Labor Day weekend, members of the Oberlin steel drum band, OSteel, set out for New York to participate in a steel pan competition called “Panorama,” an offshoot of the Carnival celebration competitions in Trinidad and Tobago. Band members senior Anna Van Der Horst, fifth-year Zeev Saffir, and sophomore Zeke Runyon, along with a few Oberlin alumni, joined the Pan Sonatas band in the competition. The Sonatas won the title “Panorama Champions” of New York.

The Sonatas, composed of roughly 90 different people, were led by Yohan Popwell, who arranged “Pan Lamentation” specifically for the Sonatas in this competition. Popwell, who hails from Trinidad, has been coming to NYC for the competition for at least six years.

Preparation for the competition was extensive: For one month beforehand, the band rehearsed six nights a week, practicing about four hours at a time. Although Popwell had sheet music written out, he impressively taught the Sonatas the music by ear.

“On Panorama night, the scene [was] total chaotic craziness,” said Van Der Horst, relating the experience of OSteel members. “We had to push all the racks of our pans to the competition, and then [we] crammed into the parking lot with them, with barely any space between bands.”

During the competition, music could be heard from all corners. Bands who had not yet performed for the judges would practice. Van Der Horst remembers little the Sonatas’ actual performance; however, she believes this may be due to the fact that the band was so well-rehearsed.

“I got a lot better,” said Van Der Horst. “Playing pan for hours six nights a week will do that.”

Two Members of the Class of ’06 Named Fulbright Teaching Fellows

Two of Oberlin’s recent graduates are to head overseas as Fulbright Scholars this coming academic year. Emily Clark and Elizabeth Anderson, both OC ’06, are traveling to Indonesia and Germany, respectively, to teach English.

Clark, who plans to later pursue a degree in ethnomusicology, was involved in many non-Western music ensembles while on campus. Her participation in the Javanese gamelan, an Indonesian percussion ensemble, sparked her interest in traveling to Indonesia. In addition, Clark has studied Spanish, Latin, Ancient Greek, Italian and Dutch over the years, and is excited to combine what she calls her “twin academic passions: language and music.” Clark will teach at the Satya Wacana University in Salatiga, Cental Java, while in Indonesia.

Anderson also has a musical background. A double-degree student while at Oberlin, she studied both German and the French horn. Her German studies led her to spend a year abroad in Berlin, and she welcomes the idea of going back. As she has spent the year since her graduation teaching in Minneapolis, Anderson’s interest in education has grown. Like Clark, she plans to attend graduate school after her year abroad, possibly for early childhood education. Anderson will be teaching at the Carl-von-Ossietzky Gymnasium while in Berlin.

Alumn Named Guggenheim Fellow

Andrew M. Watsky, OC ’79, was recently awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship for “distinguished achievement in the past and exceptional promise for future accomplishment.” Watsky, associate professor of Japanese and Chinese art history at Vassar College, will go on academic leave for a year to research, furthering his expertise in Japanese art. He will continue working on a previous endeavor, Chikubushima: Deploying the Sacred Arts in Momoyama Japan, published in 2004. Chikubushima is a sacred island north of Kyoto, a city of 1.5 million in Japan. Watsky cites Professor of Art William Hood as a significant influence while a student at Oberlin. Guggenheim Fellowships are awarded by the John Simon Guggeheim Memorial Foundation in New York City in order to “assist research and artistic creation.”

Musical Group of Alumni Gains New York Home

The International Contemporary Ensemble, founded in 2001 by Claire Chase, OC ’01, was featured in the New York Times last Sunday. ICE is a new-music group active on the international realm with Chase as its executive director. The group, which started with a few Conservatory alumni, now has over 30 names to its roster, representing a wide variety of instrumentation. This flexibility allows the ensemble to perform virtually any composition it wishes. ICE recently acquired a rehearsal space located on the top floor of a commercial building in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.

The space also functions as an office for the musicians. The New York location comes after the group’s Chicago-based office; up next will be a residence in California. Part of ICE’s success springs from its grassroots attitude and initiative. Playing in a variety of locales, from Lincoln Center to Mo Pitkin’s, as well as performances abroad, the group maintains its creative energy and relaxed personality.

In 2004, the ensemble launched the 21st Century Young Composers Project, calling for submissions from composers under the age of 35 across the globe. These endeavors have given the group an endless repertoire and over 300 world premieres. Outreach activities have also been conducted in America and Mexico.

Alumni Boast the Ugliest Necklace

Creativity and craftiness remain Obie traits even after commencement. In July, recent graduates Julia Vogl and Maggie Ollove, both OC ’07, were named the winners of the Fifth Annual Ugly Necklace Contest sponsored by Land of Odds, an Internet bead and jewelry store based in Nashville, TN.

Their victorious submission, titled “To Do List” featured a string of Post-it notes and various other wacky objects. All entries must also be accompanied by a poem, which Vogl and Ollove penned quite well: “1. Pass classes / 2. Eat Food / 3. Get sleep Sometime / 4. Stay away from the booze / 5. Submit ugly necklace / 6. Graduate on time / 7. Figure out future / 8. Learn not to be stressed.” The duo’s creation won with a staggeringly low score of 0.859 measured on a scale of 1, “Thumbs Fully Up (REALLY UGLY!!!)” to 7, “Thumbs Fully Down (NOT UGLY AT ALL!)” 

Five judges associated with The Center for Beadwork & Jewelry Arts used specific criteria, examining “the overall hideousness of the necklace [and] how the design of the necklace violated good jewelry design rules associated with color, form, balance, distribution of the elements and focus.” Other factors included how clever the materials were, the construction and wearability of the necklace and how effective the accompanying poem was in elaborating and furthering the ugliness of the necklace.

Composition Professor Nielson Wins Cleveland Arts Prize

After his success with the American premiere of new-music opera Lost Highway last year, few were surprised when and Professor of Composition Lewis J. Nielson was honored with a 2007 Cleveland Arts Prize.

In June, Nielson was presented the award by Arts Prize Juror and Director of Jazz Studies at Case Western Reserve University Paul Ferguson, who labeled Nielson’s work “unconventional and engaging, challenging and sincere.”

The Cleveland Arts Prize is the oldest of its kind in the United States. The award was founded in 1960 to recognize those who keep the fine arts alive within the city.