Blog Post
Strike Up the Band and KissME: Swing dance fest jitterbugs back to Ann Arbor
by christopherporter
Time to jump, jive, and wail at the 9th annual KissME (Keep It Simple and Swing) in Ann Arbor! The event brings "hundreds of people together for a weekend of music, fun, and dancing," says organizer Kenny Schabow.
While many folks enjoy jitterbugging about, they might not know swing dancing's storied history. When swing jazz took off in the 1920s, the style of dance we now call “swing” exploded right along with it. While the origins of jazz and swing dancing predate that era, its popularity began hitting the mainstream in the early decades of the 20th century. Dozens of styles were being flaunted in the dance halls with the most popular being the Lindy Hop, the Charleston, and the shag.
And just as the Rat Pack didn’t actually refer to itself as such, swing dancing wasn't called that until the late 1950s. In the early days, the term “jitterbug” signified dancing to high-energy swing-jazz music. Band leader Cab Calloway is said to have coined the phrase when he said the dancers looked like “a bunch of jitterbugs” because of their fast, bouncy movements. Whatever it was called, it found a home among dancers from Harlem to New Orleans.
Swing dancing's popularity waned a bit in the middle of last century only to see a resurgence in the 1990s, which found swing dance lessons and clubs springing up and at least one memorable Gap commercial. In and around Ann Arbor, people can swing dance on the regular thanks to groups like Swing Ann Arbor, Friday Night Swing, and the Ann Arbor Council for Traditional Music and Dance (AACTMAD). These groups sponsor Wednesday and Friday swing dances that feature beginner lessons for the first hour followed by open dancing.
Schabow, who is president of the Friday Night Swing group that attracts between 50-100 dancers every week, says KissME will include dancers who are new, experienced, and everything in between. He says, “Even brand new dancers can enjoy the music and experience and find someone to dance with.”
An impressive lineup of musicians will provide the music for all the KissME swingers. Locals bands including the K-Night Owls, James Dapogny’s Jazz Band, and Royal Garden Trio will join The Boilermaker Jazz Band from Pittsburgh and Alex Pangman & Her Alleycats out of Toronto. Friday night dances run from 8 pm until midnight and midnight until 5 am, both at Concourse Hall. Saturday offers an afternoon and evening dance at the Michigan Union Ballroom, followed by a late night dance at Concourse. An afternoon dance and barbecue will take place at Island Park on Sunday, followed by a return to Concourse Hall for a final evening dance and a blues afterparty.
A cornerstone of the weekend is the dance in the Huron River at Island Park. Schabow says: "Think of the song 'Wade in the Water' and then picture us splashing and dancing around in the shallow part of the river. We've become known for this tradition and people look forward to it every year!"
While there are many dances that make up the swing style, one of the best-known swing dances is the Lindy Hop. Using the eight-count structure of European dances along with improvisational movements, this dance form originated in African-American communities and got its name from the famous cross Atlantic flight by Charles Lindbergh. Orchestra leader TeRoy Williams recorded a song called "Lindbergh Hop," and the title became the name of a dance that was shortened to Lindy Hop by a Pittsburgh newspaper headline. Another newspaper predicted a short life for this dance -- a prediction that has most definitely not come true. Schabow says the Lindy Hop will likely be the most frequent swing dance at KissME and “you’ll see a lot of Charlestons and East Coast Swing dancing as well.”
The Charleston is forever associated with the "flappers" of the 1920s, mostly because of its uninhibited and energetic style. It is believed to have originated with African-American dances and became popular after appearing in the Broadway show called Runnin' Wild. A key part of the dance is "kicking up your heels" in an enthusiastic style.
The East Coast Swing (sometimes called the Jitterbug) was created in the Arthur Miller Studios and is based on the Lindy Hop. Unlike the eight count Lindy Hop and Charleston dances, it is a six count basic step. It was originally designed to be easier to teach than other swing dances (and also because some dance studios thought the Lindy Hop was a fad that would fade away quickly!).
If some of these terms don’t sound familiar and you wonder if you can even do the dances, relax! You will be welcomed and have a blast. Schabow promises, “It’s an all ages, all skill levels event. Anyone can come on out and find someone to dance with!”
Patti F. Smith is a special education teacher and writer who lives in Ann Arbor with her husband and cats.
The KissME weekend starts on Friday evening and runs until late on Sunday night. More information can be found on kissmeinannarbor.com and the Facebook event page.
Blog Post
Local Artists Reflect on Ann Arbor Art Fair
by christopherporter
The Ann Arbor Art Fair showcases the work of artists from around the country, but it’s also an important outlet for many local artists as well. Here, some working artists from the greater Ann Arbor area who are exhibiting this year share some thoughts on the event. The fair takes place July 20-23; for more information, see the Pulp preview article.
Benjamin Bigelow
Primary medium: 2D mixed media (printmaking background combined with painting and drawing)
Residence: Ypsilanti/Pittsfield Township
Age: 43
Exhibiting at: South University Art Fair
The fair offers “an opportunity to meet and talk directly with people about my art. It allows for networking and leads to other art opportunities. … It is an opportunity for local artists to see and meet artists from across the country. See and meet artists who make their living selling their art. It provides a different vision of being a maker of art than what you normally see in the Ann Arbor arts community. That diversity of approach is important for the greater arts community. It also keeps Ann Arbor's reputation as a community that supports art and artists.”
Ruth Crowe
Primary medium: Encaustics, photography, image transfer
Residence: Ann Arbor
Age: 58
Exhibiting at: Ann Arbor Street Art Fair
“This is my first time to exhibit at any art fair! I've lived here in Ann Arbor for nine years and didn't start my art career until four years ago. This experience will be exciting and interesting to be on the other side of the booth looking out -- rather than looking in as I have done for years. I am thrilled to be a part of one of the best art fairs in the country.”
Debbie Demyanovich
Primary medium: Glass
Residence: Brighton
Age: 66
Exhibiting at: State Street District Art Fair
“The Ann Arbor Art Fair is iconic and prestigious. I have lived in Southeast Michigan my entire life, and the Ann Arbor Art Fair has always been known as a must-see thing to do. I always felt proud that we had such a nationally known event in our community. … It really pumps me up to have been chosen and to exhibit at this particular fair. … Not only is the fair being visited, but all the local galleries and museums as well. Without the art fair, that amount of exposure would never be realized.”
