San Diego City College Music Club sponsored the first open mic night of the semester on Mar. 1, where students and community members gathered in room C-209 for an afternoon of musical and poetic expression.
Among the performers, student musicians Bernard Clark and Roger Ralphs jammed out with a jazz session, playing their own version of Miles Davis’s “Solar.”
The audience responded to the pair by tapping their feet while rocking back and forth to the rhythm.
Jazz sessions weren’t the only thing that got the crowd going. Up and coming San Diego indie artist Yoli Alma performed her original song “Renovar” for the crowd.
“I was pretty nervous,” Yoli Alma said. “It was my first time (at open mic night). I was more in my own head about it. I genuinely did like how intimate it was. I just loved it, it was so fun.”
The main stage was set up in the center of City’s recording studio with instruments ranging from guitars, to a drum set to bass amplifiers for performers to use.
Seats for audience members closely surrounded the stage, allowing for a more intimate and up-close experience between performers and those in the audience.
Though most sets were planned out prior to open mic night, certain performances were improvised.
During one of the jam sessions, the tune would go from a steady harmony between musicians, then one of the members would begin to “blow” or improvise while playing.
Local artist Deuso was originally an audience member and during another performance stepped in and began to freestyle.
These jam sessions became something immersive for the audience as they danced in their seats and added to the music with their hands and feet.
Following the musical performances, student Jacob Haynes read an excerpt from “Inferno” by Dante Alighieri.
This wasn’t a typical reading in front of the mic. Haynes had wind effects playing in the background while his voice, breathy, crescendoed over time.
Bernard Clark played a somber guitar melody in the background.
To view the recording of the night’s performances, click here.
