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(12/10/15 4:14am)
This fall, I submitted an application to the Small Concerts Initiative and was given a grant to bring hip-hop artist, Chris Felner, aka “Felly,” to Middlebury. His show was scheduled for last Friday, and ultimately he performed for over 550 students. However, just prior to his arrival in Vermont, Chris was accused in a Middlebury Campus op-ed of being a cultural appropriator because of his skin color, the way he talked and the sound of his music.
Elizabeth Dunn, the author of the op-ed, is certainly entitled to her opinion and, while I don’t agree with all of her views, I fully respect her right to share them with our community and beyond.
But after spending the weekend with Chris, I felt compelled to respond to her piece, which I believe not only unfairly tarnished our guest, but also misses the point of artistic endeavors and their role in our community.
When I picked him up from the airport on Thursday after his eight-hour cross country trip, Chris had already gotten wind of the op-ed. I expected him to be upset that he was facing a growing protest at the school where he was about to perform. I was wrong. Instead, Chris, who turned out to be a down-to-earth, positive, optimistic kid, was interested in Elizabeth’s perspective and wanted to speak with her. He told me he had “nothing but love for her for expressing her opinion and being so convinced of something. But,” he noted, “anyone convinced of something should be open to hearing another side.” And while we immediately reached out to Elizabeth after Chris’ arrival on campus, we unfortunately did not hear back from her in time to arrange a meeting. That was certainly an opportunity lost.
For those of you who don’t know his music, Felly uses African and Jamaican rhythms and roots from African and Jamaican culture in his songwriting. Yes, it’s true that Felly is not African-American and he is not Jamaican. Yes, it’s true that he comes from a privileged background and might not have the same experiences as many African American or Jamaican musicians. But if we cherish diversity, don’t we want cultures to influence each other? Don’t people from different backgrounds deserve equal opportunities to express their inner creativity and artistic inspiration? Should Eric Clapton be prohibited from singing the Delta Blues because he has a British accent? Transcendent musicians crossing cultural divides is musical appreciation, not cultural appropriation.
Yet the editorial expressed deep skepticism over Felly’s “supposed” Rastafarian connection. It’s interesting to note that Bob Marley, one of the musicians most associated with “Rastafarianism”, was half white and half black. The op-ed wrote, “Rastafarianism is black. It is exclusive…” Does that mean there was an element of cultural appropriation in Marley’s music?
Unquestionably, Chris is not “culturally” Rastafarian. He has, however, spent lots of time in Jamaica, and has cultivated multiple friends on the island. He’s led four separate service trips in poor areas, and visited other times solely to hang out with his local Jamaican friends. Chris explained to me that he loves the way the Rastafarians “preached love and unity,” and that it’s his goal to infuse his music with those same qualities. Notably though, Chris does not limit his musical exploration solely to Jamaican music. Chris mines many other cultures to expand his musical outlook, including those from Brazilian, African and European cultures.
Elizabeth also wrote, “Felly doesn’t seem especially interested in interacting with actual black people… likely it’s because black people aren’t cool.” I’m not at all clear on how based on the viewing of one music video she reached this stark conclusion, but the assertion is completely at odds with the person I got to know this weekend. In the face of unexpected controversy, Chris showed himself to be open, outgoing, sincere and accepting. The whole weekend Chris interacted with a diverse group of students here and started conversations with everyone trying to understand their perspectives. Yet he’s being labeled a racist. As an aside, Elizabeth might be interested to know that two of the musicians who appear on Felly’s most recent album were African-American, including one who grew up in Jamaica and just happens to be one of his closest friends.
One of the first sentences of the op-ed wrote, “Felly, those who were responsible for bringing him here and those planning to attend his concert are unaware of the systematic racism black people face, and how even seemingly innocuous or insignificant actions, like going to a concert, reinforce discrimination.” As the person responsible for bringing Felly to campus, I take issue. I’ve never met Elizabeth, so I don’t know from whom she’s getting her information about my awareness, or lack thereof, of the systematic racism black people face. But I do know that I enjoy music and when I proposed to bring Felly here, it was specifically because I relished the idea of bringing a musician to Middlebury who could bring together a wide array of people for a shared experience. A human experience.
The editorial also noted that “considering Middlebury College’s own history with appropriation, it’s no surprise that Felly was chosen as our visiting artist”. Our Spring concert last year was T-Pain. Middlebury College was also the first college in America to graduate an African-American student.