Helen Gotlib
Primary medium: drawing and printmaking
Residence: Dexter
Age: 36
Exhibiting at: Ann Arbor Street Art Fair
“The Ann Arbor show is the largest outdoor art show in the country, and I have lots of artist friends who travel here from all over the U.S. Getting to see all of them and their newest artworks in one place is always fun! … The show gives artists a place to exhibit their work when there aren't many venues in the downtown area to do that. It also provides emerging artists with a viable way to start to make a living off of their work. The show exposes the public to a very diverse group of artist, points of view, and a great variety of work. Being able to come in contact with people that have such a wide variety of experience and talents is always mind expanding, in my opinion.”
Leigh Hollmann
Primary medium: Decorative fiber
Residence: Pittsfield/Ann Arbor
Age: 50
Exhibiting at: Ann Arbor Summer Art Fair
“It’s an opportunity to display my work for people to see, but also it gives me the chance for me to tell my story about my art to art fair goers. It also gives me a chance to talk to fellow artists about their work. … The art fair helps fuel Ann Arbor's economy, both larger business (restaurants and brick-and-mortar shops) as well as small business -- the artists themselves. It is also is a wonderful way to bring the community together. Artists are able share with the community, as well as other artists, their stories of what keeps them coming back to the studio every day.”
Nawal Motawi
Primary medium: Ceramic art tile
Residence: Ann Arbor
Age: 52
Exhibiting at: South University Art Fair
“Attending the fair and visiting certain artists is a beloved ritual for so many. Often people attend with rarely seen friends and clearly enjoy each other’s company as much as the art. The positive energy is palpable. It’s great to hang out collecting compliments on my work and people watching. The fairs give local artists who are seriously talented, but not seriously profit producing, a place on the national stage once a year. And we are all enriched by the inspiring work that descends on the town, and the friendships that develop during this crazy week in Ann Arbor.”
Mari Pruks
Primary medium: digital photography/mixed media
Residence: Ann Arbor
Age: 40
Exhibiting at: Ann Arbor Summer Art Fair
“(This year) is my first time exhibiting my art in my own booth. I have shown and sold my art in the past in 16 Hands gallery during the art fair. I loved how many people came. I do not know how it will go this year, but I am very excited and happy that I can participate my own town, and I love Ann Arbor. I think (the fair) is extremely important for the greater Ann Arbor art community. When so many amazingly talented artist come together it will inevitably inspire more creativity in everyone. It brings soulfulness in our already soulful city.”
Bob Needham is a freelance writer; the former arts & entertainment editor of The Ann Arbor News and AnnArbor.com; and a veteran Ann Arbor Art Fair-goer.
The 2017 Ann Arbor Art Fair runs 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Thursday, July 20; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Friday, July 21; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturday, July 22; and noon-6 p.m. Sunday, July 23. Admission is free. Read our guide to the event: "Making the Most of Ann Arbor Art Fair 2017." The fair takes place throughout the downtown and campus areas of Ann Arbor; for specific locations including closed streets, see the official Art Fair map. For more information, see the Ann Arbor Art Fair website. Visit artfair.aadl.org to see the library's Art Fair archives.
Blog Post
Making the Most of the Ann Arbor Art Fair 2017
by christopherporter
Whether you’ve never been to the Ann Arbor Art Fair before or you’re a veteran fairgoer, there’s always something new to learn that can improve your experience.
The top piece of advice from Karen Delhey, one of the event’s organizers: “Do your research. It’s really important to go on our website before you come out and make your plan of attack.”
Everyone’s interests and tastes are different, so Delhey suggests you figure out your own must-dos and must-sees ahead of time. Check out the list of artists to find your favorites or seek out potential new discoveries. And you might want to map your route before you head out as well.
The 2017 edition of the Ann Arbor Art Fair runs Thursday-Sunday, July 20-23, throughout the downtown and campus areas of Ann Arbor. One of the largest and most prestigious events of its kind, the fair showcases the works of more than 1,000 artists in individual artist booths. Other attractions include live music, artist demonstrations, and activities for kids.
“Obviously it is a huge economic boost to the area,” says Ruth Crowe of Ann Arbor, a first-time exhibitor who works in encaustics, photography, and image transfer. “But I love the energy that comes with it. The people who travel from all over to attend each year and all the different artists bringing their talents to A2. It is a treat to have this available to our community. We are lucky to live in such a supportive area for art.”
Technically, the event consists of four separate fairs all happening at the same time, with the original Ann Arbor Street Art Fair marking its 58th year in 2017. (Read how it all began at artfair.aadl.org.) And despite the event’s long history, regular fairgoers can always find something fresh and different.
“All of us get excited about the new art coming in, whether it’s new artists or new works from returning artists,” says Delhey, executive director of the Guild of Artists & Artisans, which runs the Summer Art Fair. (The other fairs are the State Street Art Fair and the South University Art Fair.) “The show is really never the same twice.”
More Tips for Attending
» “If you want to really enjoy the booths, then consider sticking with a very small group of people who enjoy the same thing,” says exhibitor Nawal Motawi of Motawi Tileworks. “Two is a great number! Like any other activity, I would want to understand my companion’s reason for going and agree on how we want to approach the experience.”
» Ask questions. “Don't be afraid to talk to the artists,” says Crowe. “Most artists love to educate people about their art. Buy something that speaks to you (within your budget). Art has a place in every home.”
» Be selective. “My style is to keep walking along until something in a booth speaks to me. I’ll look in for a minute or two. If I am really taken with the work then I might spend 10-20 minutes engaging with the work or the artist. That might happen 10 times total,” Motawi says. “I don’t feel the need to look hard at everything, or understand the art in it all. I just spend time with the work that really speaks to me.”
» Don’t be intimidated by parking. Delhey notes that there is a lot of available parking in garages and surface lots downtown. Or, park for free outside the fair and take an air-conditioned shuttle bus downtown for a $3 round-trip fare. Shuttles leave from the parking lots at Huron High School, Pioneer High School, and Briarwood Mall.
» Take advantage of Art-Go-Round, the free circulator bus going around the entire fair site, stopping at eight locations approximately every 15 minutes.
