April 29, 2009

Percussion concert features students' compositions

Temporal Mechanics Union, the percussion ensemble resident at Cowley College, will present their spring concert Thursday, May 7, in the Robert Brown Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public.

“In the past, we have collaborated a great deal with the art department,” said Chris Mayer, musical director. “For this show, we have worked with students in the creative writing class, and the Creative Claws organization.” 

Temporal Mechanics Union (TMU) sponsored a poetry competition earlier this year for creative writing students. The theme of the contest was “timelessness.” The contest winner, Cowley student Michelle Sommerhauser, will be featured on the program with her piece “Forever Is Too Long,” accompanied by original music from the ensemble.

And as part of the collaboration between TMU and the writing students, the concert will actually begin in the Earle N. Wright Community Room, adjacent to the auditorium. A portfolio reception for creative writing students is being held that same night, beginning at 5 p.m.

Marlys Cervantes, Chair of the Humanities Department and creative writing instructor, says “We’ll have cookies to munch on while people browse and read the semester’s portfolios. This is the final project for the class, and the portfolios are creative representations of the students’ writing and ideas.”

At 7:30 p.m., TMU will lead the audience from the Wright Room into the theater with batucada, the rhythms of Brazilian samba.

“We’ll have some shakers to give out to those who join the procession, so they can play along with us” Mayer said.

Musical compositions by Cowley students are also featured on the program. Wayne Farley, a long-time member of TMU, will present his new work Dah-dah-dah-dit-dit-dah. In dashes and dots, that spells out TMU in Morse code. The piece is built around several phrases and improvisation using the dots and dashes of Morse code to build rhythms played on drums. In code, the piece is something of a history of Temporal Mechanics Union. 

Thomas Govert, a new member of the ensemble, will debut his piece Tongue Tied, a rhythmic interpretation of a long tongue twister used as a vocal warm-up by actors.

The concert program also includes two new compositions by Mayer, and a return performance of Ancient Egyptian Suite, a composition of traditional Egyptian and Nubian rhythms and spoken word. The texts are by John Virden, who will narrate the composition.

Temporal Mechanics Union is an all-ability, community based ensemble. Anyone may join, no matter what his or her previous musical experience. More information on this concert, and on the ensemble, can be found at www.tmu.cdmayer.net, or by calling 620-441-5229. TMU also have a YouTube channel and a Facebook page.

The members of Temporal Mechanics Union are Jessemine Baker, Brandi Berntsen, Lacy Brown, Wayne Farley, Mike Fell, Thomas Govert, Katie Grimm, Bryan McChesney, and Chris Mayer.