Buddy Guy Headlines House of Blues' Highway 61

Blues aficionados are in for a rare treat Nov. 21 when the House of Blues/Southern Comfort presents "The Highway 61 Tour" starring Buddy Guy and his band with the Blind Boys of Alabama and Billy Boy Arnold at 8 p.m. Nov. 21 on the mainstage of the Lied Center for Performing Arts.

Highway 61 is a musical adventure that takes the audience on a multi-media journey through the history of the blues. Using music, film and narrative, the performance traces the historical and geographic progression of the blues from its gospel roots to the Mississippi Delta to the rhythm and blues of the Memphis era to the modern sounds of urban-influenced Chicago Blues.

More than just a concert, Highway 61 is a scripted presentation, theatrically and musically oriented. The audience is treated to a multi-media affair of music and visual arts, including rare film footage.

House of Blues, a collaboration between Isaac Tigrett of Hard Rock Cafe fame, and actor Dan Aykroyd, an original "Blues Brother," celebrates the diversity of world culture and promotes and nurtures live blues music as a unique American art form.

Headliner Buddy Guy is no stranger to the blues. During a 40-year career, Guy has won the title "Greatest Living Electric Blues Artist."

A four-time Grammy winner, Guy's distortion-heavy, feedback-drenched riffs and sharp, stuttering staccato-laced leads have influenced a virtual "who's who" of rock and blues legends, including Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Jimmy Page.

"The Blues ain't the Blues unless there's a real feeling, real ... mileage behind the notes being played," Guy says.

The Blind Boys of Alabama, featuring Clarence Fountain, represent the best of the gospel roots of the blues. Since their start in 1939, when these singers began praising the Lord through song at the Talladega Institute for the Blind in Alabama, the Blind Boys have electrified audiences with their impassioned and powerful religious music. The Blind Boys appeared on Broadway in 1988 and have recorded more than 20 albums in the gospel idiom. Wooed hard by the likes of Sam Cook and B.B. King to cross over into popular rock'n'roll, the Boys steadfastly refuse.

"We have nothing against Blues music," Fountain says. "The difference is that in Gospel, we sing about Jesus and the Blues guys sing about their baby."

Chicago native Billy Boy Arnold was 13 when he persuaded the legendary Sonny Boy Williamson to divulge his trademark secret to "choking" the mouth harp (harmonica). Williamson died shortly thereafter, and Arnold was determined to become a bluesman. He befriended many of the local Chicago blues legends, learning from the best -Muddy Waters, Otis Rush and Earl Hooker all were influences in the young player's life. He made his first recording at age 19 and by then had hooked up with a local street musician, Bo Diddley. And while his early career flourished, he pursued more profitable "day jobs" as a bus driver and parole officer.

While he never completely left the business, his career was reborn in 1992 with a new album and successful American and European tours.

Pre-performance talks are part of the Lied Center's ongoing education programming. The talks begin in the Lied's Steinhart Room 55 minutes and 30 minutes prior to curtain.

Tickets for the performance are $32, $28 and $24. University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Nebraska Wesleyan University and Doane College students and youth 18 and younger with proper identification can purchase tickets for half-price. Call the Lied Box Office at 472-4747 or toll free, (800) 432-3231 for ticket availability. Box Office hours are 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. weekdays. On performance weekdays, the Box Office is open from 11 a.m. through the first intermission. For evening performances on weekends, the Box Office opens at 3 p.m.

American Chamber Players Give Music a Human Voice

One of the most innovative chamber ensembles currently performing comes to the Lied Center for Performing Arts at 8 p.m. Nov. 17. Originally scheduled for Kimball Hall, this concert has moved to the Lied mainstage.

The ensemble was founded in 1985 by Miles Hoffman, artistic director. Fans of public radio will recognize Hoffman's name, and perhaps his voice, from his frequent commentary on National Public Radio's Performance Today series. That program's host, Martin Goldsmith, (shown at left), will be a special guest during the performance providing "live" program notes.

Five of the ensemble's seven players will perform the evening concert. Performers are Sara Stern, flute; Min-Young Kim, violin; Hoffman, viola; Michael Mermagen, cello; and Edward Newman, piano. The playbill, subject to change, includes Adagio and Rondo Concertante for piano and strings, D. 487 by Schubert; Trio in G Minor for flute, cello and piano, Opus. 63 by Von Weber; Prelude, Recitative and Variations for flute, viola and piano by Durufle; and Quartet No. 2 in G Minor for piano and strings by Faure.

The American Chamber Players is composed of a core group of musicians from the Library of Congress Summer Chamber Festival. They perform repertoire ranging from familiar masterpieces to neglected gems, to newly commissioned works by American composers. Critics have praised their concerts with superlatives like "stunning" and "flawless." Their playing has been called intense, passionate and accurate; their programming expressive and rapturously played.