» Use the fair’s website while you’re at the fair; it’s optimized for mobile devices.
» Wear sunscreen, stay hydrated, and wear good walking shoes.
» Stay cool. The Michigan Theater offers a great place to cool off in the heart of the fair.
» Watch the weather forecast and be prepared, especially if storms are possible.
Last year, the fair switched from its longtime schedule of Wednesday through Saturday to a new Thursday-through-Sunday format. Although rain on the final day last year didn’t help, the new schedule went well enough that it’s back for 2017.
“Everybody felt good about it. We didn’t get any negative feedback from anyone,” Delhey says of the change.
One new attraction this year is Legoland creating a mural that will be moved after the fair to the Legoland store at Great Lakes Crossing mall. That will be part of the Art Activity Zone on Ingalls Mall near East Washington Street. The Art Activity Zone also offers several other free, family-friendly art projects that are open to all ages.
Other Attractions
» Live performances. The visual is never the only type of artistry on display at the fair. One popular annual attraction is the three music stages that run throughout the event, showcasing a range of local and regional performers. Stages are located at the corner of Church and Willard streets; off William just east of Main; and in Ingalls Mall.
» Artist demonstrations. Visitors can see renowned local chalk artist David Zinn work in person from 1-3 p.m. Thursday, July 20 and Sunday, July 23 at Liberty Street and Fifth Avenue. Other artists will showcase their process in a full schedule of demonstrations “under the big maples” on North University Avenue.
» Food booths. Food courts offer a wide variety of eats from local restaurants and visiting food trucks. Locations are on Liberty west of Main, Ingalls Mall, and Church Street south of South University.
» Nonprofit booths. An always-interesting sidelight to the fair is the collection of political, social and “other” organizations that set up informational booths in a designated zone on East Liberty Street east of Fifth Avenue.
» Sidewalk sales. Throughout the downtown area, local retail stores take advantage of the Art Fair to offer deals for visitors.
» People watching. Not an official part of the fair, but surely a major attraction for many fairgoers. Says Delhey: “It’s an experience, and not one that you’re going to find in many places.”
Bob Needham is a freelance writer; the former arts & entertainment editor of The Ann Arbor News and AnnArbor.com; and a veteran Ann Arbor Art Fair-goer.
The 2017 Ann Arbor Art Fair runs 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Thursday, July 20; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Friday, July 21; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturday, July 22; and noon-6 p.m. Sunday, July 23. Admission is free. The fair takes place throughout the downtown and campus areas of Ann Arbor; for specific locations including closed streets, see the official Art Fair map. For more information, see the Ann Arbor Art Fair website. The annual prelude to the fair, the Townie Street Party, takes place from 5-9:30 p.m. Monday, July 17 on Ingalls Mall and North University Avenue. Visit artfair.aadl.org to see the library's Art Fair archives.
Blog Post
Tools Crew Live: Approachable Minorities
by christopherporter
Downloads:
➥ MP3 for "Bodies” + “Bet"
➥ 720p video, 480p video or 240p video
Tools Crew Live is an ongoing video series where we invite artists to perform with gear borrowed from the Ann Arbor District Library's Music Tools collection: aadl.org/musictools.
* This video contains explicit content. *
As evidenced by their name, Approachable Minorities make strong social statements couched in playfully pointed language. The Ypsilanti hip-hop trio -- MCs Drew Denton and TJ Greggs with DJ Marcus McKinney -- released its debut album, Afro-American, in April 2016, and Denton’s solo LP, The Ascension Theory, arrived in December.
Approachable Minorities have worked hard to promote their music through a series of concerts under the name Northern Threat Entertainment, but the group is largely still a Washtenaw County phenomenon. But any label or manager looking to sign a talented and motivated group of artists who are ready to put in the work to promote their art would do well to turn 2017 into Approachable Minorities’ breakout year.
Impressed by the ensemble’s creativity and energy, we invited Approachable Minorities and their friend Cole Greve to check out a bunch Music Tools from the Ann Arbor District Library, learn how to use the gear, and come cut a Tools Crew Live video. The group re-created two cuts from Afro-American -- “Bodies” and “Bet” -- on the library’s gear and performed the songs at AADL’s downtown branch on June 9, 2017.
We spoke with Denton about the group’s history, the stories behind the songs, and the challenges and rewards of learning new music gear from scratch.
Q: How Approachable Minorities come to be?
A: The group Approachable Minorities is actually pretty recent and started as a joke! We've all known each other for 10-15 years and have been working together under various names -- Insane Industries+Spunky Smith, Ondemand, Northern Threat Entertainment -- but the idea of Approachable Minorities came about a year ago when a good friend of ours shaved his brightly colored beard and ditched his contacts for Coke-bottle lenses and came to the studio. None of us knew he had shaved the beard, so when he came in the room looking like tech support it kinda caught us all off-guard and Marcus cracked the joke, "Wow, man, you're looking like a real approachable minority right now!" and the phrase just kinda stuck.
This was right before the election heated up when a lot of brothers were getting shot by police. There was -- and still is -- a lot of racial tension in the air, and we just wanted to do something light hearted and fun that could still touch on some serious subjects. The whole ethos of the project is: "Anybody can end up a minority, just depending on what room they're in, so might as well be approachable? What's the sense of walking into a situation already hostile, before you even give people a chance?"
Q: Tell us the background and inspiration behind the songs "Bodies" and "Bet." And how did the former also end up on Drew's solo LP, The Ascension Theory?
A: “Bodies” is pretty much about corporate domination, racial division, and police brutality and trying to cope with all that. And “Bet” just comes from a term that people use a lot. When you say "bet" in response to something it's kinda like, "OK, yeah, lets do this," or can be used like "bet money" -- you will/won’t do something. The song is just me and Tj going back and forth talking shit, but also talking to the audience trying to point out pitfalls they may have in their own lives.
“Bodies” was originally supposed to only be on The Ascension Theory, but we ended up recording Afro-American and releasing it before The Ascension Theory was released, so it got put on both just because we thought the message was good and it was too dope to leave off of the Approachable Minorities project.
Q: Who are some of your favorite producers, MCs, and musicians?
