The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

Senior Center releases own music video

Senior+Center+releases+own+music+video

by Megan Sanchez
[email protected]

Brown is the new gold. At least, that’s the message members of the Family Folk Machine are trying to get across.

The intergenerational, non-auditioned music group released an original music video of the song “Brown Gold” this weekend. The video took more than a year to produce, film, and edit.

The video encourages composting — a process in which food and yard waste is turned into fertilizer for soil. The song refers to compost as brown-colored “gold.”

“[The song] kind of follows the cycle from seed, to plant, to human consumption, and then back to the ground through composting,” said Iowa City Senior Center community outreach specialist Emily Light.

Since January 2013, Jean Littlejohn has directed the choir. Her 9-year-old daughter, Claire Sauder, has been in the group since the beginning. She said, looking back, she can’t imagine how she never knew about compost before, and she was pleased to see such a big turnout at the choir’s music video release party Sept. 26.

“They’re all learning about compost and seeking to help the Earth,” she said. “The future generations — this is what it’s going to be. Whether we like it or not, whether it’s our fault or not, we’re going to have to be the ones to take action.”

The release party included a viewing of the video and a celebration in the park area outside the Chauncey Swan parking ramp. The celebration included educational materials about composting, compost-theme games, and a musical performance from the Family Folk Machine.

Brad Mowrey directed the video, and the song was professionally recorded by Luke Tweedy of Flatback Studios. The footage came largely from group performances, but they also got to get their hands dirty.

“We had some fun times where they were digging in gardens and just kind of doing outside stuff,” Light said. “We also thought it would be neat to have an educational component. We have a section of animation that just talks briefly about composting and the importance of that.”

Composting uses biodegradable items often put in the trash, like banana peels, eggshells, and even pet hair by putting them back into the earth to treat soil — as opposed to sending them to a landfill.

“It not only doesn’t do good, it does harm if compost is put in landfills because then it emits methane gas, which is a greenhouse gas, and it contributes to global warming,” Sauder said.

Light said she has seen many positive relationships form through the choir. She said interaction between kids and senior citizens benefits both generations.

“It really kind of gives them an opportunity to interact with people of different ages who they may not have relationships with or exposure otherwise,” she said. “It helps kind of like broaden the idea of what is a community and a family.”

Nine-year-old Nina Jakob was a part of the choir in 2013, then took a break in 2014. She is back in the group for 2015, but said after seeing the video, she really wishes she could have been a part of it. She said she hopes people who see the video learn something from it.

“We need to step up and take a stand to protect nature,” she said.

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