University of California Los Angeles - Bruin Life / Southern Campus Yearbook (Los Angeles, CA)

Page 33 text:

Ci I thought that it was good to go and it exposed me to stuff I didn ' t know about before, from other cultures. 9k -Kency Nittler, first-year, undeclared student r almost every genre from over 17 different countries. Some of these events included the State Ballet of Georgia, Sierra Leone ' s Refugee All Stars and an Evening vith Garrison Keillor. Another aspect of the UCLA Live was the Sixth Annual International Theatre Festival, which was held from September to December. The festival included performances from groups such as the National Theatre of Scotland and the Royal Shakespeare Company. Yo-Yo Ma, an internationally acclaimed cellist, w hose 15 out of 75 albums were awarded with Grammys, was also able to grace UCLA as part of the UCLA Lives series. He performed at Royce Hall on Nov. 17 as part of his tour that began in October. Kuang-Yui Chen, a fourth-year biochemistry student, was able to experience the awe of Yo-Yo Ma ' s performance in Royce, The concert consisted purely of cello and piano, which seems conventional for classical recitals. The program however, was in no vvay conventional. It included a sonata -written for piano, a tango piece, traditional Brazilian songs, and a sonata for violin and piano, Aren said. Each of these pieces demonstrated the wide-range of Yo-Yo Ma and Kathryn Stott ' s musical talent. Students were able to attend UCLA Live performances at a discounted price thanks to the efforts of the Student Committee for the Arts. In line vith its mission, the committee also presented its own shows and supported other art related student organizations. In addition to bringing the best of the arts to UCLA students, UCLA Live understood the importance of reaching out to the community, regardless of one ' s background. To do so, UCLA Live established Design for Sharing, its outreach program created in 1969 that gave morning perfo rmances for public school students from underprivileged areas as well as music and dance workshops for younger students. By presenting world-class performances, UCLA Live gave members of the community the opportunity to enjoy their favorites of the performing arts and the opportunity to discover new ones. luJ AlioYe; An All Star croons into the microphone onstage in Royce Hall. Members of the Sierra Leone ' s Refugee All Stars play both traditional African instruments along with a keyboard to achieve their unique sound. Holding back the microphone, an All Star dances to a fusion of traditional African music, roots reggae and rhythmic folk. The band released Living Like a Refugee, which showcased some of their earlier field recordings alongside engineered studio numbers. Photoirsphed byhngX.Dao. Left: The Sierra Leone Reguee All Stars acknowledge the crowd at the end of a song. The group ' s upbeat music provided a message for social justice that pointed out the senselessness of war. Ptiotographed by Tung X. Dao.

Page 32 text:

a worldly Studying for midterms, going to work, partying on Thursday and seeing Yo-Yo Ma perform in Royce Hall on Saturday may have seemed like a somewhat strange string of events for a typical college student, but it was a reality for many students thanks to UCLA Live. UCLA Live presented a diverse array of world-renowned music, dance, theater and spoken word performances to Los Angeles and the rest of Southern California. Since the performances were held in on-campus venues such as Schoenberg Hall, Freud Playhouse, Macgowan Little Theater and Royce Hall, students were able to witness extraordinary talent right at by Ameet Chahall their doorstep. After David Sefton, the current director of UCLA Live, was appointed in 2000, new traditions such as the International Theatre Festival were established and performance records were surpassed. As of 2008, UCLA Live presented about 150 performances a year to audiences of about 125,000 members. Sefton emphasized the importance of performing arts, stating, Exposure to art and artists of the highest quality and innovation raises the bar for the creative life of the city and the academic life of the university. The various performances included representations from , 1 ji «• i

Page 34 text:

fivebands one oo ce ■ Kaleidoscopic lights flashed across the stage in anticipation of the performers. When the first act arrived onstage, a roar of approval from the crowd spurred them to launch immediately into their first set. As the striking guitar riffs and rhythm meshed together to produce the captivating sound of alternative rock, students found it easy to forget that it was a school night. Jointly hosted by UCLA ' s Pi Kappa Phi fraternity and the Community Service Commission (CSC), Battle of the Bands featured Tyrone Wells, several student artists and groups, and four bands ■well on their w ay to fame. Though many of the concert- goers went to see a particular artist, just as often, students attended to see what other music groups were on the rise. First-year mechanical- engineering student Dennis Liew said, I did go to Battle of the Bands to see Lady Danville ... My other reason to go, though, was to be exposed to more bands and singers to see if there are any good potentials for favorites. The event marked the fourth annual Battle of the Bands. The philanthropic concert was first held in 2004 by Pi Kappa Phi to raise money and awareness for the Push America charity, which served those with disabilities. To remind those in attendance of these beneficiaries, the fraternity took time between acts to play videos of their brothers describing their experiences with Push America, and displayed photos of them spending by Joyce Chen time with kids in the program. Eric Huang, a second-year mechanical engineering student and member of Pi Kappa Phi, said, It ■was a great event, not only because a lot of people enjoyed the concert, but also because ve achieved our purpose of promoting the philanthropy project. Four-man band Silver Needle kicked off the event ■with energetic songs, exhibiting thrilling instrumental portions interjecting their charged lyrics. The previous year ' s Spring Sing favorite Katie Boeck made an impression with her moving performance, inspiring lighted cell phones to s way to the music. Above the cro wd, Kazai Rex, also a Spring Sing veteran, brought a lively dance beat to the concert. Letting Up Despite Great Faults also concocted an exotic blend of sounds by harmonizing a fusion of strings, guitars, drums, piano and synthesized beats. Not to be outdone, Westview was also a sensation vith their intense rock numbers. Lady Danville, UCLA graduates and 2006 Spring Sing winners, brought a collection of old favorites and ne v harmonies to the stage. At the end of the evening, Tyrone Wells wrapped up the concert ■with his soothing, soulful tunes. Each breathtaking performance left the audience abuzz and eager for more. Thanks to the artists and the hard work by Pi Kappa Phi and the CSC, Battle of the Bands continued to be a highly anticipated UCLA tradition. «± RlfH: A drummer plays illuminated in the light of Ackerman Grand Ballroom. Battle of the Bands drew an audience of Bruins looking to support their favorite local acts, as well as those searching for new sounds. Photographed by TuhiX. Ddo. ;ii