This Weekend in the People’s Republic

It’s May…and that means Bike Month. Whether you’re a commuter cyclist or you just appreciate the occasional ride, it’s as good a time as any to dust off that seat, lube up that chain, and Get Thee Outside! Log your miles at www.mayisbikemonth.com.

Ride nowhere in particular or to any of the various events I’ve handpicked for you this weekend. They’re just after the jump.

Friday, 2 May 2008

Folk Music Jam Session (MUSIC)
Noon, Wyatt Deck (UCD)
Free

Campus and community folk musicians play together over the lunch hour. It’s in the Arboretum and listeners are welcome. More info.

People Power Tour: Benefit Concert for DQ U (MUSIC)
7:10p, Sac State Ballroom (Sacramento)
$12/$15

I generally try to promote Davis events in This Weekend in the People’s Republic but this one is special, and it benefits the Davis community. UC Davis’s Students Organizing for Change along with the Muslim Student Association are collaborating with MeCHA and Acción Zapatista Davis to raise awareness to help Deganawidah-Quetzalcoatl University, the last Native American college in California, win back its accreditation. At his event Pakistani Muslim hip-hop artist Manifest One, from Los Angeles, and Caprice, a socially conscious Syrian emcee from New York, will be performing. More info.

Saturday, 3 May 2008

UCD Bike Auction (ACTIVITIES)
8a, West Entry Parking Structure (near TAPS)
Free

“Twice a year, TAPS auctions off abandoned bicycles found on campus. They sell hundreds of bikes, which are usually in some state of disrepair. However, for the brave souls willing to put a little bit of money into fixing up a bike, the Bike Auction is a great place to start. The cheapest bikes can be found towards the latter half of the auction, when the caffeine begins to wear off and the bidders are less exicatable. Prices tend to range $20-$80.” More info.

The Dimes, Tyler Ramsey, Shelley Short (MUSIC)
10p, Sophia’s Thai Kitchen
$3

You know a show is going to be good when minor folk goddesses like Shelley Short are the opening act. The Dimes have been described as having “gorgeous voices”, “phenomenal lyrics” and “Beach Boys harmonies” singing  “dark tales set against upbeat melodies and rhythms.”  More info.

“Run to the Light…A Celebration of Life”…The Brahms Requiem (MUSIC)
7p, Mondavi Center
$25-55

” Powerful. Inspiring. Forever uplifting. Join the Sacramento Youth Symphony Premier Orchestra in a presentation of the Brahms Requiem. Joined by the 250 voice chorus of the Central Valley Choral Society, SYS is pleased to take you for a musical journey from darkness into light. Of his choral masterwork, A German Requiem, Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) wrote: “As for the title, I must admit I should like to leave out the word ‘German’ and refer instead to ‘Humanity’.” Nowhere in A German Requiem do we glimpse the vivid darkness of the traditional requiem text’s dies irae (“day of wrath,” a detailed explication of the terrors of Judgment Day).

“In the end, A German Requiem is Johannes Brahms’ magnum opus. He labored over it for eleven years (from 1857 to 1868), and it is his longest major work. While Brahms never finished an opera, his requiem is at once his most theatrical piece and a stunningly symmetrical symphonic form. It is also a candid glimpse into its composer’s heart .” More info.

Whole Earth Festival Benefit (MUSIC)
7p-11p, DISC 2801 Second St.
$10

There will be a bike sale, funk music, and skating and the event will raise money for the annual Whole Earth Festival. The performer is listed as TBA and though I’ve been sworn to secrecy on who that will be I can tell you that this is one event I wouldn’t want to miss.

Sunday, 4 May 2008

Whole Earth Festival Presents Sunday Sol (MUSIC)
1-6pm, Gazebo at the Arboretum
Free

Celebrate life, dance, and music with DJs spinning the best in electronic, funk, international, and reggae/dub grooves.