A: Marcus: 12th Planet, Shiverz, Dan Jacobs, Tom Delong, Mark Hoppus.
Drew: Danny Brown, Bassnectar, Deftones, Gorillaz, The White Stripes, Jimi Hendrix, Flying Lotus.
TJ: Immortal Technique, Dr. Dre, Gang Starr, Mos Def.
Q: You re-created the songs using our gear. How were the songs originally created and what was it like trying to re-create them on unfamiliar gear? How did it change the songs?
A: I originally produced both the beats, with help from my friend/mentor MotorCityMello. Both were made in Ableton. Re-creating it took some time! When you're creating in the box (on the computer) the possibilities are endless and you have no time constraints. Getting the four of us all on the same page and able to perform in time with each other took a bit of work, but it was a lot of fun! We were able to keep the basic melody, tempo, and rhythms of the songs, but had to make some sacrifices in order to actually be able to perform them live.
Q: What was it like to have to crack open the manual and teach yourself the gear from scratch?
A: It took a good 10-20 hours of just reading manuals and watching tutorials to figure out how to use everything. All the Roland gear was pretty straightforward, though the Bass Line sequencer was a challenge to master at first and the Moog was a bitch and a half! It was worth the learning curve once we figured everything out, though, and we were real sad to have to give the gear back!
Q: What tips can you give music producers who might be intimidated to try our hands-on gear when they're used to working totally inside the computer?
A: Just try it! Take some time and learn more about your craft. Everything you learn to do on analog gear can be replicated digitally, but having the knobs/buttons actually make changes while you manipulate them live helps you learn. It goes from just pointing and clicking to actually playing an instrument, which can be a lot of fun in a group. Plus, all these things have been able to talk to each other digitally thru MIDI since the ’80s, so it’s not really like any of this is new. The more you learn the better off you'll be if you ever pull a job in an actual studio.
Music Tools on "Bodies" + "Bet":
➥ Roland TR-8 drum machine
➥ Roland TB-03 Bass Line
➥ Roland MX-1 mixer (not circulating yet)
➥ Moog Mother-32 semi-modular analog synthesizer (not circulating yet)
➥ Meatbox Subsynth filter pedal
➥ Shure SM58 microphone
Other Tools used to create the video:
➥ Chauvet DJ COLORband H9 USB lights (not circulating yet)
➥ Chauvet DJ Intimidator Spot Led 150 lights (not circulating yet)
➥ Chauvet DJ Rotosphere Q3 lights (not circulating yet)
➥ Go-Pro Camera Hero 4 (not circulating yet)
➥ Brain model
Christopher Porter is a library technician and the editor of Pulp.
To contact Approachable Minorities, visit facebook.com/ApproachableMinorities. To hire Drew Denton for beats, visit northernthreat.bandcamp.com. To listen to the original versions of "Bodies" and "Bet," visit approachable-minorities.bandcamp.com.
Blog Post
Piano Panorama: André Mehmari returns to Kerrytown
by christopherporter
André Mehmari plays piano like it's an extension of his body. It's easy to imagine his fingers taking the place of the piano's hammers and directly pounding the strings that stretch from inside the keyboard and connect directly to his brain. His hands move like dancers, gliding over the keys with such grace and flow that it's hard not to stare at them as he fills the room with gorgeous melodies and blissful harmonic combinations.
Born in 1977 in Niterói, Brazil, a town across Guanabara Bay from Rio de Janeiro, Mehmari began studying piano with his mom at age 5, learned how to improvise soon after, and by 10 had written his first compositions. His wide-ranging, highly personal playing incorporates jazz, classical, and all forms of Brazilian music, and those styles spill out on the piano with stunning fluidity.
Mehmari returns to Ann Arbor to play Kerrytown Concert House on Sunday, July 16, two weeks shy of the one-year anniversary of his last concert there. He’s also playing the Toledo Museum of Art on Saturday, July 15, where he will get to perform in the Glass Pavilion on a super-cool Wendell Castle-designed Steinway piano as well as playing a percussive improvisation on original glass art that was crafted for the museum’s Hot Shop.
We talked to Mehmari about his technique, sui genris Beatles covers, and glass marimbas
Q: I read that you like to spend a lot of your free time reading music and studying compositions. Are you able to internalize a lot of music just by reading it and then later draw on it from memory when improvising?
A: Yes, I can read music and hear it inside my head. I also have perfect pitch and this also helps a lot in this process.
Q: What's the origin of the maxixe arrangement for The Beatles' "Penny Lane"? Did you just hear the song as a tango in your head and set to work on it? Those rhythmic intervals between the pinky and thumb on your left hand are epic.
A: I recorded an entire album based on Beatles songs, aimed for children, in 2005. I had a hard time trying to play this classic “Penny Lane” without making a boring cover or a poor imitation of the original, so I searched for my Brazilian roots and converted the song into a maxixe, which could be defined as the father of the samba. Thanks! I’m glad you enjoyed. I have some negative feedback on YouTube from Beatles purists (laughs). This happens when you are not with the crowd.
Q: You hands look very relaxed and fluid when you play, even during louder or faster parts. Was this something you really concentrated on perfecting?
A: My technique is far from being perfect and I think it is only suitable for my own idiosyncratic style of playing the piano. I never spent much time playing scales or pure technique methods but played a lot of classical music to improve my sound and variety of touch. Playing Bach from a very early age helped me develop a polyphonic ear, something that led me to a much more complex comprehension of music.
Q: I saw the video where you're practicing Paganini improvisations on a Yamaha Reface CP. Our library loans music gear to the public, including the CP. What do you like about the instrument?
A: I love this little instrument! It's portable and has a variety of piano sounds built in so you don’t have to have a computer all the time with you to generate sounds. And it is battery powered! You can play or compose in your backyard!
Q: How do you plan your concerts? Do you know which compositions you're going to play in advance, or you just feel the room and decide in the moment?
A: It depends. Sometimes I plan a week in advance, sometimes I never plan and ask the audience for themes to improvise upon. Depends on my mood or on what the presents wants for me in that particular concert or situation.
Q: How did you start playing the glass marimba? What do you like about it compared to a regular marimba?
