thursday, feb. 10, 2011Tan & Cardinal6 arts & entertainment

photo provided by jared joseph

photo provided by thespina christulides

What was your favorite moment of the trip? The choir performed in the courtyard of a local’s home. This was the first time we had sung our Chinese pieces in front of people in China, so it meant a lot. Dur-ing the songs, I looked at Dr. Walker … she was smiling, which caused me to smile and laugh to tears. She then saw me laughing, so she started laughing while she was conducting. We both were so excited to sing in China.

What was it like going to the Chinese schools? It melted my heart seeing these children have such a passion for music. They might speak a different language than I do, but those children are no different than any child in the U.S.

What was the weirdest thing you encountered? The toilets were by far the weirdest. Dirtier restrooms had squatty potties, as Concert Choir members called them. Literally, there was a hole in the ground and no matter if you were male or female, you would squat and take care of business.

What was your least favorite Chinese food? Jellyfish. It was exactly what you think jellyfish would be like: It was very salty and was like eating very hard Jell-O. By the end of the trip, I decided that I didn’t want to have any white rice for a while.

What are your overall thoughts on the trip? Throughout the whole trip, I kept telling myself how blessed I really am. Here I am, a freshman in Concert Choir, traveling to China and having the time of my life with all of my new friends. At our final concert, I remember us all holding hands as we sang “Silent Night” and the “Otterbein Love Song.” And I remember all of us crying, all for different reasons. Our wonderful trip had come to an end, it was the last tour for our seniors and it was just the beginning for some. The trip was very long; however, it’s something that I will remember for the rest of my life.

Talk about your favorite part of the trip. Climbing the Great Wall was truly incredible. I think just standing there with such an old, important piece of history made the entire China experience real.

What were some interesting things you encountered? Adult playgrounds are popular. These are parks con-taining playground equipment devised specially for physi-cal fitness. I was astounded by the flexibility and strength of the elderly. They could hang upside down and bent at the waist, balancing by their feet forever.

What was it like connecting through music with people who don’t speak English? Music really is a universal language. (It) inspires peace, provokes mutual understanding and links souls of the most seemingly different of humans. I am encouraged and empowered to go out into the world and continue on this path, knowing what a valuable tool I have. This trip was completely humbling and illuminating, and for that I am truly grateful.

To read the complete in-terviews, visit us online at www.otterbein360.com.

Editor’s Note

Jared Joseph, sophomore music education major

Thespina Christulides, senior vocal performance major

photo provided by andrew szczerba

Andrew Szczerba, freshman music education major

photo friends: Jared Joseph took a picture with his tour guide Cathy before returning to the states.

gold diggin’: Thespina Christulides toured the Museum of Qin Terracotta Warriors and Horses.

good eats: Andrew Szczerba learned how to make Chinese dumplings in a Xi’an farming community home.

t&c

www.sxc.hu

It took three years. They raised funds through performing, selling T-shirts and even accepting generous donations. The Otterbein Concert Choir’s trip to China lasted 12 days and was “completely humbling and illuminating,” according to senior vocal performance major Thespina Christulides. Director of Choral Activities Gayle Walker said the decision to visit the country was unanimous. From Nov. 29 to Dec. 10, they performed at schools in Beijing, Tianjin and Xi’an and also sang at the Great Wall. This trip was an opportunity to improve Otterbein’s global engagement.

By Josh AdkinsStaff Writer

Otterbein President Kathy Krendl said, “We are interested both in sending our students out into the world and bringing more students from diverse parts of the world to Otterbein.” Walker said the trip was an eye-opening experience. “People all around the world are very much the same,” she said. “We all laugh, we all cry, we all care to relate to each other in some way. That’s what’s most important, not the cultural differences,” she said. To get a better understanding of what it’s like being immersed in such a different culture, three Otterbein students shared their individual experiences in the Middle Kingdom.

From Towers Hall to the Great WallA senior, sophomore and freshman share their experiences from the OU Concert Choir’s trip to the Middle Kingdom

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&arts & entertainment

www.otterbein360.com | t&c |page 7page 6 | thursday, may 20, 2010 | vol. 91, issue 28

Otterbein’s secret past unveiledMost of us know the basics of OC history. We’re a small liberal arts institution established in the mid-1850s. But did you know the building now called Towers was once burned badly? And that OC was almost transplanted to Dayton at the turn of the century? Read on to find out more

By HannaH Ullom Opinion Editor

We walk the grounds of this campus every day, attend classes in Towers Hall and wear our tan and cardinal colors proudly. But what do we really know about the school we attend? We are walking the same paths and sitting in the same rooms that thousands of Otterbein students have since 1847, when the university first opened. Hopefully, these facts will teach you something, amuse you or simply make you proud to say you’re an Otterbein Cardinal. Enjoy.

