SOUTH NEWFANE — Can a concert create community? That's what some residents of a Vermont village struggling to keep its identity are putting to the test.
As part of an ongoing series of music events, the South Newfane Schoolhouse presents The Stevens Sperling Blues Project on Saturday, Feb. 23, at 7:30 p.m..
Consisting of Pat Stevens, Jason Sperling, Wyman Shonk, Rich Gillis, Dan DeWalt, Ron Kelley, and Pete Biolsi, this new ensemble promises an intimate night of blues.
The concert is a benefit to replace the floor in the former village schoolhouse. Admission is by donation. Supporters are urged to bring friends and refreshments.
DeWalt, who lives in South Newfane, is credited in rounding up talent for the musical series run by the South Newfane Community Association, a local volunteer organization.
Among the first things that group did was launch a Facebook page as a community bulletin board to connect South Newfane and Williamsville residents in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Irene.
It's now a hub for discussion among residents on a host of local issues.
According to Carol Ross, a South Newfane Community Association board member, the Schoolhouse “has had a revival ever since Irene devastated our town. The community has a desire to bring life back into the village.”
Ross says the Schoolhouse is a perfect, intimate space to hold small events and get-togethers.
“Since the flood, we've hosted a pop-up morning coffee cafe; Chris Petrak gave a birding talk; Carol Anne Fitzgerald is offering free community acupuncture sessions; the Rock River Artists turn the Schoolhouse into a beautiful exhibition space for their annual tour; and so far this winter Dan DeWalt has arranged for four music events,” Ross said.
DeWalt notes that, although he is not on that board, he does help book Schoolhouse events.
“We want to establish the South Newfane Schoolhouse as a great local music venue,” he said.
DeWalt characterizes efforts this year as “quite successful,” and points to a schedule of well-attended musical events and lectures as evidence.
Locally, the Schoolhouse is felt to be vital to South Newfane's identity, particularly after the recent loss of the town's general store and post office.
“It is the last remaining institution to proclaim our community identity, so we need to support and advertise it. We recently did get back our lost post office, but now it is in Williamsville, a couple of miles down the road. Some community members do envision getting together in the future to revitalize the general store, yet right now, the Schoolhouse is all we have,” DeWalt said.
“The concerts are great community events,” adds DeWalt. “The Schoolhouse provides a great venue for 25 or 30 people to share in an intimate setting for music. We pass around the hat at the concerts, and at the end of this season we may be able to clear nearly $1,000 for the building's revival.”
Ross said the generosity of the musicians has been outstanding.
“All the money raised goes towards a new floor for the Schoolhouse, which it desperately needs,” she says. “The musicians don't get paid. We've had some amazing talent up there and they play their hearts out for us. They are all incredibly generous.”
Jason Sperling, who is organizing the musical event, said he is excited to help the Schoolhouse project.
“Dan DeWalt ran the idea by me. It was easy to get musicians to join in, all but one of the six lives in a two- to three-mile radius of the Schoolhouse. It really is a local community happening.”
Sperling has played with all the musicians in this group at one time or another, but this is the first time all will perform together. Although they all play other types of music, each has a special commitment to performing the blues.
DeWalt says that concert promises to be very good.
“Sperling is a soulful guitarist who plays the blues deeply and nicely,” he says.
Although Sperling is now part of a reggae band, his emotional commitments are squarely with the blues.
“The blues were always my first love,” he says. “It was the music I grew up with. That was part of the 1980s and 1990s revival of the blues, but these days the blues is a little less in style. I used to be able to make money playing the blues every weekend, but that's not possible now.”
He originally styled his playing on white blues guitarists such as Eric Clapton, but he said he grew compelled to discover the original black roots of the blues.
“It is not all the easy to play the blues and sound convincing,” Sperling says. “If you're not careful, you start to sound like a bad imitation. It's important to get into the emotional direction of the blues, to find its 'cry.' The blues has a structure that is improvised from within. You could say that the blues is like jazz, but with different rhythms and less cords.”
Everyone in The Stevens Sperling Blues Project is an experienced blues player. However, Sperling points out, “Some are like me, who grew up and internalized that kind of music, while others are newer to it. But they bring a refreshing new approach to the genre.”
DeWalt says the upcoming concert will be interestingly multi-generational: “Pat Stevens, who plays bass and sings vocals, was a local kid who grew up with my daughter.”
Furthermore, Sperling was once Stevens' teacher at Leland & Gray, where he teaches social studies.
“Stevens is an excellent and versatile musician who now lives in the Boston area, and I think he is one of the finest musicians who has come across my way in the past 10 years. I do not claim credit for Pat's musical accomplishments, but I think he got into the blues because of me. We are eager to get together,” says Sperling.
The Schoolhouse is owned by the village of South Newfane. Ross says that anyone in the community can use it for an event or class, usually for free. It can also be rented out for private events at a nominal fee.