A: I wrote the soundtrack for the first Brazilian Netflix series, 3%. I hear it was a huge success in the U.S., being the most popular foreign language Netflix series. The glass marimba is used on the soundtrack I’m writing right now and I just love it. It's fully handmade by a pupil of Marco Antonio Guimaraes, founder of legendary Uakti group. It has a much longer sustain than a wood marimba but it never clutters harmony. It has a very pure sound, with some weird harmonics. I really like it! I recorded myself playing this glass marimba and will play along with the recording during my concert in Toledo. Maybe I can do the same in Ann Arbor.
Christopher Porter is a library technician and the editor of Pulp.
André Mehmari plays Kerrytown Concert House, 415 N. 4th Ave., Ann Arbor, on Sunday, July 16, at 8 pm. Tickets are $5-$30. Visit kerrytownconcerthouse.com for more info. Mehmari also performs Saturday, July 15, at 8 pm in the Toledo Museum of Art's Glass Pavilion, 2445 Monroe St. Tickets are $5-$10 and can be purchased from eventbrite.com.
Blog Post
Have Instruments, Will Travel: Rob Crozier's music is as multifaceted as his career
by christopherporter
Rob Crozier had to end our interview because he arrived at his job.
“I’m an entertainer. I do a lot of senior home gigs,” he said. “I go play ukulele and guitar, and I sing Tin Pan Alley, Broadway, old country, singalongs. That’s my day gig.”
In fact, Crozier's senior concerts are only one part of this Ann Arbor musician's many gigs. Multi-instrumentalist Crozier is also a jazz bassist, co-leader of the Irish-fusion group Nessa with his vocalist-flutist wife Kelly McDermott, a music educator, and the proprietor of Eventjazz, which provides live music for weddings, corporate events, and more.
And when you’re a full-time musician, sometimes you play gigs that wouldn’t make anybody green with envy, such as trying to entertain St. Patrick's Day revelers who are already three sheets to the wind at 8 am.
“I can play (the senior home) for an hour and have a really appreciative crowd that isn't vomiting, necessarily, or falling on themselves,” Crozier said, recalling a particularly harrowing St. Patrick’s Day show. “Green eggs and blllluuuuuurrrrgggh!”
Despite Crozier’s ability to play any type of music (in any type of setting), jazz is in his blood. He earned a BFA for jazz and contemporary improvisation in double bass from University of Michigan, and his father, Bill Crozier, was a jazz artist who played saxophone, clarinet, and flute. “When I was growing up he would often have Dixieland band rehearsals in my house,” Crozier said, “so that New Orleans sound really shows up in music that I make quite a bit.”
You can hear his father’s influence all over Tall Trees, the debut album by the Rob Crozier Ensemble. The whole CD is dedicated to his father’s memory, but the album-closing, title-track ballad is a direct tribute to Bill Crozier.
“‘Tall Trees’ was a lament that, when my dad died in 2014, I wrote in tribute to him,” Crozier said. “It sort of gave shape to the feelings around mourning, death, and mortality. Tall trees is a metaphor for people. The tall trees in your life are the ones who give you shelter and when they’re not there ... you really feel it.”
Pete Kahn plays saxophone and clarinet on the album, and Crozier’s wife plays flute on one song, “Flute Peace,” so all of Bill Crozier’s instruments are represented on Tall Trees. Rodney Rich (guitar), Brian Brill (piano, keyboard), and Sam Genson (drums) round out the ensemble, which recorded the album with no prior knowledge of the tunes since Crozier had just written most of them.
“It was truly one of those jazz workshop recordings, similar to what I think happened with Miles (Davis) and (John) Coltrane who brought in these larval pieces that were just seeing the light of day,” Crozier said. “We made (arrangement) decisions after rehearsing the take in the studio; there were no rehearsals for the recording. We just made decisions on the spot.”
Making decisions on the spot is the nature of jazz, but composing usually takes longer. Not so with Crozier. “I’m one of those people who works really well with very little in a short amount of time,” he said.
Crozier wrote “Tall Trees” three years ago, but the CD's other seven original compositions were penned last summer, mere weeks before the recording.
“I got this app for my wife’s iPad called Notion and I just proceeded to have fun writing all the rest of the music; most of it was done in a week and a half or two weeks,” Crozier said. “I always say to myself that’s not something to brag about when someone comes up to the stage, like, ‘Yeah, I wrote this song on a napkin on the way to the gig.’ (laughs) It’s cool, but art and craft takes a little bit more dedicated effort, and the art and craft of composing is a lifelong pursuit, but you get lucky sometimes when you write several songs in two weeks.”
Two covers, the folk tune “I've Been Working on the Railroad” and Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington’s “Isfahan,” bring Tall Trees to 10 tracks, with all of them touching on different styles of jazz: ’60s groovers (“Red-Winged Blackbird”), gentle swingers (“Reel Blue”), tango (“Naked Make Out”), ballads (“Fukushima Blues”), and African jams (“‘Song for Kahil,” inspired by AACM percussionist Kahil El’Zabar). It was a conscious decision to be so varied stylistically.
“I typically do my own thing with a variety of different feels on jazz,” Crozier said. “That’s one of the things I like to contribute to the tradition -- the pulling it out of the tradition and making it relevant to listeners. Getting them into hearing what can be done with it; that a ballad doesn’t necessarily need to be a wash of brushes on a snare drum; it can take on a new character. A melody has its own DNA and it has a life of its own that can be supplanted in a variety of different scenes, rhythmically and stylistically.”
And while playing drunken parties is a tough gig for any musician, racing away from one helped inspire Tall Trees’ “Highway Hypnosis.”
“I did one of those early morning St. Patrick’s Day club gigs,” Crozier said. "I did this 8 am to noon gig at a pub in Brighton, and on my way to my second gig at 2 o’clock in Canton ... I got a speeding ticket. So, I had to take a class online to get the points off my license, and one of the terms from the class that I was tested on was ‘Highway Hypnosis,’ which is when you’re transfixed by the lines of the highway.”
But getting busted for speeding isn’t the song’s only inspiration. Motor City jazz legend Yousef Lateef was on Crozier's mind, too: “He had a really big affect on me terms of the possibilities that exist in fusing repetitive themes on ethnic instruments and superimposing a jazz feeling or jazz language on top of that.”