Hoffman, a violist, delivers a weekly talk on Performance Today titled "Coming to Terms," in which he and Goldsmith chat about a musical term or idiom or discuss why the conductor waves her baton. He believes that giving chamber music a "human voice" helps today's audiences warm up to this art form, which has suffered a reputation for stuffiness and inaccessibility.

Pre-performance talks, delivered by Goldsmith, are part of the Lied Center's ongoing education programming. The talks begin in the Lied's Steinhart Room 55 minutes and 30 minutes prior to curtain.

Tickets for the performance are $26 and $21. University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Nebraska Wesleyan University and Doane College students and youth 18 and younger with proper identification can purchase tickets for half-price.

Call the Lied Box Office at 472-4747 or toll free, (800) 432-3231 for ticket availability. Box Office hours are 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. weekdays. On performance weekdays, the Box Office is open from 11 a.m. through the first intermission. For evening performances on weekends, the Box Office opens at 3 p.m.

The American Chamber Players with Miles Hoffman are presented as part of a Lied Center collaboration with Nebraska Public Radio Network, the University of Nebraska at Kearney, the Nebraska Music Educators Association and Chadron State College. The week-long residency will begin in Lincoln with two days of outreach activities and the Lied Center performance. It continues in Kearney with performances and educational activities at UNK as part of the music educators' annual conference and concludes with outreach activities and a performance sponsored by Chadron State College. Nebraska Public Radio co-sponsors the engagement and provides on-air programming and publicity throughout the state. Nebraska Public Radio personnel will also accompany The American Chamber Players on the journey through the state.

Mothra Stalks Morrill Hall at Nov. 8 Fundraiser

Friends of the University of Nebraska State Museum are having their Second Annual Dinosaur Theater and Auction Nov. 8. This fundraiser is held at Morrill Hall and features the classic 1962 movie, Mothra, plenty of pizza, silent and live auctions and raffle drawings.

The admission is $10 per person, or $20 per family.

The schedule is: 3-6:45 p.m., silent auction; 4-5:45 p.m., Mothra screening; 4:30-8 p.m., pizza snacks and cash bar; 6:45 p.m., raffle drawings; 7-8 p.m., live auction.

All proceeds from the event benefit the University of Nebraska State Museum.

The raffle prizes are: children's bike and helmet; adult bike and helmet; Neal Anderson framed print, "Autumn Majesty." Raffle tickets are $1 each.

Live auction itmes include concrete rabbit yard/patio ornament; dinner with the chancellor; several pieces of art including a framed photograph of Sandhill cranes from the Nebraska Game and Parks collection and prints by Gene Ronka; Brewer's Best home brew starter kit; set of silverplate service for 12; coffee and donuts with Lincoln Chief of Police, Tom Casady; an evening at the Museum (guided comprehensive tour for up to 200 people); 12 tickets to shows on 1998-99 season at Lincoln Community Playhouse; Bison all-conference basketball system; and an 8x11 oriental rug.

Eleven pizza vendors are supplying pizza. Vendors are: daVinci's, Domino's, Godfather's, Hy-vee, Jabrisco, Old Chicago, Papa John's, Piezano's, Ramos, Valentino's and Wise Guys.

Tickets may be purchased at the door.

Pi Is Sci-Fi Mathematical Thriller

Darren Aronofsky's award-winning directorial debut Pi, opening at the Mary Riepma Ross Film Theater on Nov. 12, is a science-fiction thriller about the haunting journey into the genius mind of renegade visionary Maximillian Cohen, brilliantly played by Sean Gullette, who also co-authored the script.

A brilliant and troubled man, Max is on the verge of the most important discovery of his life. For the past 10 years he has been attempting to decode the numerical pattern beneath the ultimate system of ordered chaos - the stock market.

As Max verges on a solution, chaos is swallowing the world around him. He is pursued by an aggressive Wall Street firm set on financial domination as well as a Kabbalah sect intent on unlocking the secrets behind their ancient holy texts.

Max races to crack the code, hoping to defy the madness that looms before him. In succeeding, he uncovers a secret everyone is willing to kill for.

Pi is showing on Nov. 12 through 15 and on Nov. 19 through 21. Screenings are at 7 and 9 p.m. on Thursday and Friday; at 1, 3, 7 and 9 p.m. on Saturdays; and at 3, 5, 7 and 9 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is $6; $5 for students; and $4 for members of the Friends of the Mary Riepma Ross Film Theater, seniors and children.

Jazz Gig Highlights School of Music's November Schedule

The School of Music presents faculty member Rusty White, bass, with guitar virtuoso Gene Bertoncini, (shown at left) at a free concert 8 p.m. Nov. 12 in Kimball Hall.