Of course, I believe cultural appropriation is an issue, and needs to be addressed. This, concert, and Felly, did not deserve to be mired in controversy. Like Dwayne Scott (D. Scott, opener for Felly) said in front of the enthusiastic audience, “I want to address a recent article that has summoned a lot of mixed feelings and caused my own background singers to cancel performing with me. We, as artists, are just trying to share and express our art with y’all. Don’t make things controversial that don’t need to be controversial. I don’t have an issue with Felly. We’re backstage kicking it. So when he comes out on stage, support his art and make the most noise possible. Show love y’all.”
After a terrific weekend and performance, Chris wanted me to deliver a message to Elizabeth: “I have this same love for you regardless of the negative words you have thrown at me. I’m sorry you feel this way, but I hope you can see my side. I’ll keep fighting for unity while you try to do the same through your methods. I take pride in the fact that I’ve been able to bring in hundreds of people (Black, White, Asian, etc.) to my shows to come together for the simple love of music.”
I admire Chris as a young artist following his dream, and I admire Elizabeth for her willingness to express her views in an open forum. Discourse is healthy, and in a college environment, particularly necessary. But we must all accept that as a community, we will never be able to come to a complete agreement on any issue, and instead resolve to respect each other as individuals. It’s my fervent hope that artists of all stripes can and will continue to draw on cultural traditions not their own, as they broaden their own horizons, as well as ours. Let’s knock down the walls and come together, not build them and grow farther apart.
(12/09/15 8:05pm)
After a hot 3-0 start to the season that featured a beatdown over Oneonta St. and two nail-biting victories against Hartwick and at in-state opponent Johnson St., the Middlebury women’s basketball team suffered its first loss this season at Skidmore, 63-60. After beating the Thoroughbreds last year by just three points, the Panthers had hoped they could repeat the same feat, but excessive turnovers proved to be Middlebury’s downfall.
The Panthers trailed for all but 29 seconds of the first half, eventually entering halftime down 32-26 after a 9-6 Skidmore run right before the half.
The Thoroughbreds stretched the lead to 10 multiple times in the third quarter, but Middlebury refused to die.
A 15-3 run early in the fourth quarter gave Middlebury a late one-point lead, 56-55, with 4:09 to play. With both teams locking down on the defensive end, points were hard to come by down the stretch. Skidmore’s Veronica Moceri hit a three-pointer to give the Thoroughbreds the lead once more, but Rachel Collins ’18 nailed a jump shot to tie the game at 58.
Moceri came up huge for Skidmore once again, hitting a three-pointer to go up three with 51 seconds left in the fourth. Catherine Harrison ’19 then hit two quick free throws to bring the Panthers within one before fouling to extend the game. Skidmore made what could have been a deadly mistake, turning the ball over with 13 seconds to play. Middlebury got a look at a go-ahead layup with eight seconds remaining but could not capitalize. Skidmore’s Kelly Donnelly hit two free throws to make it a three-point game once again. Panther point guard Sarah Kaufman ’18 had a chance to tie the game and send it to overtime, but her desperation three point attempt missed the mark.
The Middlebury team that got off the bus in Saratoga seemed to have been a different team than the one that went undefeated in the month of November. The Panthers turned the ball over an insane 28 times and Skidmore was able to convert those miscues into 32 points. Middlebury far surpassed its average of 19.0 turnovers per game with that mark. Additionally, Skidmore’s bench outscored Midd 28-6.
Kaufman led all scorers with 20, while Harrison added 12, and both Eileen Daley ’18 and Collins had nine for the Panthers.
First-year phenom Harrison continued her unbelievable collegiate start grabbing a career-high 14 rebounds. Harrison is now averaging 14.0 points a game and 11.3 rebounds a game. She also is shooting an impressive 61.5 percent from the field. Harrison and Kaufman form a formidable 1-2 punch. The latter is averaging 17.8 points per game and is automatic from the line, shooting 83.3 percent.
The Panthers look to get back on the winning track Saturday, Dec. 11 in their home opener against Plattsburgh State at 2 p.m, and will play seven games between today and the first day of the Winter Term, including some holiday season action at the NYU Holiday Classic January 2 and 3. Everything leads up to the first weekend of conference play which will be at home for the Panthers as they square off against Wesleyan and Conn. College on Friday, Jan. 8 and Saturday, Jan. 9.
(12/03/15 12:55am)
The Middlebury women’s basketball team has had quite the hot start thus far in the season. Going undefeated in the month of November, the team has beaten Oneonta State (60-38) on Friday, Nov. 20, Hartwick College (61-58) on Nov. 21 and Johnson State (57-52) on Tuesday, Nov. 24. The Panthers have relied on their underclassmen’s talent to win games in the absence of captain and most senior leader, Elizabeth Knox ’17, who is injured and hoping to return to the courts in January.