It’s no surprise that Crozier digs this Detroit legend: like himself and his father, Lateef was a multi-instrumentalist who fused disparate sounds into a mellifluous whole. But chances are Lateef never had to play an Irish pub on March 17.
Christopher Porter is a library technician and the editor of Pulp.
Visit robcroziermusic.com, event-jazz.com, and nessamusic.com to keep up to date with Crozier's busy performance schedule, including these local shows: Weber's Inn (August 6), Ann Arbor Marriott Ypsilanti at Eagle Crest (August 10 and 24), and Old Town Tavern (August 23).
Blog Post
"Terror in Ypsilanti" recounts the true story of The Michigan Murderer
by christopherporter
"Notice of a psychotic killer in their midst did not resonate with the Ypsilanti, Michigan community in the summer of 1967."
So begins Terror in Ypsilanti, the award-winning book by Gregory Fournier. Not only did this idea not resonate with inhabitants of our area, but the term “serial killer” hadn’t even been devised yet; nonetheless, that is exactly who was stalking young women in Ypsilanti.
John Norman Collins ultimately was suspected of the deaths of seven women over a three-year period. Fournier, who was teaching in Ypsilanti at the time, lived a block away from Collins and “had several negative encounters with him.” But it wasn’t until he “saw (Collins’) face plastered across newspapers that I recognized him.”
While stories and the book The Michigan Murders by Edward Keyes have been written about Collins, Fournier did not feel that the entire story had been told. “I took a terse, journalist approach” to the book, Fournier says. Whereas prior writings often had “faulty information and (did not have) the benefit of hindsight,” Fournier wanted his book to share the story of what happened before Collins’ face was plastered on the front page of every local newspaper.
The book outlines the story as it unfolded before the eyes of the public and the police, and it includes details that have not been made public previously. Using newspaper archives, the second part details Collins’ criminal trial for the rape and murder of Karen Sue Beineman. The final part of the book tells of Collins’ time in prison where he made numerous attempts to dodge his sentence of life imprisonment and efforts to sway public opinion in his favor, including the 1977 interview with The Ann Arbor News, where Collins “took the opportunity to proclaim his innocence and attack the prosecutor and County Sheriff Harvey,” Fournier reports. Eleven years later, Collins appeared on the Detroit morning show Kelly and Company to once again declare his innocence and establish alibis. These alibis, Fournier says, “eventually made their way to the internet and took on a life of their own.”
Despite being suspected of committing seven murders (six in Michigan and one in California that was linked to the crime spree), Collins was only tried and convicted of the Beineman murder. But despite being dubbed the Michigan Murderer, the Co-Ed Killer, the Ypsilanti Ripper (in the U.K.), and the Ypsilanti Strangler (in Canada), the case did not seem to receive the same sort of extraordinary media coverage that other murderers seem to attract. Fournier believes that this is because sensational murders happened the same week that Collins’ trial began: the Tate/LaBianca murders. “(The international and national media) left one week into the Collins trial so they could cover the Charles Manson and Helter Skelter murders; however, the local media dug in and reported the case tirelessly. Were it not for the efforts of the men and women of the Michigan press, this story would have been lost to history.”
Fournier's book is self-published, but it's finding an audience -- and winning awards. “The story has done well regionally and is starting to garner some national and international attention," he said. "The London editor of Dagger: True Crime Magazine asked me to write an article on Collins … which will run in their fall issue, and an Australian company has produced an audio book of Terror in Ypsilanti for distribution worldwide in English-speaking countries.” Additionally, the book won a silver book award in the 2017 Literary Classics Book Awards and received honors from the 2017 International Book Awards.
Beyond the awards and accolades, the book offers a moral: Don't accept people at face value. Fournier says, “Many people have said to me that Collins doesn't look like a serial killer. My question to them is, ‘What does a serial killer look like?’ … Ultimately, if something doesn’t feel right about a person, trust your instincts. Don’t place yourself in a compromised position and recognize danger before it’s too late.”
Patti F. Smith is a special education teacher and writer who lives in Ann Arbor with her husband and cat.
Gregory Fournier will read from the award-winning "Terror in Ypsilanti" on July 12 at 7 pm at Nicola’s Books, 2513 Jackson Ave., Ann Arbor.
Blog Post
Serious sentiments in "Spring Awakening" flip the script for A2 in Concert
by christopherporter
In the musical Spring Awakening, a group of teenagers collectively face suicide, rape, homelessness, parental incest, and depression, all while they struggle to understand their burgeoning sexuality over the course of a school year. Adapted from a German play written in the 1890s, the musical hasn’t made many changes to the storyline, it just added some rock music.
This will be Ann Arbor in Concert’s fifth production since the organization began in 2012, and this is a very different show than anything else they’ve produced. Over the past few years, Ann Arbor in Concert’s credits have included Ragtime, 42nd Street, West Side Story, and, most recently, Hairspray.
“We were originally supposed to do The Music Man,” said Mike Mosallam, the director of Spring Awakening. “We were planning to do another large-scale show. But it’s been a hard year … it’s been hard for the country, and it’s been a hard year for the town of Ann Arbor. We wanted to contribute to the conversation. We felt like doing a show like The Music Man may have felt like an easy choice. So we totally changed gears and are taking a major risk. We’re not featuring a choir this year, which is a big departure for us. We’re not featuring as large of an orchestra as we typically do. Our show has a cast of 15, and 13 of the 15 are young adults. The entire sound, the entire show, the entire everything of the show rests on their shoulders. And the artistry in this show has been one of the most fulfilling of my life to date.”
Since a minimalist rock musical is a stark departure from anything Ann Arbor in Concert has ever produced before, Mosallam spoke a bit more about their decision to do a show without a choir and with a much smaller orchestra. “I’ve found myself looking through the lens of who we are as an organization, this idea of Ann Arbor in Concert,” said Mosallam. “And if we are to bill ourselves as an organization that does concert musicals, I kept thinking: What show better lends itself to a concert? It’s essentially a rock concert in these kids’ minds. And so our lens is very much not ignoring the fact that there’s a band onstage.”
