Reznet

Hitting the Right Notes

By Andi Murphy

DES MOINES, Iowa – Cheering from fans and the crack of the bat are not the only sounds you hear at an Iowa Cubs baseball game.

An assortment of music and sound effects "makes it a little more lively," said Destainey Warner, an employee at Principal Park.

At the end of each inning, alternative, techno, pop, rap and bluegrass music came from the speakers at the upper rim of the stadium.

Fans clapped in beat with Rednex's "Cotton-Eyed Joe" or Queen's "We will Rock You."

It's a "fun break when the team's not doing so good," said Darlene Dayton, a Cubs fan.

The music keeps everyone entertained and fills the silence between innings, said Kyle Oppenhuizen, 20, a team intern who attends Iowa State University.

Scott Sailor, director of logistics for the Cubs, said Oppenhuizen has up to 350 songs in the system and 250 to play for the audience.

Oppenhuizen was in charge of all music and sound for this game. He was settled in the third-floor press box, behind a laptop. A Soundcraft EQ board had cords going in and out with knobs and switches for treble, bass and more.

It might seem like a complicated job, but it's fairly simple for the interns who work in the press box because they had training before season, Oppenhuizen said. They take turns playing the music and at other media stations set up in the press box.

The players can request their own introduction song, which is played as they step up to bat, Oppenhuizen said.

Different songs that reflected what was going on during the game.

Unk's "Walk It Out" or Ray Charles' "Hit The Road Jack" played as visiting players struck out.

The "Kiss Cam" zoomed in on couples while Sixpence None The Richer's "Kiss Me" played to set the mood.

Everyone had fun during the playing of The Champs' "Tequila" while four members of a Little League team danced in a competition.

Organ music brought an old American feel to the game as well.

As the Little League team led the way, the audience sang in unison: "Because it's one, two, three strikes you're out at the old ball game."

Andi Murphy, Navajo, is a student at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces. A graduate of the Freedom Forum's 2007 American Indian Journalism Institute, Murphy interned as a reporter at The Daily Times in Farmington, N.M., and, last summer, at the Great Falls Tribune in Montana.