Middlebury began the season at the Holiday Inn Classic at SUNY Oneonta where they played the host. The Panthers ended the first quarter with a 14-9 lead, and did not look back.
Oneonta only hit 14 of their attempted 75 shots (18.7 percent shooting), and grabbed 40 rebounds while Middlebury shot an impressive 41.7 percent from the field, going 25-60. The Panthers also grabbed 58 rebounds. Point guard Sarah Kaufman ’18 led Middlebury’s scoring effort, sinking 23 points total in the game. Catherine Harrison ’19 also helped seal the win in her impressive college debut: she knotted her first career double-double, scoring 12 points and grabbing 15 boards.
One day later, the team carried this momentum into their matchup against Hartwick College. Middlebury emerged victorious from the constant back-and-forth that ended with a score of 61-58.
Harrison was the high scorer of the game, with 20 points and 9 rebounds, while Colleen Caveney ’19 had 12 points and went 6-7 from the field. Kaufman again scored in double-digits, racking up ten points total. Middlebury continued their shooting success going 24-50 from the field (48 percent).
Three days later on Tuesday, Nov. 24, the Panthers embarked on another road trip to face their local rival, Johnson State (JSU). Middlebury won what proved to be another close contest 57-52.
JSU cut Middlebury’s lead down to two with just under a minute remaining. However, the Panthers hit three foul shots and a layup to seal a five-point win. Kaufman led Middlebury again in scoring with 18 points, while Harrison scored 12. Eileen Daley ’18 scored five and recorded a career-high of 13 rebounds.
After a very promising start to her Middlebury career, Harrison — who averages 16.0 points and 12.0 rebounds per game, and shot an 82.4 percentage from the floor (14-17) — was named the NESCAC Player of the Week.
The Panthers will begin to rev up their out-of-conference schedule as they face Skidmore on the road this Saturday, December 5th at 2 p.m. before NESCAC competition begins after the New Year.
(10/15/15 12:22am)
This past weekend, the Middlebury men’s and women’s tennis teams took to the court in the Wallach Invitational at Bates and the Middlebury Invitational, respectively.
The men’s team had multiple victories as they advanced through the four-flight tournament at Bates. Both Jack Welch ’16 and Cole Sutton ’19 advanced to the semi-final round of the singles “D” flight before falling to Tufts’ Chris Jones (6-1, 6-0) and eventual flight champion Grant Urken (6-2, 6-2), respectively.
In the singles “C” flight, Kyle Schlanger ’18 won three straight matches to advance to the final before falling to Gil Roddy of Bowdoin (3-6, 6-3, 10-5). Peter Martin ’19 also notched a win in the “C” flight, cruising past Jeffrey Cherkin of Brandeis University (6-1, 6-4).
Palmer Campbell ’16 was eliminated from the “A” flight after his first match against Bowdoin’s Luke Tercek, but Campbell advanced to the semis of the flight after a preliminary 6-0, 6-4 win. However, Willian de Quant ’18 lost a hard-fought match against the future champion of the Wallach Invitational, the Bowdoin Polar Bear Luke Trinka, in three sets (2-6, 6-4, 4-10).
Two Panthers often mentioned in the headlines were missing from the weekend. Rather than travel to Bates, Noah Farrell ’18 and Ari Smolyar ’16 competed in the Dartmouth Invitational. Both Farrell and Smolyar held their own against their division one opponents, going 2-1 as a pair. Individually, Farrell also went 2-1, defeating Amherst’s number one player. Smolyar went 1-2 in singles, beating Fairfield University’s number one player before conceding two close matches to top players from Dartmouth and Brown, respectively.
“Playing at Dartmouth was a great opportunity,” Smolyar said. “Noah and I found our rhythm and we were really able to push around our competition.” Both players competed in all matches, but definitely noticed some big differences.
“The speed of our game and the physicality of the points are definitely different. If we weren’t aggressive, we were immediately put on the defensive,” Smolyar continued. “We had to run faster, hit the balls harder and pick better targets to give us a fighting chance.”
Smolyar has made many contributions to the Middlebury tennis program so far. “It’s an honor to be a captain,” he said. “We’re working towards an NCAA Championship, and that’s not something all teams have the opportunity to do. We all hold each other to the same high standards.”
After a second-place finish last year, why not? The team will end their fall season in two weekends at the Boston Invitational hosted by Tufts University.