As for the impact of joining a conversation with the community of Ann Arbor, Mosallam takes Ann Arbor in Concert's responsibility seriously. “We made a conscious choice to go with a show that allowed us to participate in social discussion. … We wanted the community to feel like we could, as a community-based organization, provide resources for those who were looking for someone to talk to. We decided early on that we would do a talkback so that we could discuss the themes of the show and how they parallel today. And we want to allow community organizations that specialize in helping through these times of crisis to come and participate in the show, be present, be there, and be a resource for the community. It’s really an act of social engagement.”
In the hopes of continuing that discussion, Craig VanKempen, a social worker and health educator at the Corner Health Center of Ypsilanti, will be giving a talk on Monday, July 10, at the downtown branch of the Ann Arbor District Library about the history of the German play and how it relates to the modern issues that many adolescents in America face and what we can do to address them.
“Curiosity, experimentation, and depth of feelings are normal parts of being an adolescent, no matter what time period,” said VanKempen. “I believe it is the job of adults to guide them to exploring feelings and experimenting in a safe way. … The beauty of this play is that it doesn't need to be adapted to a modern audience. (Lyricist Steven) Sater and (musician Duncan) Sheik, who brought the play to Broadway, saw this and decided to keep its late 19th-century German setting and aesthetic when they were designing the show. And the reason it works is because the issues faced still resonate with us today. The one thing that Sater and Sheik did in adapting this to a modern audience was make the subtext in the original play into song, so that the audience can hear and feel what the actors are thinking instead of getting that from the performances. This leads to some very powerful and memorable songs.”
As for Ann Arbor in Concert, what will growth in the future look like? “I think for me growth is continuing to push boundaries in our show choices," said Mosallam. "Continuing to have our show choices influenced by what’s happening in the world at large and letting those shows become commentary on them.”
Toby Tieger has directed, acted in, and written plays over the last 10 years, and sees theater as often as he can. He is a building supervisor with the Ann Arbor District Library.
Ann Arbor in Concert’s one-night-only performance of "Spring Awakening will be on Saturday, July 15, at 8 pm at the Power Center. Tickets are on sale at a2ic.org or at the Michigan Union Ticket Office. The Ann Arbor District Library presents “Spring Awakening: How a 19th-Century German Play Rocks With Relevance Today,” a talk and discussion led by Craig VanKempen, MSW, MPH, on Monday, July 10, from 7-8:30 p.m. at the library’s Downtown branch.
Blog Post
Controversy and Comedy: Michigan Shakespeare Festival 2017
by christopherporter
The Michigan Shakespeare Festival’s board votes on the plays for a specific season -- pitched by MSF’s Producing Artistic Director Janice L. Blixt -- 18 months in advance of the curtain being raised.
So in early 2016, when MSF’s board voted to approve Taming of the Shrew, Julius Caesar, and Chekhov’s The Seagull for 2017 (the season kicks off in Jackson on July 6), the company had no idea that it would be staging Caesar shortly after New York Public Theater’s production of the play (which depicted Caesar as Donald Trump) made national headlines and drew protestors.
“I expected Shrew to be the controversial show, where I’d be fielding questions like, ‘How are you dealing with the misogyny?’” said Blixt.
Not so much. Although Blixt, who is directing Caesar, had her own vision for the play -- a take that bears no resemblance to the Public’s political lightning rod production -- MSF has received phone calls, emails, and Facebook comments from across the country recently.
“We’re getting it from both sides,” said Blixt. “Some people are angry that we’re doing the show at all. Others are angry that we’re not giving it a more political bent. Both of our venues (in Jackson and Canton) have gotten a lot of calls about it. Enough so that I finally had to issue a statement.”
Blixt has largely built her production around this key passage from Caesar’s Act III, scene I: “How many ages hence/ Shall this our lofty scene be acted over/ In states unborn and accents yet unknown!”
“(These characters) talk a lot in the show about the situation they’re in in Rome,” said Blixt. “They feel like they’re losing their Republic to the power of one individual, so they feel like they have to do something. Historically, this is the basis for nearly every government overthrow, be it a military coup, or an assassination, or some other kind of turnover of power. It happens again and again and again.”
Blixt’s production features a set that combines traditional columns with modern graphics, and Roman Senate togas appear alongside more contemporary looks. According to Blixt, this works to underline the fact that “Rome has stood this entire time, and the traditions and rituals of ancient Rome are often still what are used today.”
The production’s primary focus, though, is drawn from the text itself: how Brutus must weigh his own feelings against the needs of the state, and what comes of his decision. “We see how far he has to be pushed to see that Rome is more important to him -- the traditions and rituals of Rome -- than even his friend, a man he cares about a great deal. But Brutus is terrified that Caesar’s changing the republic, so he and the other conspirators choose to use violence, which inevitably means the whole thing will end in violence. That’s just how it works in Shakespeare. It tends to be true that the first guy to draw a sword ends up dead.”
Blixt takes several factors into account when putting together a season proposal, but two broad-stroke starting points involve pairing of a Shakespeare comedy with a tragedy or history, and an oft-produced work of the Bard’s with a lesser-known one. Caesar was intended to fill the latter slot, which Blixt acknowledges seems strange, given that it’s pretty famous. “But we’d checked in with our patrons, and we were surprised to find that an incredibly big number of them had never seen it,” said Blixt. “They’d read it in high school, but they’d never seen a production of it.”
The Taming of the Shrew, filling the “more familiar Shakespeare show” slot this season, will not only surely be a lighter, sillier night of theater than Caesar, but it will also feel celebratory, as it marks the 20th anniversary of a special production that brought three key MSF figures together.
Back in 1997, when the fledgling company was called the Jackson Shakespeare Festival, artistic director John Neville-Andrews cast Blixt (née Waldron) as Kate and David Blixt as Petruchio. The two young actors had never met before, and not only did they go on to co-star in subsequent MSF productions helmed by Neville-Andrews (Much Ado About Nothing, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Macbeth), but they also got married, and they honeymooned in Petruchio’s hometown of Verona. (Neville-Andrews stepped down as MSF artistic director in 2009 and Janice Blixt stepped in.)
