Browsing: Music

The tires of a black Hummer screeched to a stop. With The Black Keys blaring, three men stepped out of the truck and onto an unorthodox stage that would host their impending performance. The audience watched as the alley behind Schmaltz’s Sandwich Shoppe in downtown Waco set the scene for an act from Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet.”

Three years later, two of those audience members will bring the work of Shakespeare to different locations around Waco in the series “Shakespeare on Location.” Arlington senior Amy Dale is one of the four students who applied and was chosen for this semester’s Advanced Directing class at Baylor.

It’s not all “song and dance” for Student Productions’ After Dark variety show coming today to Family Weekend.
Cheryl Mathis, assistant director of Campus Programs, said After Dark will feature numerous acts with diversity and originality.

The animals at Cameron Park Zoo weren’t the only ones going wild on Saturday. Continuing its yearlong celebration of “20 Wild Years,” the zoo hosted NBC’s “The Voice” top six contender and Baylor student Holly Tucker in concert at its Brazos River Country attraction.

Though this event was not the only celebration the zoo is having this year, the concert was the first they have ever hosted in hopes to do more in the future.

At Waco Civic Theatre, the bigger the hair, the closer to God. Their newest production of “Beehive: The ’60s Musical” has big hair and classic songs.

This musical revue follows the changes of women’s music in the 1960s. The show’s narrator tells the story of her teenage years through flashbacks, some fantasied, using popular tunes during the time period.

Now that smartphones have overwhelmed the concert experience to become part of life, we must strive to reach an understanding regarding etiquette and rules of engagement.

As it stands, anarchy reigns. Frustrated technophobes grumble at wired enthusiasts during many shows, and with good reason. Deciding to document the event not only affects the documentarian but also the performer and other fans. Eager to offer a solution, we’ve carved onto (imaginary) tablets a reasonable set of commandments, with the aid of “divine” guidance.

Texas folk musician David Ramirez returns to Common Grounds Coffeehouse once again, performing live tonight. This stop is only one of many on his most recent tour that will take him around the United States from New York City to Los Angeles.

Ramirez’s most recent work, “The Rooster EP,” was released in May as a follow-up to his 2012 “Apologies” album, which debuted at No. 2 on iTunes’ Singer-Songwriter chart.

Exposure: This is what artists can gain by performing at Open Mic.

This event takes place every Wednesday evening at a local coffee shop near Baylor’s campus, Common Grounds. It is free to attend and to perform.

“Open Mic is a long-standing tradition,” said Wes Butler, live event coordinator at Common Grounds.

From students to faculty to visitors, this weekly event is open to anyone and everyone.

Baylor Theatre has been perfecting its bend and snap for “Legally Blonde,” the delightfully-ditzy first production of the 2013-2014 season.

Baylor’s production of the smash Broadway musical has not been adapted from the original script, said Dr. Stan Denman, chairman of the theater department and director of “Legally Blonde.”

The story revolves around Elle Woods, a vain and seemingly airheaded sorority girl determined to win back her hunky ex-boyfriend, Warner, by getting into Harvard Law School. According to Denman, Woods evolves into a person of integrity whose story empowers women.

The first experiences a student has at Baylor are some of the most memorable. The Traditions Rally and Late Night are annual events that start the semester off strong, but unlike previous years, a sentimental factor accompanies this year’s events.

On Thursday, the rally will be held at Floyd Casey Stadium for the last time. Come fall 2014, the Traditions Rally will take place at the new football stadium.

Baylor Student Activities plans the Traditions Rally and Late Night to introduce new students to Baylor’s unique culture.

Good music is defined by an individual’s taste. That being said, popular music is measured by the charts and according to the charts, Baylor has not recently booked any currently popular artists.

“In comparison with schools like UT [University of Texas at Austin], our campus is not smaller and not in a major city like Dallas or Austin,” said Dr. Kirk Wakefield, professor of retail marketing and holder of the Edwin W. Streetman Professorship in Retail Management. “Here in Waco we don’t have the draw to bands that bigger colleges near bigger cities have.”