1861-1864During the Civil War, 127 men from Otterbein joined the military efforts. Eight of these brave soldiers were killed.

1870The Main Building caught fire and was rebuilt and christened the Administration Building. Students nicknamed it Towers, and the name stuck.

1891The Color Committee was established. We can thank them for the tan and cardinal colors we proudly sport today.Pictured: The original color swatches chosen as our school colors.

1900Otterbein’s Board of Trustees proposed that Otterbein be moved to Dayton. As a result, Westerville residents raised thousands of dollars to pave the roads and install electric lights on the streets, new water and sanitary sewers and a telephone system.

1908-1910The first fraternities and sorority are introduced at Otterbein.Pictured: A Sigma Alpha Tau pledge paddle from 1950.

2009 Otterbein’s first female president, Kathy Krendl, was inaugurated.Pictured: Krendl speaks at the Dee Dee Myers Convocation in 2009.

1982 Because of the fire that burned the Main Building (now Towers Hall) in 1870, the Philomathean Room was badly damaged. In 1982, Otterbein restored this historical gem to its original Victorian Gothic style. Towers Hall is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

1974The College Senate passed a bill that would allow students to drink in their dorm rooms. The Board of Trustees, however, shot the idea down. Close, but no cigar.

1952 Scandal erupted on campus in May when about 150 male students stormed the halls of Saum, Cochran and King. Around 1 a.m., the mischievous students first snuck into Cochran Hall and wreaked havoc on the all-girls dorm. Throughout the early hours of the morning, the men also found their way into Saum and King Halls through fire escapes and open windows. According to “Otterbein College: Affirming Our Past/Shaping Our Future” by Daniel Hurley, this event made a national headline in The New York Times.

1939-1945 About 500 Otterbein men were drafted during World War II. Some women also joined the active services.

1922 Calvin Coolidge, then the vice president of the U.S., visited Otterbein to rededicate the Civil War monument that stands in front of Towers Hall today.Pictured: Coolidge places a bouquet on the monument.

While sifting through the bounty of information on OC’s history, we uncovered a couple urban myths. We asked Rob-ert Gatti. vice president of Student Affairs, to confirm or debunk some of the more memorable — and you might be surprised with the results.

Budweiser swimming poolAnheuser-Busch Companies, Inc. wanted to build a multimil-lion dollar swimming pool on campus with the Budweiser logo printed at the bottom. Otterbein didn’t go for it, how-ever, because of the dry campus policy.Status: FALSE

Underground tunnels between buildingsUnderground tunnels that provide heat connect many of the buildings on campus, like Towers, Battelle and the Campus Center. The proof? The snow melts on the sidewalks faster than in other places.Status: TRUE

Twila, the Cowan Hall specterRumor has it that many years ago a despondent theatre stu-dent who did not get the lead role in a play hanged herself from the balcony in Cowan Hall. Her ghost now haunts it.Status: FALSE

Name: Stephen D. GrinchPosition: Otterbein archivist Hometown: Bellafontaine, OhioAlma mater: the finest college in the land, OtterbeinWhat’s your flavor? savoryHow long have you worked at Otterbein? almost 12 yearsDo you know who Lady Gaga is? Yes. We sing the children’s book “Moo Baa La La La” to the tune of “Bad Romance” to our 20-month-old daughter.If you weren’t working at Otterbein, what would you be doing? touring as Gwen Stefani’s tuba playerFavorite Otterbein artifact: Towers Hall. It’s the one thing ev-ery Otterbein student has had in common since 1871.

& What’s your flavor?

photo and information compiled by jayme detweiler

1850 1860 1870 1880 1890 1900 1910

1847Otterbein University opened. It sat on eight acres and comprised two buildings. Otterbein was the second coeducational school in America. Another Ohio institution, Oberlin College, was the first.

1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

1995Otterbein introduced the Senior Year Experience program (S.Y.E.). This program allows students to apply what they’ve learned in the class to real life experiences outside of campus.

1890 The Cardinals played The Ohio State Buckeyes, beating them 42-6.Pictured: The 1890 Otterbein football team.

tower power: Students walk in front of Towers in the ’50s.

to the window: This stained-glass window was salvaged after the fire of the Main Building, now known as Towers.

key to the castle: The original key to Towers Hall compactly folded in half.

the book of phil: Philip William Otterbein’s Bible.

& Editor’s Note

To read a preview of the theatre department’s last play of the year, “Pippin,” visit us at www.otterbein360.com.

