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Volume CXXXII, Number 9 |
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Squash courts resonate with musicians
JENNIE COHEN
STAFF WRITER
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| Soon, students will be making a racket rather than using them here. (Cecily Upton, Bowdoin Orient) |
An old squash court in Morrell Gym may not seem the most likely place for music recitals and performances, but it was recently converted into a practice room for campus music ensembles. The hardwood floors were covered with carpet, music storage was added, and the room was made soundproof. The creation of the new music space, which will be used mostly by rock and a cappella groups, arose out the lack of space for on-campus groups to practice.
Mary Hunter, A. LeRoy Greason Professor of Music and chair of the music department, said, "we don't have any room in Gibson Hall…estimating generously, we have seven practice rooms. It's exciting to have a place where rock bands can practice and practice late."
Not only is space an issue for the bands, but sound is as well. Hunter added that the bands "are, properly so, very loud. This is a space which is really theirs, where they can play at the volume they like to play at."
Dan Wilson '06, who plays in a campus band and uses the space at least four hours a week, said, "I don't know how on-campus bands would practice without this space."
Though Wilson said that the space is "really nice," he also acknowledged that, "it's too loud."
Eider Gordillo, '04, whose band The Kobayashi Trio utilizes the space, commented that "a good part of why this came about was student initiative. Jeff Ward, the athletic director, was also instrumental in this."
Gordillo also said, "The creation of the space brings to students more options beyond classical music. There has been a really strong advancement in the past few years in bringing to the student body a modern music program."
He said that a couple years ago students used a similar initiative to create a percussion room. "Two years ago there was no percussion in the music department. We had two feet of room to practice with our congas…we could barely practice."
Still, Gordillo admitted, the creation of the rooms does not solve every music space problem. "There is still a need for a new music building with better sound proof walls and more performance space," he said. "There are all these complaints that the Bowdoin culture is too pivoted on athletics. But if students push enough, things get done around here."