Monday, February 9, 2009

Smaller Concerts @ GW?

Like many GW students, I'm looking forward to friday's Jason Mraz/Ben Folds concert. While I'm all for large concerts, I sometimes wish that GW had smaller, more intimate concerts on campus.

This past Saturday I headed to the Tavern at American University to see a free concert with Matt Nathanson and Adam Day. The Tavern is like the Pub at the Vern, only larger and the neon lighting gives it a Xanadu feeling.

Due to some sound and security issues, the organizers insisted that a majority of the audience sit down and Nathanson had to play acoustic. It ended up being a good thing as everyone had a better view, and Nathanson got to showcase his talent.

Despite the tech issues and 80's lighting, Nathanson performed a good show. He sang both new and old songs, danced, interacted with the crowd, and even did a cover of Jesse's Girl.

Below is a video of Nathanson performing "Come on Get Higher". My apologies in advance for the poor quality. The combination of neon lighting and my mediocre digital camera didn't produce the best video:




What do we think readers? Would GW students come out for a similar show?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

smaller concerts would be great, but knowing GW, we wouldn't be satisfied with more frequent smaller concerts, people want big names to brag about

Anonymous said...

I'm pretty sure that the radio station and program board puts on smaller shows once a month in Mitchell theater. this would be a perfect venue for the type of show you're talking about. now getting someone with at least as much clout as Matt Nathanson to play there is another story.

Neha said...

Anon: I understand the need for big name artists for larger events like Fall Fest/Spring Fling. But I do think there's a place for smaller/medium sized acts well.

Halps: First of all I wouldn't consider Mitchell theater an actual venue (for both campus and professional groups). I'm not sure I'd label Matt Nathanson as being very popular either (esp. compared to Ben Folds and Jason Mraz).

Anonymous said...

American is very different than GW. I don't think small concerts would go over well at GW. People want bigger acts. Also, GW doesn't have the same type of venues as American. It's either Lisner, or Smith Center.