‘Tiny’ Museum of Vermont Music History Opens during Art Hop 9/10

Photo above of fiddle purchased and played by Pete Sutherland in the 1970s. Download in high resolution.

BURLINGTON, VT August 30, 2021: A new ‘tiny’ museum of Vermont’s music history will open during the evening of September 10 inside the Big Heavy World headquarters on the corner of Pine and Howard Streets in Burlington, Vermont. The opening is one of many community events comprising the South End Art Hop, a weekend-long celebration of the arts in Burlington’s South End Arts District. The museum’s open hours during Art Hop will be 5-10pm on Friday, September 10 and 10am-10pm on Saturday, September 11. Following the opening event, the museum will be open weekly on Wednesdays 6-8pm and hours will expand as docents are scheduled. Big Heavy World is located at 4 Howard Street, #A-8.

The volunteers of Big Heavy World — an independent nonprofit organization that archives and promotes music from Vermont — expanded a 2019 exhibit they curated for the Local History Gallery of the Vermont Historical Society Museum in Montpelier. That exhibit — ‘Vermont Music Far & Wide’ — was honored with the 2019 League of Local Historical Societies & Museums Award of Excellence in Exhibitions/Public Programs. The VHS Museum curation experience provided the inspiration to create an entire tiny museum, a labor of love and community collaboration as it developed over the past two years.

Highlights of the eclectic museum collection include a very recognizable handcrafted table and embroidered staff jacket from Club Toast (1993-1998); a fiddle played for several decades by Pete Sutherland; and the 1974 Selmer Mark VI saxophone of Big Joe Burrell, with the beloved and legendary bluesman’s name engraved in the instrument’s bell. The saxophone purchase and exhibit was made possible by generous gifts from Todd R. Lockwood and the Burlington Racial Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Office. Many other artifacts fill the museum space within the big red historic 1902 E.B. & A.C. Whiting Brush Fibre Company industrial building that’s now known as The Howard Space and occupied by various creative industries. The museum is found inside Big Heavy World, where a Vermont music archive of ~5,000 recordings and 105.9FM The Radiator, the low-power community radio station are also located.

Above; Artist list, menu, and tickets from Hunt's. Photo by Luke Awtry Photography. Download in high resolution.

James Lockridge, Big Heavy World Executive Director, said, “The tiny museum is curated to show examples of how music contributes to Vermont’s character and uniqueness. It reflects how music is an art form, a catalyst for community-building, and also a contributor to the state’s economy. People are — and have been — making music of all kinds across the state, deserving to be heard and celebrated. Their passion for music gives Vermont depth that can only begin to be explored in the Tiny Museum.”

Many other cultural heritage institutions helped make the new tiny museum possible. The Vermont Folklife Center, The Fleming Museum, and Isle La Motte Historical Society contributed museum display stands and cases. Funding for exhibits was provided by The Vermont Humanities Council; Vermont Community Foundation; the Lake Champlain Basin Program and Champlain Valley National Heritage Partnership. Mascoma Bank contributed to the cost of manufacturing acrylic vitrines for display stands. Artifacts were donated, discounted, or loaned by many individuals and organizations, including Justin Wygmans; Dr. Leon Burrell; Brian Mital and Nectar’s; Bryan Blanchette; Vermont Community Access Media (VCAM); Eva Sollberger and Seven Days; Creston Lea; Andy Kolovos and Robert Hooker of the Vermont Folklife Center; Pete Gershon; Chico Lager; Pete Sutherland; Christina Hamilton of Code for BTV; Justin Crowther of Burlington Record Plant; Kyle Thompson; Burlington Code Academy; Billy Bratcher of the Starline Rhythm Boys; Janice Hanson; Cherie Marshall; Justin Monahan; Will Clavelle and Neale Lunderville of the Burlington Community & Economic Development Office and more. Big Heavy World sends special thanks for consulting and encouragement to Eileen Corcoran of the Vermont Historical Society; Janie Cohen and Margaret Tamulonis of the Fleming Museum; Chuck Eller; and Don Stevens, Chief of the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk Abenaki Nation.

Above: 1952 Interior of an E.B. & A.C. Whiting Brush Fibre Company building at the site of the new tiny museum. Photo courtesy James Unsworth. Download in high resolution.

In 2022 the museum will be ‘virtualized’ so that visitors can explore inside it via the internet. In 2022 a traveling Big Joe Burrell exhibit will be created and special emphasis will be brought to representing artists from the state’s many regions and Vermont’s women and LGBTQIA musical artists. A curation and development committee is being formed to include the wisdom of Vermonters in the guidance of curation and the museum’s future; those interested in participating are invited to email info@bigheavyworld.com. Contributions of support are welcome via PayPal at bigheavyworld.com.

Big Heavy World is an independent nonprofit music development office established to archive and promote the original music of Vermont. With a crew of volunteers it publishes information about Vermont’s music industry, archives thousands of Vermont-made recordings, photographs and artifacts, and operates 105.9FM, a radio station highlighting the region’s creative community. It hosts the weekly ‘Rocket Shop’ local music radio hour and podcast that has featured ~700 Vermont-based artists. In 2020 Big Heavy World was recognized as ‘Best Global Music Office’ by an international Music Cities jury. The organization is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2021.