1853A group of male Otterbein students began the Philomathean Literary Society. A year later, a group of women began the female literary society, the Philalethea Literary Society. To this day, their meeting place, the Philomathean Room, is still on the third floor of Towers Hall. information compiled by mike cirelli

OC’s urban myths

photo by greg beersphoto courtesy of the otterbein archivesphoto by jayme detweiler

photo by jayme detweiler

photo courtesy of the otterbein archives

photo courtesy of the otterbein archives

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photo by jayme detweiler

photo by jayme detweiler

arts & entertainment

smaller stages, forced to prove their merit in their live shows alone. It’s worth it to check out these great bands, some of which are better than a few of the headliners.

Background: Best described as party rock, Taddy Porter is your dad’s Rock on the Range act. With roots in classic rock groups like Led Zeppelin and Bad Company, Taddy Porter embraces the best qualities of classic ’70s bands while adding a little of their own flavor. Singer Andy Brewer and lead guitarist Joe Shelby have a Page-and-Plant dynamic that will please any devoted rock fan. With their Slash-inspired guitar riffs and high energy, Taddy Porter delivers a kick to your face in a sweetly wrapped southern rock package.Recent Activity: In three years Taddy Porter have managed to gain the type of respect it takes some bands decades to achieve. Loved by audiences young and old, Taddy Porter symbolizes the “rock hard, party hard” attitude of bands in the past and perfects the style for today’s audience. Check Out: “Shake Me”

Hometown: Los AngelesBackground: Year Long Disaster’s rehab-

riddled formation is an interesting one. Daniel Davies, son of the Kinks’ Dave Davies, met bassist Rich Mullins of Karma to Burn in some Hollywood grocery store, and within a

week the two were not only making music together but also living together — and drinking and doing crack together. After jamming with drummer Brad Hargreaves of Third Eye Blind, the duo became a trio and called itself Year Long Disaster. While they don’t truly comprise a rock supergroup (is Karma to Burn really famous enough?), they certainly compose music worthy of one. Their songs sound as if someone tried to cram an entire wall of guitars from Guitar Center

into one tiny duffel bag, and the zipper just wouldn’t hold.Recent Activity: The excellent “Show Me Your Teeth” was released as the first single from their sophomore disc, “Black Magic.” Vocalist Davies beckons the listener to show him his or her teeth, a call to arms that’s hard to resist when faced with the fistful of guitar might.Check Out: “Show Me Your Teeth”

Hometown: Auckland, New ZealandBackground: After rocking out a couple times together, these three New Zealand bros realized they needed to break out of the kiwi nation and appeal to a wider audience, which they certainly did — like a storm. They snagged spots on tours with a bevy of beef rock giants, including Creed, Skillet, Shinedown

and Puddle of Mudd, and their fan base ballooned within a few weeks. In addition to being touring phenoms, Like a Storm was lucky enough to have two songs played on TV shows, one in the weekly “ESPN College Football,” and the other in USA’s “Royal Pains.” Their song “Lie to Me” was also the official theme song of TNA’s pay-per-view event “Genesis.”Recent Activity: Their meteoric ascent has given the band time to record only one album, 2009’s aptly titled “The End of the Beginning.” The band focused the tightness of their live shows into an album that’s as cathartic as it is anthemic, like a more metal-rooted Rise Against. It’s OK that these metal meatheads get a little melodramatic, like in the song “Galaxy” — it only makes you want to sing along louder. Definitely look out for them on the Jägermeister stage, where they will be easily missed.Check Out: “Galaxy”

Hometown: AtlantaBackground: Mastodon redefines the boundaries of heavy metal with their incredibly technical and melodic musicality. Behind bassist Troy Sanders’ sludge-rock vocals lies a complex layer of melodies that tie their music together like none other. Since 1999, Mastodon has been experimenting and pushing the envelope of contemporary metal. Every facet of their career is unique, from their electronic-infused guitar riffs to their eerily pleasant vocalizations to their wildly imaginative lyrics.

