New student DJ for Park End
Juice, the student company which runs the popular Wednesday night event at Park End, has announced that it is to promote a new student DJ at the club over the next two weeks. Gianni Saccomani, a second year classicist from Somerville, debuted on Wednesday and is the second student from the university to play at the club this year.
Juice is adding to its promotion of Shane Mitchell, a third year from Queen's, who has been playing in the Park End 'VIP Lounge' for the past twelve months. Gianni will replace Shane while he does his Finals, despite only having been a DJ for the past eighteen months. "It all happened very quickly", he told the Oxford Student, "but Juice has definitely been positive and I've been very lucky".
Gianni also confirmed that he is in talks with the Oxford Union to secure a Friday night slot playing in the Purple Turtle from Michaelmas next year. The talks are only provisional, however, and nothing has been confirmed yet.
'DJ Mani', as he is known, is resident DJ for Somerville bops, and has already played at Thirst and The Zodiac, in the 'Up North' event for Somerville, St. Anne's and St. Hugh's.
"I'm not trying to change the music culture here," he explained, "but I do want to try and ease something more garage music into the scene, and in a certain atmosphere, garage goes down really well." It is R&B and hip-hop, however, which he claims his crowds respond to, and he is planning this as his main set at Park End over the next two weeks. This is a far cry from his previous interest in groups such as Nirvana and Pearl Jam.
Balreick Srai, one of the Juice organisers from Worcester College, said they felt it was good to give as many students as possible the chance to become involved on the music scene, and that despite Oxford students' obsession with 'cheese', Gianni is one of a group of DJs across Oxford who can "play well and get a good crowd going".
Gianni was also keen to highlight the diversity of the music scene in the city, asserting that it was more "balanced" than people thought. He did confess to liking some cheese music, however, although said he would draw the line at listening to Abba.
24th May 2001