Bertoncini has firmly established himself as one of the most eloquent and versatile masters of the guitar. With elegance and ease, he bridges the jazz, classical, pop, and bossa nova styles, integrating his own spontaneous and tasteful improvisations along the way. He has earned highest critical regard for his artistry on both the classical and electric guitar.

Bertoncini's musical roots go back to his early years in the Bronx where he grew up in a house filled with music. His love affair with the guitar began when he was 7, and by the time he was 16, he has appearing on New York television. His career took an unusual turn when he decided to fulfill another long-standing interest, and took a degree in architecture at Notre Dame. He was quickly swept into the musical scene at the university, and the first thing he did after picking up his degree was to work opposite Carmen McRae in Chicago. He returned to New York to work with vibraphonist Mike Manieri, and then with a quintet led by drummer Buddy Rich.

He describes the architectural experience as something which gives his music its finely-wrought form and style. He wins continual praise for the superb structure of his arrangements and improvisations which serve as a vehicle for his virtuosic technique.

Bertoncini has worked with the Metropolitan Opera orchestra, the Benny Goodman Sextet; singers Tony Bennett, Morgana King, Lena Horne, Vic Damone and Edye Gorme; jazzmen Buddy Rich, Wayne Shorter, Hubert Laws, Clark Terry, Paul Desmond, and Paul Winter; and arranger/composers Lalo Schifrin and Michael LeGrand, among others. He has performed regularly on the Merv Griffin and Johnny Carson shows, and has been one of the most prolific and popular studio musicians in New York City. For the past eight years Bertoncini has performed with bassist Michael Moore in a duo which The New York Times describes as "one of the finest pairings of jazz strings."

Bertoncini's teaching credits include the Eastman School of Music where he regularly performs and conducts summer workshops for jazz guitarists, the New England Conservatory, New York University, and the Banff School of Fine Arts. He has been a highly sought-after guest clinician in colleges and universities throughout the country.

White (shown at right) is associate professor of double bass and jazz performance at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He holds a master of music degree from North Texas State University and a bachelor of music degree from the College Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati. Prior to his present appointment, he was a member of the faculty at Morehead State University in Kentucky, where he was involved in the jazz and theory programs. White has studied jazz education with some of the most prominent figures in the field such as Jamey Aebersold, Bill Dobbins, Dan Haerle, and Rich Matteson. As a performer he has worked with many established jazz artists such as Fred Hersch, Jay McShann, and Cal Collins. He has performed with the Lexington Philharmonic Orchestra, Charleston, W. Va., Symphony, and the Omaha Symphony and has served as principal bass of the Cincinnati Ballet Orchestra and the Lincoln Symphony Orchestra. He is the past president of the Nebraska Unit of I.A.J.E.

Other School of Music events for November include the Jazz Lab Band/Vocal Jazz Ensemble in concert at 8 p.m. Nov. 14 in Kimball Hall. The event is free. Prof. Gene Smith conducting.

The Wind Ensemble will perform a free concert at 3 p.m. Nov. 15 in Kimball Hall. Prof. Jay Kloecker conducting.

The Faculty Brass Quintet, composed of Darryl White, trumpet; Kevin Brown, trumpet; Allen French, horn; Scott Anderson, trombone; Craig Fuller, tuba, will perform a free concert at 8 p.m. Nov. 15 in Kimball Hall.

The Cornhusker Marching Band will perform at 2 p.m. Nov. 22 in the Lied Center. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students. Professor Craig Cornish will conduct the award-winning "Marching Red" as they perform highlights from the 1998 football season.

A faculty recital featuring Susan Moeser, organ, will begin at 4 p.m. Nov. 22 in the First-Plymouth Church, 20th & D Streets. The performance is free.

The Music of Student Composers will be featured in an 8 p.m. concert Nov. 22 in Kimball Hall. Students and faculty perform original music composed by students of professors Randall Snyder and Tyler White in this free concert.

The Percussion Ensemble, Professor Albert Rometo, conducting, will perform a free concert at 8 p.m. Nov. 23 in Kimball Hall.

For more information on any of these performances, contact John Whiteman at 472-6865.

Raz to Perform Fatherland in Grand Island

Theater artist and juggler Jeff Raz will perform his one-person play Fatherland at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 10 at the Grand Island High School Auditorium. The performance is free and open to the public.

Raz visits Nebraska as part of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Fine and Performing Arts' Artist Diversity Residency Program. The program brings to the campus and the state artists from diverse backgrounds to address broad themes of general academic interest.

Raz deals with issues of Jewish identity and anti-Semitism in the context of his own story, which he has dramatized in his play Fatherland.

