UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Wednesday, July 2, 1997
1B
SUA's summer music: Ska,right
Finals, timing reasons for show's small turnout
By Daniel Ethan Thompson Kansan staff writer
Without a stage or a single spotlight, three ska bands rocked the hill last Thursday night. Unfortunately for the bands, it was mostly the hill they were playing for.
The concert was Student Union Activities' Summer on the Hill: Summer Ska Show. The show started about 6 p.m., and featured O'Phil, The Norman Three-Sixty and Low Brows.
"It's a pretty sorry turnout," said John Orcutt, Live Music Director for SUA. "But I've heard it's like this every summer."
He said the bands were paid for their performances but were primarily playing for exposure. At any given time during the event there were about 50 spectators. "There just isn't anyone here," Gruft said.
"We wish more people were here, but it's never a waste of time," said Otis Warner, lead vocalist for Lawrence's The Norman Three-Sixty.
SUA ran a quarter-page advertisement in last Wednesday's 'Kansan' and commercials on KJHK. In addition, fliers were posted around town and on Gumby's pizza boxes, one of the show's sponsors.
"They were going to put fliers up, but I didn't see it advertised anywhere," said Jenn Fortune, alto saxophonist for The Norman Three-Sixty.
James Grau / KANSAN
Orcutt said filers were given to Gumby's Pizza for dis
tribution on their boxes
"We had enough fliers for about two nights," said Callie Meier, Lawrence junior and Gumby's employee. "We sell about 200 pizzas a night."
Paul Silvia,
Lawrence graduate
student,
said he was in
the Glass Onior
"We wish more people were here, but it's never a waste of time."
Otis Warnee lead vocalist for The Norman Three-Sixty
when he saw a flier and decided to go.
"I used to play in a band, and it was a real drag when no one showed," he said. "They're good, and it must be disappointing. But I guess it's summer."
Orcutt said the low attendance could be attributed to several factors. The show was held the night before final exams for one-month-long classes. In addition, lighting wasn't budgeted, so the show had to be finished by dark.
"I've never been to an early show that worked," said Alex Thomas, lead vocalist for O'Phil. "No one is on and about then. We had to be off by 9 p.m., which is when opening bands usually go on."
Above: The brass ensemble of the Norman Three-Sixty shake up the air waves with skiraffic sounds. The seven-piece band played Thursday night on North Campanile Hill along with Low Brows and O'Phil for SUA's annual Summer Skai Show. Left: A few of Winfield's O' Phil's nine members warm up to take the stage after The Norman Three-Sixty. Below left: A few ska fans go to skankin" during the high volume set of The Norman Three Sixty. Below right:
SUA spent less on this year's Summer on the Hill than last year, Orcutt said.
"My husband is a KU police officer and he called and told me about it," she said. "It's very good."
"This year we had to cut the stage or not pay the bands," he said.
City park comes alive with sounds of band music
Bv Rebecca Osladil
Kansan staff writer
Band music will fill the air in South Park tonight. Children will dance while adults sit on lawn chairs and blankets and tap along with one of Lawrence's oldest traditions.
The Lawrence City Band, directed by Robert Foster, will perform tonight in the gazebo at South Park on 11th and Massachusetts Streets.
"The Lawrence City Band exists to present performances in the style of safe and wholesome traditional American outdoor concerts. I try to select concerts that are really fun to play and entertaining to the audience," said Foster, professor of music and dance and director of the KU band.
The show will be the fifth in a series of eight free summer concerts performed Wednesday nights from 8 to 9 o'clock.
The Lawrence City Band is sponsored by the Lawrence Parks and Recreation Department, assisted by the Rice Foundation. Forty core band members are paid through the foundation.
The current band has given free summer concerts in South Park since the mid-1960s, but the Lawrence City Band has existed longer. The band played its first concert Aug. 20, 1863, the night before Quantrill's raid.
Barbara Kelly, manager of the Lawrence City Band, said the band was the best free entertainment in Lawrence. But she said it was difficult to become a band member.
"The level of expertise required to plav is actually quite good." Kelly said.
There are 67 band members, including Lawrence High School and KU students and full-time musicians. Most band members have other careers but love to play music, Kelly said.
Playing in the city band is a family tradition for Matt McCready, Prairie Village senior and member of several KU bands. His father and uncle also are band members.
"It's great to be able to play with older guys. It's neat to be in an organization that has such a historical meaning to the town. It's a great band and a real community activity," McCready said.
The band's professionalism has been rewarded. It has received the Sudler Award, which is given by the John Philip Sousa Foundation to an outstanding city band. The Lawrence City Band was the second band in the United States to receive the award.
Bob Newton, master of ceremonies for this year's concert series and KLWN announcer, said Lawrence residents have good programs to anticipate. "On July 23, cannons will be brought to the park and fired during
"We say this is the small-town feature," Kelly said. "It's great to see such a diverse age group all tapping out the rhythm and enjoying the performance. You let the music go in one ear and out the other, and you feel better for having been here."
For those who cannot attend the performances, KLWN will broadcast the shows live.
the band's rendition of Tchalkovsky's '1812 Overture.' Newton said.
More than 400 people attended last week's concert.
Lawrence resident Larry McElwain said the concerts appealed to diverse groups.
"People feel relaxed," McElwain said. "It brings people young and old together, which you don't always see. A lot of times music divides people in their tastes, but this seems to bring people from a wider area together."
Staff Photographer / NAMBAN
Staff Photographer / KANSAM
A crowd gathers in front of the South Park gazebo to listen to the Lawrence City Band. The band performs at 8 p.m. every Wednesday.