One album in particular looks at astrophysics, wormholes and Stephen Hawking’s theories. Recent Activity: Mastodon released their fourth album, “Crack the Skye,” in March 2009. Since then, Mastodon has assimilated into alternative pop culture in order to promote their music. They appeared in both “Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock” and “Rock Band 2” with their song “Colony of Birchmen.” Additionally, they performed the theme song to the 2007 “Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters,” and most recently appeared in the Adult Swim Presents: Dethklok Tour.Check Out: “Oblivion”

Hometown: Fort Lauderdale, Fla.Background: Despite a handful of mid-charting hits throughout the last 10 years, you probably don’t know this Florida foursome. Their sound is a sharp and crisp high voltage metal that suggests hours of careful work in the studio rather than the wham, bam, thank you ma’am style of other hard rock bands. Even though the band’s fiery frontman Elias Soriano isn’t the most famous guy in rock to wear a mop of dreadlocks on his head (Adam Duritz, take a bow), this band stands out from the pack for being simultaneously polished and ballsy.Recent Activity: Nonpoint released “Miracle,” their eighth studio album, earlier this month. The eponymous single throws its punches like a world-class boxer while Soriano hollers the lyrics as if they’ve been building up inside for years. The Monster beverage shown in the music video might be annoyingly shameless advertising, but the sound these guys sell is more galvanizing than a crate of energy drinks.Check Out: “Miracle”

Hometown: Jefferson City, Mo.Background: With a solid hard rock and no frills attitude, Missouri-born Shaman’s Harvest has built a musical career on pure, unadulterated hard rock anthems. Singer Nathan Drake leads the consistently dramatic vocals in the same manner as hard rockers Godsmack and Chevelle, all the while mixing in some face-melting guitar solos.Recent Activity: Their second album, “Shine,” has escalated their popularity with the nationally-recognized single “Dragonfly,” which peaked at No. 34 on the Billboard charts. Most recently, the band recorded a song entitled “Broken Dreams,” which is used as the theme song for WWE superstar Drew McIntyre.Check Out: “Dragonfly”

www.otterbein360.com | t&c |page 5page 4 | thursday, may 13, 2010 | vol. 91, issue 27

April showers bring hard rockersRock’s reigning speaker shakers will be 15 minutes from OC during the Columbus leg of Rock on the Range. Two T&C writers take a look at the tour’s lesser-known yet undeniably great supporting acts

For the best in alternative rock, keep it live to 97.5 FM-The Wildcard.

Shows not to be missed:• Manic Mondays: Monday 7-9 p.m.• Name That Show: Tuesday 8-10 p.m.• Shades: Wednesday 10 p.m.-12 a.m.• Shenanigans: Thursday 8-10 p.m.• Top 20 Countdown: Friday 1-3 p.m.

By Mike Cirelli and andrew Henderson

Arts & Entertainment Editor and Staff Writer

Rock on the Range has become an increasingly valued festival over the past few years as alternative music has shifted into a new electronic era and left earthy hard rock in the dust. But sometimes the dust is where these artists belong. The bands selected for this year’s lineup still live in the desert of rock, where the guitars are sweltering, loud and vengeful and leave no room in your

speakers for the faint chirping of keyboards or synthesizers. Some of hard rock’s biggest acts are making an appearance at Rock on the Range, including Godsmack, Rise Against, Three Days Grace and Papa Roach. These big names are all great in their ass-kicking, speaker-wrecking glory, but sometimes one needs to take the time to appreciate some of the less-celebrated bands in a festival. That’s why we’re here to run down some of Rock on the Range’s lesser-known artists, the ones that get relegated to the bottom of concert flyers or the

Nonpoint

Year Long Disaster

not a disaster: Year Long Disaster formed in 2003.

Like a Storm

born in the corn: Taddy Porter evoke classic southern rock with their own modern twist. apexexposure.com

MastodonShaman’s Harvest

Taddy Porter rock rangers: Nonpoint keep things polished and accessible yet in-your-face.

photo courtesy of nonpoint

& Rock on the Range

wGodsmackwThree Days GracewRise AgainstwDeftoneswPapa RoachwPuddle of MuddwDrowning PoolwSevendust

wKillswitch EngagewSkilletwHalestormwAdelitas WaywViolent SohowRichy Nix

wHelmetwNonpointwJanuswTaddy PorterwLike a Storm

Monster Energy StageSaturday sSunday

wLimp BizkitwRob ZombiewSeetherwSlashwTheory of a wDeadmanwBullet for My wValentinewFive Finger Death wPunchwApocalyptica

wMastodonwCoheed and wCambriawAnberlinwCirca SurvivewAirbournewShaman’s Harvest

wMushroomheadwTaprootwYear Long wDisasterwNoise AuctionwState Your Cause

Jägermeister StageSaturday sSunday

Kicker StageSaturday sSunday

Saturday, May 22 and Sunday, May 23Columbus Crew StadiumTickets approximately $120 each

& Editor’s Note

To read a review of the movie “Iron Man 2,” visit us at www.otterbein360.com.

photo by david probst

keep it simple: What Shaman’s Harvest lack in originality, they make up for in pure hard rock might.photo by gary copeland

t&c