Meanwhile, the women’s team bounced back from their rough showing two weeks ago at the ITA tournament in the Middlebury Invitational last weekend (Oct. 9-11).
Fighting through the rain on Friday, the Panthers competed against the Williams Ephs, the West Point Black Knights and the Amherst Lord Jeffs both in the Nelson Recreational Center and on the Proctor Tennis Courts.
The invite had a different format and scoring system than a usual tournament; each team had the opportunity to play one another each day in singles and doubles matches.
Middlebury took on Army on Friday. Three Panthers, Christina Puccinelli ’19, Sadie Shackleford ’16 and Lauren Amos ’16, emerged victorious in exciting three-set matches. After falling in the first set (6-7(6)), Puccinelli rolled over Army Cadet Ally Hayley (6-3, 10-3). Shackelford, a veteran four year player on the squad, also started off slow, losing her first set (2-6). However, she picked it up in the next two to oust her Army opponent (7-6 (4), 10-8).
Head Coach Mike Morgan must have encouraged his team to keep their matches exciting, for Amos followed suit, going down early to Sera Martorelli before winning her next two sets (4-6, 7-5, 10-6).
On Saturday, Middlebury took on arch rival Amherst in doubles action. Shackelford partnered up with Lily Bondy ’17, and kept her winning ways going to defeat Lord Jeffs Jackie Calla and Kesley Chen in a riveting (9-8 (2)) thriller. In Middlebury’s six singles matches against Williams on Saturday, only Amos could squeeze out a win against Francesca Eluhu (6-3, 6-0).
On Sunday the Lady Panthers took on Amherst in singles and Williams in doubles. Catherine Miller ’19 squeaked out the team’s sole singles victory of the day (6-3, 7-6 (4)) against Amherst, giving the Panthers something to look forward to in the spring. Middlebury was not able to beat Williams in any of their last three doubles matches of the tournament
Shackelford was happy that her team stepped up on Friday against Army to win three matches in three-set tiebreakers, but expressed that the team did not do as well as they had hoped.
“The tournament was a challenge for us,” Shackelford said. “We were competing without our number one (Ria Gerger ’16), so everyone had to move up and compete in a tougher position. We’re dealing with a much different group than last spring (two juniors are abroad, and three new first-years). We’re super excited to continue to build off of our hard work this fall and grow even more in the off season.”
Shackleford has every reason to remain optimistic, and if the girls continue to work hard, they can make a serious dent on NESCAC and national competition come spring. Middlebury will have some time to hit the courts (and the books) before opening up their spring season on Saturday, March 12 with home dual matches against Hamilton and Bates.
(09/30/15 10:03pm)
Both the Middlebury men’s and women’s tennis teams hit the courts this past weekend on Sept. 25-27 in the USTA/ITA New England Regional tennis tournaments. The men’s team traveled down to Williams College for the weekend, while the ladies stayed home for a beautiful weekend on campus.
Due to ITA seedings and draws, a select amount of players from both teams played in the tournament. For the men’s team, Noah Farrell ’18, Ari Smolyar ’16, Allen Jackson ’16, Palmer Campbell ’16, Timo van der Geest ’18 and William de Quant ’18 all saw action.
Smolyar, the fourth seed in the tournament, moved to the quarterfinals before losing to Luke Tercek of Bowdoin College on Saturday. Jackson won his first two matches of the tournament, also moving on to day two, until he was defeated by Steven Chen of Wesleyan in the round of 16 (3-6, 6-0, 6-2). Van der Geest moved on with his fellow Panthers to day two as well, before losing in the round of 16. DeQuant and Campbell also stood victorious in their first matches before losing in the round of 32.
Sophomore Noah Farrell ’18 left Williams Sunday afternoon after winning six straight matches capturing the 2015 USTA/ITA Singles Men’s Tennis Regional Championship. Farrell will move onto the Small College Championships at the Palmetto Tennis Center in Sumter, South Carolina Oct. 15-18. The rest of the team will see action next at the Wallach Invitational at Bates College Oct. 9-10.
Back in the Green Mountain State, however, things did not go as well for the Middlebury women’s team. In the singles tournament, three Middlebury players moved on to day two: Lily Bondy ’17, Catherine Miller ’19, and Christina Puccinelli ’19. Miller fell in the quarterfinals to Amherst’s Vickie Ip (6-2, 7-6 (4)), while Puccinelli lost to Victoria Yu of Wesleyan (6-3, 6-1).