Jewish identity became an issue for Raz during a 1989 vacation in Germany. The trip included a visit to Berlin that coincided with the fall of the Berlin Wall. Traveling through the country, he visited Dachau, where he viewed photographs of the camp taken by the liberating forces. He imagined some of the shots could have been taken by his father, who was a photographer with the American occupation forces in World War II and who died in 1966 when Jeff was 8.

His father left behind a box of war memorabilia, including letters and pictures he sent home from the front, that proved invaluable in the writing of Fatherland.

Fatherland, written with director Jael Weisman, grew out of Raz's struggle with this Dachau experience. Using minimal props and a liberal dose of juggling and acrobatics, Raz weaves numerous characters into Fatherland, including himself and the spirit of his father, a man he barely knew.

Raz has performed the play several times in Lincoln and other venues across the country. In his classes, he performs pieces from Fatherland and weaves in Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice, essays by Israeli writer Amos Oz and vaudeville sketches, as well as students' own stories.

Raz, who lives in San Francisco, began his performing career at 15, working as a street juggler around the Bay area. He was a clown, acrobat and juggler with the J.P. Booker Early American Circus, Make*A*Circus and the Bay City Reds. For the last five years, he has worked with Diane Wasnak as the acrobatic clown duet, Pino & Razz, at the core of the New Pickle Circus.

Along with his circus performing, Raz is an actor, director and playwright, and teaches physical theater, acrobatics and clowning. He is an artist-in-residence at the University of Nebraska in its Artist Diversity Residency Program, using physical theater and storytelling as antidotes to cultural animosity. In all his work, Raz explores the rich terrain where circus, music and theater intersect.

This program is funded in part by the Heartland Arts Fund.

State Volleyball Championships Broadcast Live on ETV

The Nebraska High School Volleyball Championships will be telecast live Nov. 14 from Lincoln's Pershing Municipal Auditorium on the statewide Nebraska ETV Network. Sports announcers Steve Roth, Kevin Kugler and former University of Nebraska All American volleyball standout Kathi Wieskamp will call the action.

The championship match-ups begin with the Class C-2 finals at 10:30 a.m., followed at noon by the Class D-2 contest and the Class A championship game at l :30 p.m. The finals action picks-up at 5 p.m. with the Class D- 1 game, followed by the Class C- 1 competition at 6:30 p m: and, wrapping up the day's action, the Class B finals at 8 p.m.

Sociologist Allen Discusses Alternative Farming on Welsch &

Hear about some bizarre farming alternatives when John Allen, Ph.D., rural sociologist and acting director of IANR's Center for Rural Community Revitalization and Development, appears on Roger Welsch & at 8:30 p.m. Nov. 20 on the statewide Nebraska ETV Network.

Welsch comments, "Farming is a gamble. You put some seeds in the ground, wait for rain and hope for the best. But there are some farmers who take even more risks by getting involved in 'entrepreneurial agriculture.' They go off in unlikely directions and use almost bizarre alternatives, making an already risky occupation even more uncertain. John Allen has written about this new trend, and he'll tell us more about it this week."

The weekly television series features humorist and author Welsch in discussion with a variety of Nebraskans - from authors and educators to historians and prominent citizens - whose contributions to the good life in Nebraska make for interesting conversation.

Outdoor Nebraska Airs Nov. 12

A disabled man able to hunt, ways to preserve fall foliage and a haunted hollow are featured this week on Outdoor Nebraska. The outdoor news magazine series airs at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 12 on the statewide Nebraska ETV Network. The program repeats at 8 a.m. Nov. 14.

In the first feature, Outdoor Nebraska goes deer hunting with Jeff Whalen, a North Platte resident who was electrocuted while cleaning up after a 1980 Grand Island tornado. With permanent disabilities from the accident, Whalen was largely excluded from outdoor activities, including bow hunting. Recently, he discovered that he is physically able to work a crossbow and that his impairment allows him to legally hunt with this weapon.

The second feature takes a look at the completed aquatic habitat work at Soldier Creek near Fort Robinson. A forest fire and subsequent floods damaged this trout fishery. Restorative work was finished this past summer, and a Crawford angler, Keith Bruning, spent much of October enjoying great trout fishing success on the creek. Outdoor Nebraska goes fly fishing with Bruning on a beautiful fall morning.

In the "Wilderness Workshop" segment, viewers can expect to learn some wonderful new tips from outdoor expert Dick Turpin. In the "Nature Walk" segment, outdoor educator Carl Wolfe talks about the science of color changes on leaves during autumn and will demonstrate ways that you and your youngsters can preserve fall foliage for crafts and decorations.

And this week's "Nebraskaland Moment" extends Halloween's scare with a visit to a haunted hollow at Indian Cave State Park.