University Auditorium

I attended my first concert at UF. It was a typical concert like those shown on TV. With a conductor and his entire troupe clad in black suits and the formal demeanour. It was the UF Symphonic and Wind Orchestra. Conducted by a couple of guest conductors.

It was in this auditorium which had a rather elaborate and archetypal roof. There were dim chandeliers beaming down from hooked carvings from under the dome shaped wooden roof. It was made of deep brown wood, the type that is found in medieval churches. Complete with a couple of balconies on either flanks of the main body overlooking the stage.

The Orchestra consisted mostly of students from the School of Music and Arts at UF. The entire assortment of musical instruments decked the stage. Among them was also the piano, the various wind instruments, the xylophone and various gongs, the bass guitar, percussion, flutes to name a few.

Initially, there was loud clamoring and a discordant rush of notes that were extremely cacophonic on the ear. It was surprising since the concert was free for UF students and I couldn't spot a single fellow country-mate!

Suddenly, all the instruments played a single note in harmony. Then, the conductor arrived and the entire auditorium quickly froze into complete silence with a warm applause to greet him. With a courteous bow, the conductor soon took his position in front of the orchestra.

The lights dimmed and the stage shone bright. The wand was raised, and a rather wonderful assortment of notes in utter harmony flowed out.

The next couple of hours were sheer bliss! Most of the pieces were
based on truly American composers. The style of the music played
showed in the types of nuances that were on display. Most of the other pieces had a latino/South American influence. It was both amusing and surprising to hear some of the typical instruments used in the dances of South American culture blend in with more traditional instruments of the Orchestra.

After each piece was played, the audience was roused into an extended round of applause and every single musician that was part of some nuance in the piece played was conjured up individually by the conductor to be greeted by another round of applause. And so, the routine continued on until the end of the event.

And then, I had some nice cake arranged for by one of the Sorrority
houses near campus and here I am composing this email. The evening was truly refreshing! :)

Marston Science Library

Every science library should be called the Marston Science Library. I mean, how often does one run into a SCIENCE library called something that nice? It's always a serious sounding name, or a big city kinda name. I don't have many examples to put in here, but you could think up what the science library in your town is called. For a place like Gainesville, Marston sounds perfect!

It's a quaint old spot where all us jobless people (in the days we didn't have our laptop) would come to hang out at. Lots of computers arrayed in rows, and lots of interesting people. A very nice structure about the ground floor. It's a SCIENCE library! You just know it when you see it!

God, I am in love with Marston Science Library. The name, the ambience, the computers, the books, the convenient location of the rest-room, the notice board asking for suggestions to improve the library, the nice people writing stuff on a piece of paper to help me locate my java books. And I got my first print/copy card here. That's used to take xerox or printouts.

Landed in the US, and this was one of the first places I saw. Btw.. In the video, the "French Fries" or "Alachua" separates the library and the CS department. Show and tell part 1 over!