In the next round, Lily Bondy advanced to play Yu in the semifinals Sunday morning. After two three set match victories Saturday, fans saw Bondy’s heroics cease, and she fell (6-4, 6-2). Other Panthers also played this weekend; after losing their first matches, Molly Paradies ’19, Lauren Amos ’16 and Sadie Shackleford ’16 all picked up wins.
Though the weekend did not go as well as the Middlebury women’s team would have liked, Amos, a four-year contributor for the Panthers, thought there was reason to remain optimistic.
“I actually thought we had a strong showing at the ITA’s,” Amos said. “Our freshman class has proven to be very talented and we are excited to see how their addition will impact our season.”
In addition to the three new first-years on the team, Middlebury lost only one graduating senior from last year and Amos has high expectations for her squad.
“I think our three new members have the ability to take this program to a new level,” said Amos. “Our goal is to win a national championship. Two of my three years here we’ve made it to the Elite Eight. It’s my last year now, and I’m ready to make it all the way. This fall, we’re making the necessary preparations to finally make it all the way.”
See Amos, the first-year trio, and the rest of the Middlebury women’s team take the court again in two weeks when they host the annual Middlebury Invitational Oct. 9-11.
(09/24/15 12:49am)
After falling short in the NCAA tournament two years ago, the Middlebury men’s tennis team was looking for a new spark to help lead the team towards a national championship. In September of last year, they got just what they needed in Noah Farrell ’18. Standing at only 5’7,’’ Farrell arrived on campus and immediately made an impact. He jumped right up the ladder and played No. 2 singles and doubles in both the fall and spring, amassing a 24-9 record in singles and 19-5 in doubles — playing with Ari Smolyar ’16, Middlebury’s top-ranked player.
Farrell felt comfortable from his first match as a Panther.
“I didn’t know anyone last year, so I had nothing to lose,” Farrell said. “My opponents knew they were playing a freshman, so they had no idea what they were going to get.”
Farrell did not feel that there was much of a change in the level of competition he faced before and after coming to college.
“The competition was hard, but the level of kids I’m playing is similar to the level I played in juniors and in tournaments,” he said.
Surprisingly, doubles proved to be much more difficult for the current sophomore.
“Going into the spring [of 2015], I didn’t think I would even make the doubles lineup. Coach had me playing four.”
However, with the support of the veteran Smolyar, Farrell quickly jumped the ladder to pair with Middlebury’s No. 1.
“Ari took me under his wing,” Farrel said. “He’s a great role model, and has had a huge impact on my play. He has given me confidence, and always encourages me to hang in and continue to battle.”
As his sophomore season begins, Farrell is ready to keep winning and believes the squad is in contention to win a championship. Last weekend, Farrell won the A-Flight of the Middlebury Invitational on the Proctor Courts, winning every match in straight sets and conceding only 15 games in four matches. Assistant Coach Courtney Mountifield believes that Farrell has made even bigger strides going into the season.
“[Head Coach] Bob [Hansen] and I weren’t sure what his form would be coming back after summer break, but he demonstrated once again why he is a leader on this team,” Mountifield said. “He was fit and in form, and his game was at a different level.”
It appears the team as a whole is ready, too. All the starters from last year’s singles lineup are returning, and the team chemistry is still there.
“We eat dinner together, hang out together, go out on the weekends … it’s a special group of kids,” Farrell said. “Our preparation was so good last year; there’s nothing we could change. We just need to have the drive and mental stability to finish the job now.”
The team is prepared to defend its NESCAC title. Arriving Sept. 6, the whole team had both morning and afternoon sessions on the court with morning workouts. In the winter, the captains run practices every day to keep everyone in shape. And Farrell, after a long summer of working at a tennis club hitting with the top juniors in the New England region, is ready to win.
“We feel like we are so much stronger than every other team,” Farrell said. But now people know what we can do, and in singles play, people now know who I am. So there’s more pressure, and people expect me to win.”
Mountifield and Hansen expect a lot from Farrell this year.
“We want him to push last year’s No. 1 (Smolyar),” Mountifield said. “Noah’s accomplished a lot already, but we look forward to an even better year with him.”
Farrell and Middlebury will return to the hard courts this weekend, as they play in the ITA Regional Championships at Williams College. Six singles players were selected to play from Middlebury: Farrell, Smolyar, Palmer Campbell ’16, Allen Jackson ’16, Will de Quant ’18 and Timo van der Geest ’18, and three double pairs were selected as well: Kyle Schlanger ’18 and Farrell, Smolyar and Campbell, and Jackson and de Quant.