A Man. A Pile of Snow. And a Horse.

Senior Pete Storonsky buffs up one of his snow sculptures after a weekend of sun took its toll­by Feb. 21, this and another horse located just south of Andrews Hall were decapitated and listing. But 20 minutes of shaping and carving restored both steeds to full equine glory.

Storonsky spent a couple of hours each on Feb. 18 and 19 creating the snow ponies, adding them to a body of work that includes a likeness of DaVinci's Last Supper, a Taj Mahal complete with minarets ("I was kind of showing off here," he said) and a winged angel.

The ephemeral nature of snow doesn't deter this artist.

"People like them, and I get enthused over that," he said. "I don't for care them getting run over by vehicles, though." Storonsky said that previous horse sculptures had been flattened by vandals driving through his yard.

The former computer science major has switched to art. He thinks he will probably work in a more permanent medium than snow, however.

The Carnegie Hall Jazz Band is led by Jon Faddis, Music Director.

Ellington, Armstrong Featured Composers

Carnegie Hall Jazz Band Presents Tribute of Greats

Jazz fans are in for a special treat as The Carnegie Hall Jazz Band makes a return appearance to the Lied Center for Performing Arts at 7 p.m. Feb. 27. Under the direction of Jon Faddis, The Carnegie Hall Jazz Band will be performing Jazz Genius of the 10th Century: Ellington and Armstrong ­ a tribute to jazz legends Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong.

Since its debut in 1992, The Carnegie Hall Jazz Band has earned a reputation as one of the most important ensembles in the jazz world. Equally known for its new arrangements as well as tributes to jazz legends, The Carnegie Hall Jazz Band performs an annual series at its namesake, Carnegie Hall, and tours nationally and internationally.

For the Lied Center performance, the band will present new arrangements of Duke Ellington standards such as "Choo, Choo" and "Delta Bound" and Louis Armstrong classics including "What a Wonderful World," "Stardust" and "Ain't Misbehavin'."

Music director Jon Faddis is an accomplished trumpeter who began playing at age eight in his hometown of Oakland, Calif., inspired by a television appearance of Louis Armstrong. Jazz quickly captured his heart and Dizzy Gillespie became his hero. Faddis' devotion to jazz and musical skill led to a meeting with Gillespie and by his mid-teens, Faddis had even sat in with his hero's combo.

After graduating from high school, Faddis joined Lionel Hampton's band as a featured soloist. This exposure led to invitations from numerous groups to play or record with them. During this same period, Faddis studied at the Manhattan School of Music.

By age 20, Faddis was already an acclaimed musician earning praise from established artists and critics, as well as numerous fans around the world. His distinctive trumpet sound has been featured on albums as diverse as Duke Ellington, The Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, Luther Vandross, Quincy Jones, Billy Joel and Paul Simon. His horn was heard on the theme of "The Cosby Show" and the soundtracks of the Clint Eastwood films The Gauntlet and Bird.

In addition to his extensive performing schedule, Faddis is also frequently asked to direct musical groups as well as working as a composer and educator ­ encouraging young musicians and nurturing the future of jazz.

As part of the Lied Center's ongoing education programming, pre-performance talks will be held in the Lied's Steinhart Room 55 minutes and 30 minutes prior to curtain.

Tickets are $32, $28 and $24; half price for students. Call the Lied box office at 472-4747 for ticket availability.

Trocks' Parody Points to Lighter Side of Serious Dance

Superb dancing with a comedic flair is the trademark of Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, performing at the Lied Center for Performing Arts at 8 p.m. Feb. 29.

Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, an all-male comic ballet company, dances a fine line between high art and high camp. The Trocks are a group of ballet enthusiasts who lovingly parody the form in hopes of poking holes in the serious world of ballet and making dance more accessible to mass audiences.

While their aim may be to make audiences laugh, the Trocks are talented professional dancers, who amaze audiences with graceful movements usually reserved for beautiful ballerinas. Each member has the training and experience that would qualify him to be a principal dancer in a major ballet company.

