Notes from the Road – Folk Alliance Midwest, Day 2
Ok, so the weathermen in Chicago are no better than those in Orlando. The rain kept up throughout the day Friday. But, it really doesn’t matter as I’ve been indoors all day anyway. Friday started off with a leisurely breakfast in the room with Judy as the first workshops at 9:30 weren’t of pressing interest to me (mostly just general peer group discussions). So, after coffee and room service I finally got dress and headed down for the 11:00 a.m. House Concert workshop / discussion with Fran Snyder.
All artists agree that house concerts are the future for folk, acoustic and singer / songwriter music. And, all presenters and audience members who have been exposed to house concerts agree that it is the best way to hear the music. However, all report falling attendance numbers at shows and all have frustration about how to turn that tide. Though the economy may certainly be a factor, most presenters in the discussion did not feel like money is the issue, though for some acts the difference between an artist donation of $15 and $12 might increase the audience by 10% or 15%, which in most cases is a wash on the door receipts, but increases the number of folks hearing the music and possibly joining the mailing list and / or buying CD’s. The challenge, most everyone agrees, is continuing to motivate people to leave their cocoons of computers, flat screen TV’s, and other life demands competing for their time to hear live acoustic music. Clearly the quality of music and settings are there, but the trick is to get the core group “reinvested” in supporting the series.’ While no clear answers or solutions were offered in the short time of the discussion, it was comforting (I suppose) to know that folk clubs, long standing house concerts and high caliber artists in all parts of the country are experiencing the same trends and struggles. We in Florida are not alone. Without exception, all the artists who spoke up said they would still rather play for a small crowd of 15 – 30 at a house concert than rely on the venues to provide a platform for their material. So, all you presenters and potential presenters out there, take heart! Let’s keep on keepin’ on and work together to find creative ways to grow our audiences.
Judy spent the day out with friends we have here in Chicago, so I took some time midday back in the room to rehearse and plan for my showcase. Short presentations like this are much more difficult than full shows. You have only a four or five song window to capture and hold your audience. It only takes one misstep in the performance (whether it be choice of material, manner of presentation or quality of performance) to lose a substantial sector of your audience with no time to win them back. I settled on a four song set (giving myself time for my stage patter and stories that are an essential part of my show) of (1) Do You (uplifting, upbeat, positive message) (2) Yellow Butter Moon (good story, catchy tune, fun lyrics) (3) Hemingway’s Hurricane (another good story, powerful message and driving rhythm) and (4) This Old House (nice melody and heart warming sentiment).
In all of this activity I kind of (not kind of, actually) skipped lunch. Figured I’d eat a very early dinner so I’d have no issues singing by show time. So I attended another workshop and networked with the radio DJ’s, presenters and artists I ran into in the hallways. Time well spent. As always, my homemade Chex Mix (actually made this time by my daughter Jessi under my direction) is a hit and folks are scarfing bag after bag. I’m thinking of calling it “Cracker Crunchies” for future events – what do you think?
The Midwest is a good region for my music – something Jack Williams told me a while ago. While the material is Florida based, the stories, messages and emotions are universal and seem to strike home particularly well here. I’m looking forward to getting to tour up in this part of the country and am having some good discussions about that with presenters and local artists that are the key to making that happen.
I cut out at 5 pm to go get some dinner. I was starved so I selected a homestyle buffet close by and, as you might guess, having skipped lunch, over ate. So bloated with mashed potatoes and roasted chicken (plus some apple cobbler and ice cream) I waddled back to the conference center to shower and prepare for the evening. BURP!!
The keynote speaker for the conference was Claudia Schmidt. If you’re not familiar with Claudia, you should be. More than three decades as a touring professional have found her traversing North America as well as Europe in venues ranging from intimate clubs to 4,000 seat theatres, and festival stages in front of 25,000 rapt listeners. She is familiar with the mediums of radio and TV, including regular stints on Public Radio International's "A Prairie Home Companion" in its early incarnation, and starring in an hour-long documentary called "I Sing Because I Can't Fly," produced by KTCA TV in St. Paul. She participated in the delightful Les Blank movie "Gap-Toothed Women," contributing a song as well as an interview. She wrote an award-winning score and performed in the Goodman Theatre's 1992 Chicago production of Brecht's "Good Person of Szechuan." In 2006 & 2007 she has been a lead performer along with Ruth McKenzie and Prudence Johnson in “The Gales of November.” The “Gales” is a musical retelling of the Edmund Fitzgerald tragedy from the point of view of three wives of the doomed crew of the Great Lakes ore-carrier. Her music has also recently appeared in the documentary, “Motherhood Manifesto” produced by John DeGraaf and the folks at moveon.org. She has recorded fourteen albums of mostly original songs, exploring folk, blues, and jazz idioms featuring her acclaimed12 string guitar and mountain dulcimer playing. Check her out at http://claudiaschmidt.homestead.com.
Anyway, her keynote address was TERRIFIC. Claudia has a delightful, wicked and stealthy sense of humor which she uses to great effect in conveying her message which was the role of the folk community in service and keeping the spirit of roots music alive and thriving. She wistfully recalled her early days in folk music when artists seemed less competitive and so much of what we do now wasn’t driven by technology. She urged less of a sense of the individual and a return to the sense of community that makes this music so powerful (preaching to the choir, of course, at a gathering like this). Bemoaning the technology of all of the “i” products she pointed out that when they finally came out with something called “We” they spelled it “Wii”, again missing the point! I thoroughly enjoyed her presentation!
Showtime. My plan was executed to great effect and response! Other than the fact that the mounds of mashed potatoes and chicken, even 3 ½ hours later, made it a little hard to hit and maintain the long high notes in “Do you”, the showcase set went exceptionally well and I was complemented throughout the remainder of the evening by presenters, DJ’s and artists alike. With the pressure off I was now free to sit, imbibe and listen to the other showcase artists that followed. I didn’t hear everyone (those that came before me) but I have to say the caliber of performance was exceptional. Debra Cowan was a standout presenting traditional tunes, some accapella, with tremendous power and presence.
After the showcases folks started to gravitate towards separate rooms for song circles and jams and I settled into one to enjoy the camaraderie. In my particular circle Rich Baumann was the “everyman” playing fiddle behind many who shared a song, including a wonderful job backing me on “It Must Be You.” Steve Jerrett played some great 12 string guitar on two of his originals which, not remembering the titles, I’ll call “The Billy Goat” song and the “Grandpa” song, both wonderful tunes. Anne Capps played a beautiful love song and commented how much she missed her husband and music partner, Rod, who couldn’t be there. A duo, Beaucoup Shakti (Sharon Bousquet and Heather Collmer, from Fairfield, Iowa were also particularly powerful. Maggie Ferguson put us all in stitches with a hilarious Halloween tune “Bats.” And, in the midst of it all, Ryan Baddour of The Flipside video taped various messages of information and advice from us for his daughter Nikki and Sasha who are just learning guitar and the craft of music. My advice, “don’t trust boys who play guitar and play what makes you happy, not what you think will make someone else happy.”
Totally exhausted I stumbled upstairs at abut 2:30 a.m. Saturday – back to the networking, etc.!!
Doug
"It's not how far you've come, it's what you've done with the miles"
Doug Spears
36 Interlaken Road
Orlando, Florida 32804
407-257-4242
dcsnole@yahoo.com
www.dougspearsmusic.com
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