest of the songs "Reign of Blows (Vote No Violence)" identical, though larger, monolith in story of the future of man. 2001 was are about as good. And the guy can follow in the XTC tradition of quality. Jovian orbit. David Bowman at- very laden with philosophy. 2010, on sing, too, as evidenced by his But oh, that first side! tempts to land on it with a landing the other hand, is very political, with smooth falsetto on "It Makes Me The álbum kicks off with Colin pad, but just before making contaci, a disturbing view of Soviet/U.S. rela- Wonder." Moulding's "Wake Up," a fine song is consumed by the block, to be sent tions which involve a joint Although Touch Sensitive does in its own right and a smooth step- through the universe and transfor- U.S./U.S.S.R. voyage to find out what tend to get bogged down a bit on ping-stone to the next four songs med into a systematical entity in the happened to the Discovery and David side two, it is still a fine record, and and Andy Partridge's domain. confines of a hotel suite at the heart Bowman. Foxton should be given a lot of credit In "Shake You Donkey Up," Par- of the star. His last words to the for continuing the pop/soul trend tridge has no sympathy for a guy Earth were, "My God, it's full of that the Jam was following when who's lost his girlfriend because he stars!" they called it a career. mistreated her, calling him "jackass" For 15 years, we 2001 fans have as David Gregory's synthesizers questioned, "What happened to David Big Deal The Kinks—Word of Mouth bray loudly. Partridge's imagery and Bowman?" "Why did the HAL 9000 go Notice: On Wednesday, December lt's had for me to be disappointed Steve Saunders' euphonium put us nuts and kill the rest of the crew?" 12, Susan Deal of the Augustana Eng- by a Kinks álbum.

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