Students await musical thrills of Beirut in ViCE kickoff

Imagine your favorite rock band came to Vassar and wanted to play with you in a live performance. It would most probably be a dream come true for a Vassar musician. For students who are fans of the unique indie band Beirut, this dream is far from unrealistic. Vassar College Entertainment (ViCE) is bringing Beirut to Vassar in a concert featuring a group of Vassar musicians on Saturday, Jan. 31 at 8 p.m. in the Chapel.

Beirut has its roots in the music  that 23-year-old Zach Condon composed in his bedroom during his teens. Condon, who plays the trumpet, horns, ukelele, accordion, piano, percussion, clarinet and mandolin, was introduced to music by his family, especially his father, who wanted all of his children to play the guitar. After dropping out of high school and more than one college, Condon decided that being a student was not right for him and went to Europe with his older brother. "I felt like that was the first place I needed to see if I was going to drop out of school," Condon said in an interview with The Miscellany News.
Condon stayed mostly in Paris, where he found inspiration for his early songs, including the popular "Postcards from Italy." He was particularly affected by the French youth, who listened to Eastern European artists and progressive Balkan folk, along with mainstream French bands like Air and Justice. When he returned back home, Condon composed music inspired by his European journey and recorded the scores in his bedroom. Condon admitted that he never expected his songs to get as popular as they did. But "Postcards from Italy" and Condon's other early music got extensive attention on the Internet even before Beirut's first record came out.

After Condon finished recording his songs in studio with assistance from early members of Beirut, he signed to Ba Da Bing! Records, run by Ben Goldberg '95. Beirut's debut album Gulag Orkestar gained immense success after its release in 2006 and was selected as the best album of 2006 by indie label Rough Trade Records. Released in 2007, Beirut's second album, The Flying Club Cup, proved that the band was not a one-album wonder, reaching the top of the album of the year lists in a number of European publications including The Sun, The Telegraph and Uncut.

The band will release the double EP March of the Zapotec/Holland on Feb. 17 on Condon's own Pompeii Records. The Vassar Chapel is the first stop on the band's new tour; after Vassar they will visit New Mexico, Hamburg, Amsterdam, Brussels, London, Paris and Minehead, U.K.

Director of ViCE Anabel Graff '09 said, "I wanted to bring them here forever because we had the connection and [Goldberg] went to Vassar; I thought it would be great to use the connection and have a great show," adding that neither the band nor Ba Da Bing! had initially expressed an enthusiastic interest in playing at Vassar. Graff explained that she tried her chance once more with the record label as soon as she heard Beirut was releasing a new album. The band first offered to do a secret preview show in Matthew's Mug, but ViCE did not find it sensible to have a show for so few students when there is so much interest in the band.

Graff decided it would be interesting if Vassar musicians played with Beirut on some of their songs. "The band really liked the idea, because it presented a new challenge," Goldberg said.

According to Goldberg, the show is going to be beneficial to both Beirut and the Vassar Orkestar members, who will accompany Beirut in the next two stops of the tour. These shows, at Brooklyn Academy of Music on Feb. 6 and 7, are already sold out.

Ben Rutkowski '09, Mary Beth Alexander '09 and Eliza Thompson '09 recruited members for a student band by getting in contact with the musicians they knew from various Vassar music programs, including the Vassar College Orchestra. The group was named Vassar Orkestar, alluding to the title of Beirut's first album.

ViCE chose the Chapel as the concert's venue in order to "accommodate the most amount of Vassar students," in Graff's words. With a capacity of 1,100 people, the Chapel is not only the largest indoor space for such a concert, it also has great acoustics for the orchestra.

Condon liked the idea of performing in the Chapel. "I saw the venue for the Vassar show and I think it looks quite beautiful," he said.

ViCE After Hours Chair Max Kutner '11 wrote, "We're often looking for ways to incorporate student musicians into these larger shows. Playing with Beirut in front of hundreds of people will no doubt be an unforgettable moment for these students."

Condon said that he was very excited about the idea, as well. "I never heard my music played on a full orchestra before. For me it's gonna be ridiculous, too," he said.
Music major Emily Bookwalter '10, who plays the viola for Vassar Orkestar, said, "I'm really grateful for having been given that opportunity," adding that she has never played with a popular group before.

The hour-and-a-half-long program will feature a mixture of songs from past records and the new EPs, closing with the songs in which the Vassar Orkestar accompanies the band.
Known for lively performances and genuine and modest attitudes of its members, Beirut is popular among the student body. Mike Godbe '09 wrote, "I've seen them twice in concert already and was pumped to hear they were coming to Vassar, because the tickets to their Brooklyn show were sold out."

"I feel like everyone loves them here," Molly Kumar '11 said. "I'm out of my mind excited."
ViCE Executive Board member Paul Noonan '10 said that he also got a lot of feedback from students who are abroad this semester and who were upset that they were missing the show. "I am heartbroken," wrote Grace Cannon '10 from Berlin, while Dan Lupo '10 wrote, "I'm so angry that I'm missing the concert, and would definitely consider flying back for it if I had the money."

Goldberg, who was Student Director of WVKR, said, "I loved Vassar, I loved going there," adding that it was at Vassar when he was exposed to different musical forms and musical styles. "It feels like a really nice homecoming to go back there with the band that I work with," he said.