Make Music Day Festival on June 21st Brings Showcase to Fletcher Free Library
Diverse Musicians Support Literacy, Community and Diversity
This coming June 21st on Make Music Day, an all day “Across the ZOO-niverse” festival will be making noise in the main room at Fletcher Free Library in downtown Burlington. The event will host a remarkably diverse line-up of Vermont Musicians. They are coming together to celebrate inclusiveness and the vital role libraries play in nurturing an open society, a vibrant and democratic community, while protecting the common good and freedom of speech.
“This extended live music showcase of artists from across the state is diverse in genre, gender, age, and culture, explained James Lockridge, co-instigator of the event and executive director at Big Heavy World. We want to highlight literacy, mindfulness and respect - and the intensity with which Vermonters love our libraries where all these values are cherished and celebrated daily."
The event’s distinct line-up was corralled by co-producer Senayit, who is also one of the day’s featured artists. “Musically, culturally, and creatively, Vermont is home to an increasingly diverse and vibrant music scene,” she explained. “In the many years I have been performing in and producing shows, I have also witnessed the shift and evolution in artists who use their platform for activism and community work. This brings a depth and purpose that has been missing in the mainstream for too long.”
The bands and artists featured are social-political, live-looping Violinist Emma Back; nationwide-touring singer songwriter and activist Hunter Paye; funky indie rock quartet Beards and Glasses; award-winning fringe protest band David Rosane & the Zookeepers; stellar multi-instrumentalist and activist Sara Grace and the powerful literary and artistic voice of Senayit.
Of equal importance to planning for, celebrating and advocating for community with this event is the choice of the date, June 21st , which is also Make Music Day, a growing worldwide phenomenon now celebrated in 120 countries across the planet. Make Music Day began in France in 1982 and inspires free community celebrations of music in more than 800 cities around the world. Volunteer-staffed local music champions Big Heavy World brought Make Music Day to Vermont, the first statewide participant in the international festival. For more information about Make Music Day, visit bigheavyworld.com/makemusic.
“We've coordinated Make Music Day in our town [of Bradford, Vermont] for the past couple of years, explained Jennifer Grossi, of The Zookeepers, and it's been so great to witness people get excited about the fact that music is for everyone to make. Our culture has this false idea about music and many other things that they're only for the "talented" or the "experts" to engage in. Not true! We become experts and hone our skills through the engagement itself. That's why Make Music Day fits so well with this event and our current library awareness campaign -- where better to deeply engage with any subject than a library?"
Jenn’s band, David Rosane and the Zookeepers, are book-worms at heart and they tour summers to raise funds and awareness of the vital role, often overlooked, that public libraries play in our lives. This Fletcher Free Library event marks the kick-off to the 2019 edition of their "Across the ZOO-niverse Vermont library benefit tour" that will play in 15 other towns throughout the summer.
The band has their work cut out for them, with Vermont famously harboring the highest density of libraries per capita in the country.
Live performances are scheduled 1pm-7pm and the event is free and all-ages. The Fletcher Free Library is located at 235 College Street in Burlington and is wheelchair accessible. For more information about the library, visit fletcherfree.org.
The Burlington show has received the sponsorship of City Market Coop, Advance Music, The Vermont Department of Libraries, Fletcher Free Library and more.
The artists:
Senayit: Singer-songwriter/pop-rock/neo-soul. Senayit’s intuitive musicianship allows for a freedom of movement and expression indicative of jazz players, yet this is contemporary alternative rock and soul-based music which grounds itself in the influences of Radiohead, Florence and the Machine, Lana Del Rey, The Black Keys and formidable elders such as Led Zeppelin. http://senayit.com/
Beard & Glasses: Indie rock quartet featuring Matt Scott and Sam Clement of the Nektones. Bennington band delivers a subtle melange of warm engaging melodies and killer lyrics, with fearlessly graceful nods to Stevie Wonder, Martin Sexton, Prince, D'angelo, and Steely Dan. https://beardandglasses.bandcamp.com/
David Rosane & The Zookeepers: Fringe Protest Rock. The Zookeepers are an original, award- winning rock band that defies categorization. Last summer their library tour debuted in 14 towns raising $5k for literacy and community programs. After retooling outreach and under-writing for 2019 they aim to raise $10k and are scheduled in 16 Vermont towns this summer with an eye toward the future. “The Zookeepers’ Library Tour has attracted state-wide media coverage about the vital role of rural libraries defending democracy and free speech as well as their evolving relevance in today’s changing world.” — Charen Fegard, Vermont State Representative. http://www.davidandthezoo.bandcamp.com
Emma Back: Avant-Folk singer-violinist. Eastern-European influence. Emma uses a loop pedal to create lush layers of rhythm and harmony, accomplishing a sonic and poetic lyricism that reaches deep into the past and far into the future simultaneously. With lyric content that investigates how to heal personal and global conflict, “(Back’s) charming sensibilities, excellent structuring and arranging, as well as her ability to confound emotionally will likely bring listeners back for repeat encounters.” (Jordan Adams, Seven Days VT). http://emmabackmusic.com
Hunter Paye: Singer-songwriter/ americana-soul. Masterfully-crafted songs as diverse as his travels with engaging vocals and top-shelf lyrics. One of Vermont’s finest singer-songwriters, Hunter has toured the country many times, opened for Train and countless others, and releases his 5th studio album ‘Arrows In Orbit’ in the Spring of 2019. www.hunterpaye.bandcamp.com/
Sara Grace: Singer-songwriter/soul-folk. “Honest, emotive and blessed with a sly, biting wit, Sara Grace is among central Vermont’s best-kept secrets.” — Dan Bolles, Seven Days. “Her percussive guitar style and funky arrangements, along with a charismatic stage presence and soulful vocal delivery make Sara Grace a force to be reckoned with.” — Ed Dufrense, Times Argus. http://www.saragrace.bandcamp.com/
For more information contact David Rosane, davidrosane@gmail.com
or Senayit Tomlinson senayitt@gmail.com