This trio of artists that helped establish, and build on, MSF’s foundation are reuniting this year for a brand new (yet more Elizabethan) production of Shrew, with Neville-Andrews back in the director’s chair. The comedy tells the story of a Paduan lord whose beautiful youngest daughter, Bianca, earns the attention of many suitors, but her father won’t allow her to marry until her older sister -- headstrong, willful Kate -- finds a husband. When Petruchio comes to town, looking to marry a woman of means, his friend, Bianca-smitten Hortensio, convinces him to marry Kate. After the wedding, Petruchio goes about “taming” Kate by way of denying her food and clothing (claiming nothing’s good enough for her), and reflexively disagreeing with everything she says.
Obviously, Petruchio’s treatment of Kate often makes Shrew disturbing for modern audiences. “But I think audiences will be pleasantly surprised,” said Blixt. “Without major script changes, we are creating something a little different. The heart of this relationship is -- they’re going to end up happy together, and it’s not about Stockholm Syndrome, or starving her until she listens. It’s about learning to play the game, where a partnership is a partnership. You, scowling angry woman, you don’t get to be leader, just as I, goofy ebullient man, can’t be the leader. We will not have happiness until we’re truly partners.”
Not that there haven’t still been challenges along the way. “As a 40-year-old woman, I hear these words come out of my mouth, and I think, ‘I don’t like this. I need to figure this out,’” said Blixt. “But we all knew the product we wanted to make, so it’s a matter of how we use what’s there to get to that product. And I think we’ve done it.”
Twenty years ago, the couple approached Kate and Petruchio as two people who fell in love at first sight, but -- because of where they were both coming from -- they couldn’t communicate it or acknowledge it until going through one hell-week of marriage. But that’s not the only difference.
“Last time around, I didn’t have to take a hot shower and an ibuprofen after every rehearsal,” said Blixt, referring to her role’s physical demands. “I mean, we’re trained as classical actors, so before, I’d always do things like warm-ups because it was the right thing to do, but now, if I don’t, I’ll really be hurting for a few days.”
Finally, MSF will present a new adaptation (by Blixt and the company) of Anton Chekhov’s classic dark comedy The Seagull, about an aging actress, her famous author boyfriend, her pretentious aspiring playwright son, and an ingenue who’s both a threat to her and a painful reminder of what she’s lost.
“I was looking for something that was going to be funny, but I didn’t want anything that’s ‘silly funny,’ since Shrew would have that covered,” said Blixt. "Even when (The Seagull) gets painful toward the end, the humor is dark and biting. It’s more like a modern sitcom, like The Office, than something that’s lighter and sillier. And it’s got great characters and terrific roles for women.”
Blixt is directing The Seagull (as well as Caesar), and she’s excited by what she’s seen thus far in rehearsal.
“I hope audiences walk in and can slough off the idea that they’re in for three hours of Russian angst, which is what most people think of when it comes to Chekhov,” said Blixt, who says the company’s new version clocks in at closer to two hours.
And because it combines tragedy with comedy, The Seagull seems to round out MSF’s new season nicely. “We’re doing a bit of a mix of shows, and trying to look at each one a little differently,” said Blixt. “We’re definitely going for a ‘something for everyone’ mentality.”
Jenn McKee is a former staff arts reporter for The Ann Arbor News, where she primarily covered theater and film events, and also wrote general features and occasional articles on books and music.
Michigan Shakespeare Festival runs July 6 to August 13. Visit michiganshakespearefestival.com for tickets and showtimes.
Blog Post
High Octane: Summer Metal Fest 2017
by christopherporter
All good music begins in the garage. Music festivals, too.
“I did a show in my dad's garage last summer and started talking with one of the bands that played and started October Punk Fest last year,” said Ypsilanti-raised Ryan Wilcox, 37.
Wilcox has upped the mosh and morphed October Punk Fest into the Summer Metal Fest, which happens July 8 at the Washtenaw Farm Council Grounds.
“This year the Farm Council Grounds was booked in October so we moved the date to July and changed the name,” Wilcox said. “I'm still deciding if I want to do both shows next year; I know for sure I will be doing Summer Metal Fest again.
While the Washtenaw Farm Council Grounds, best known for 4H events, antiques, and auctions, might seem an odd place to hold a metal festival, the space holds a special place in Wilcox’s family.
“My wife and I had our wedding there in 2012, so I was very familiar with them, it's a easy location to do a festival like this with the space to hold a big crowd,” he said. “I haven't had any difficulties doing the festival there, they have a lot of electrical hookups available so that makes it easy for the sound system needed.”
The sound system and renting the grounds are just two of the expenses Wilcox faces; paying 15 bands is another. It’s why he had to sell his car. “I had a 2005 GT Mustang I sold this year to be able to put together the Summer Metal Fest,” he said.
While there a dozens of subgenres in heavy metal -- death, tech, doom, etc. -- all the bands playing this festival are steeped in metalcore, a genre that often features screamed verses, sung choruses, and middle-section breakdowns. If you know SiriusXM, it's basically the Octane channel. “I listen to metal more than I do any other music genre so that played a big part in my decision” to book the festival this way, Wilcox said.
There are numerous bands from Michigan and Ohio playing Summer Metal Fest, as well as one from Indiana and one from the East Coast. “I had mostly bands from Michigan in the [October Punk Fest] I did last year, so I am very excited that this year I attracted bands from out of state,” Wilcox said. “It's amazing to see how driven all of these bands are, I have a full set list and more bands want to join the lineup. Convictions which is my headlining band, they recently did a big U.S. tour and a tour overseas.”
Europe is a long way from a garage in Ypsilanti.
2017 SUMMER METAL FEST 2017 LINEUP
1:00-1:30 Otiose
1:45-2:05 Collections
2:20-2:50 Echo Of Silence
3:05-3:35 OCEAN GRID
3:50-4:20 After The Ashes
4:35-5:05 I, Embodiment
5:20-5:50 Northern Shores
6:05-6:35 Five Hundredth Year
6:50-7:20 GHOST NATIVE
7:35-8:05 Ascendence
8:20-8:50 Art Of The Fallen
9:05-9:35 10/31
9:50-10:20 Of Virtue
10:35-11:35 Convictions
Christopher Porter is a library technician and the editor of Pulp.
Summer Metal Fest takes place Saturday, July 8, at Washtenaw Farm Council Grounds, 5055 Ann Arbor Saline Rd, Ann Arbor. Tickets are $12 in advance and $12 at the door. Parking is free.