Every Trock portrays both a male and female dancer with wacky stage names such as Fifi Barkova, Medulli Lobotomov and Igor Teupleze. Parodying classical works from Swan Lake to Giselle and the choreography of Isadora Duncan, George Balanchine and Martha Graham, the Trocks create a humorous show that appeals to dance lovers and novices alike.

Since the formation of Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo in 1974, the group has become wildly popular with frequent national and international tours. On television, the Trocks have been seen in programs as diverse as a special with Shirley Maclaine and with the Muppets.

Pre-performance talks begin 55 and 30 minutes prior to curtain in the Steinhart Room.

Tickets for this performance are $36, $32 and $28; half-price for students. Call the Lied box office at 472-4747 for ticket availability.

Sheldon Offers Parallel Perspectives

Parallel Perspectives: Early 20th Century American Art, opening Feb. 25 at the Sheldon Gallery, features works drawn from two art museums associated with educational institutions.

More than 70 works from the Sheldon's collection and the collection of the Addison Gallery of American Art runs through May 9.

Co-curated by Susan Faxon, associate director and curator of the Addison Gallery and Daniel Siedell, interim director and curator of the Sheldon Art Gallery,

Established in 1931, in Andover, Mass., the Addison Gallery of American Art sits on the campus of the Phillips Academy, founded in 1785, the oldest boarding school in the United States. Its major donor, Thomas Cochran, established the museum and its art collection for the express purpose of facilitating the study of the visual arts within the educational mission of the Academy.

Parallel Perspectives surveys the aesthetic diversity of American art from 1890-1930 through these two significant collections of American art. The exhibition focuses attention on one of the most important periods in the history and development of American art as American artists were for the first time confronted with European modernism. Parallel Perspectives tells the story of these various engagements.

Featured are paintings, sculptures, and works on paper by such diverse artists as George Inness, Ralph Blakelock, George Bellows, Patrick Henry Bruce, Arthur B. Davies, Stuart Davis, Robert Henri, Gaston Lachaise, and Georgia O'Keeffe, among many others.

Parallel Perspectives is the second of four collaborative exhibitions between the Addison Gallery of American Art and collections of important teaching museums around the country made possible by The Henry Luce Foundation, Inc., through the American Collections Enhancement Initiative. The exhibitions are intended to foster collaborative work between institutions with significant collections of American art. Additional support was provided by June and Paul Schorr.

A brochure featuring full-color reproductions and an interview with Siedell and Faxon by art historian William C. Agee is available through the Sheldon Gift Shop.

Siedell will present a gallery talk on the work of Parallel Perspectives: Early Twentieth-Century American Art at 12:15 p.m. April 19, as part of Sheldon's "Wednesday Walks" series, which takes place on the third Wednesday of each month, September through May. The public is encouraged to attend.

High School Swim Championships Featured on NET

High school swimming teams from across the state will compete for boys' and girls' state titles when "Nebraska High School Swimming Championships," airs live at noon Feb. 26 on the statewide Nebraska ETV Network.

Calling the action of the four-and-a-half-hour competition, telecast from the Bob Devaney Sports Center, will be former University of Nebraska women's swim coach Ray Huppert, with color commentary provided by former Husker swimmer and Big 8 champion Matt Rye.

The swimming competition also will be "webcast" on Nebraska Educational Telecommunications' web site, http://net.unl.edu.

Statewide Examines Omaha Arena Proposal

Nebraskans across the state could feel the effect when Omahans go to the polls May 9 to vote on a proposal to build a $281 million downtown arena and convention center, according to an in-depth report airing at 8 p.m. March 3 on Statewide, the Nebraska ETV Network's weekly magazine series.

The series, which includes up-to-the-minute news reports from across the state and other features of interest, repeats at 1:30 p.m. March 5. Statewide also airs on EduCable at 3 p.m. March 5.

Statewide correspondent Bill Kelly will examine plans that community and business leaders have proposed for a convention center and arena for downtown Omaha. Proponents claim the 17,000-seat facility is needed because Omaha's existing convention center is too outdated and lacks the seating capacity needed to attract major conventions and performers. Kelly's report includes interviews with proponents of the facility, the arena's architects and residents who feel the city has many questions to answer about financing and civic priorities.