Grammy nominated LMFAO’s Joseph Hampel, more commonly known as DJ Dainjazone, has impacted music across the globe, spanning over 6 continents with performances. He has been featured on “Good Morning America” and “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.” Shortly after returning from Australia yesterday, Hampel took time out of his day to talk with the Lariat about his music, fashion and touring experiences.

With more than 600 people still in Melody Ranch early Sunday evening and still more coming in, organizers expected the West First Benefit Concert to exceed their goal of $50,000 for victims of the deadly explosion by as much as $10,000.

“You see over $41,000 on the board up there now, but there are a lot of donations and T-shirt sales we haven’t counted yet,” said Nick Fuentes, co-owner of the night spot at 2315 Robinson Drive in Waco.

Fox is denying a report that “American Idol” considered coaxing “Jenny From the Block” to make a U-turn on the “American Idol” judging street.

A story from The Hollywood Reporter said a dip in ratings had producers scrambling to find a solution to bail out the long-running singing competition series: swapping Mariah Carey for former “Idol” judge Jennifer Lopez came to mind. A scheme that apparently was halted when Mariah Carey threatened legal action.

To end the 2012-2013 school year, the Baylor theater department travels back to 1989 Romania during a time of constant fear and struggle as two families fight to survive the remnants of communism in Caryl Churchill’s “Mad Forest.”

The audience will follow the lives of these two families as they face the upheaval caused by the Romanian revolution.

This weekend the Shane Howard Band, a group from Central Texas, will play multiple venues.

They will perform at 8 p.m. Friday at the Slippery Minnow restaurant at 3201 Overflow Rd. at the Lake Waco marina, and then join more than 30 other performers for the event West First, which will take place at 10 p.m. Saturday at the Melody Ranch at 2315 Robinson Drive to benefit those affected by the recent tragedy.

World-renowned drummer Ignacio Berroa will bring the rhythms of his native Cuba to Baylor today. He will join the Baylor Jazz Ensemble for its last concert of the year.

The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. in Jones Concert Hall in the Glennis McCrary Music Building. There will also be a clinic with Berroa from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. today in 118 Glennis McCrary Music Building. The concert is free and open to the public.

Every performance at Common Grounds is exciting as inspiring musicians around Baylor performs for the crowd of students that sit in the audience to hear Baylor’s finest. This week will have an even more exciting performance.

Beethoven’s immortality will be put on display Saturday night.

The Baylor Symphony Orchestra, the A Cappella Choir, the Concert Choir and the Central Texas Choral Society will combine forces and end the concert season definitively with Ludwig van Beethoven’s colossal Symphony No. 9.

Though many Baylor students may be familiar with the use of Five For Fighting’s song “Chances” in the popular film “The Blind Side,” or have heard the band’s songs “Superman” and “100 Years” coming through their car radio, they can now experience the band live in concert.

At 8 p.m. Thursday on Fountain Mall, Five For Fighting will take the stage as the headlining act for Diadeloso, though Thursday’s weather forecast of the possibility of severe thunderstorms might complicate events.

Lorena sophomore Holly Tucker blew away the judges in the battle rounds of NBC’s “The Voice” Monday, beating teammate and roommate Michelle Raitzin for a spot in the next stage of the competition, the knockout performances.

The battle rounds are the second stage of the competition for “The Voice,” following the blind auditions. If Tucker advances past the knockout rounds, she will compete in the final live performances.

For anyone wanting “two tickets to paradise,” this weekend, Indian Spring Park might just be the place, as Eddie Money will be headlining the Brazos Nights concert from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. today at the downtown venue. Opening for Money will be historic Waco musician Classie Ballou Sr. The concert is free and open to the public.

A week before Baylor’s Diadeloso celebration, no headliner has been announced.

Diadeloso chair Pauline Minnaar said the delay was a publicity strategy to draw attention to the other events. However, a tweet from the band may have ruined the surprise.

The Waco Symphony Orchestra will be joined by guest violinist Jolente de Maeyer in its last concert of the season. The orchestra will perform three pieces all rooted in folk music.

The program will begin at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in Waco Hall. Tickets are $7 for students and start at $20 for general admission.