On Saturday, December 11 at 7:30pm, the Binghamton Philharmonic Orchestra will continue its 2021-2022 Season with “Home for the Holidays,” a concert of symphonic holiday favorites, including The Polar Express, selections from Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite, and Festive Sounds of Hanukkah.
Jazz singer Ayana Del Valle will perform holiday classics, including “O Holy Night,” “The Christmas Song” and “Feliz Navidad,” and lead the audience in a Christmas sing-along. Santa and Mrs. Claus will be available for photos at 6:30pm in the lobby, and Nancy Wildoner will perform a pre-concert holiday organ recital at 7:00pm.
The Binghamton Philharmonic is a professional orchestra tracing its roots to 1949, when Fritz and Marie Wallenberg started a chamber orchestra in Binghamton. The Wallenberg family founded the Binghamton Symphony in 1955, and later merging with the BC Pops in 1996, to form the Binghamton Philharmonic. With a dedication to providing the Southern Tier with performances of live music by artists and making great music accessible to all through innovative, The Binghamton Philharmonic offers engaging and affordable programming within and beyond the concert hall.
The schedule for Binghamton Philharmonic “Home for the Holidays” on Saturday, December 11 includes:
6:30-7:30pm: Photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus
7-7:20pm: Organist Nancy Wildoner plays the Robert Morton IV/24 Theatre Pipe Organ
7:30pm: Home for the Holidays concert, starring Ayana Del Valle
The performance is located at the Broome County Forum Theatre, 236 Washington St. For more information visit the Philharmonic’s website.
NEO Project crushed their set at The Upstairs on Friday, October 22 in Ithaca. NEO Project is a professional six piece, high energy dance band rooted in funky R&B grooves, Afro Cuban/Caribbean rhythms & jazzy, bluesy soul music. The members are music professors, a former Motown sideman and soul practitioners with years of experience.
Their eclectic repertoire will get you body movin’ with new arrangements of established hits and irresistible original party grooves. NEO Project reimagines some of the best funk, jazz and soul music out there, always delivering a powerful dose of deep pocket grooves supporting soulful melodies & juicy improvisation.
This band grooves hard as they weave irresistible R&B rhythms around Afro-Cuban & world beat syncopations. And they do it all on their toes as they re-shape their arrangements on the fly, vibing off the energy of their audiences.
Friday at the Upstairs NEO Project laid down the energy of the ’90s New York club culture. They covered “Groove is in the Heart” by Deee-Lite. The song came from a fan letter Deee-Lite sent with a demo to Bootsy Collins. The original track featured Bootsy Collins on bass, Maceo Parker on saxophone, and Fred Wesley on trombone, as well as a young Q Tip on backing vocals. The song made its way to the 1990 scene as a radio hit.
Drummer Adam Deitch from the funk band Lettuce told NYS Music this summer a similar experience with Bootsy Collins. Bootsy’s Instagram story featured a clip of him snapping his fingers whispering “keep that funk alive…keep that funk alive.” This inspired Deitch to sample the message. From here he immediately laid down a drum beat to Bootsy’s vocal tempo. The rest of Lettuce got in on the session and it was sent to Bootsy’s camp. He replied with delight and his signature bass line & vocals to boot that finished the collaboration.
NEO Project stands on the same “Shaky Ground” as many other live New York performances. When Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead played Syracuse Landmark Theater in November 2018, his wolf pack trio covered “Standing on Shaky Ground” by The Temptations which is co written by Eddie Hazel of Funkadelic, “ever since you put me down.”
When Tony Hall of legendary New Orleans band Dumpstaphunk played the 2019 New York State Blues festival he made his way to Funk N Waffles after the performance. Tony and Drummer Deven Trusclair were able to to sit in with the house band for “Shaky Ground” as well. NEO Project brought the same energy with their take on the classic throwing some Stevie Wonder Halloween Superstition spirit at the end.
The NEO Project kept the audience on the same beat, all stopping on the 1 and ending on time to close the show Friday. The Upstairs crowd all fell in line like Thriller.
NEO Project Touring Act: Elly Holiday: Vocals, Jimbo – lead vocals, Prof. John White – keyboards & vocals, Franklin Henry Jr. – 5 string electric bass, Mike McCoy – drums, Dwight Carroll – guitar & vocals,
NEO Project – The Upstairs Venue, Ithaca, NY – October 22, 2021
10:30pm
Gentle Thoughts/Lovely Day 106 G Ji Dw/El Herbie Hancock /Bill Withers
I Was Made To Love Her 076 Db El/Ji Dw Stevie Wonder
Come Together 090 C- Ji/El Dw The Beatles
Tennessee Whiskey 067 A/C Ji/El Chris Stapleton
Stir It Up/3 Lil’ Birds/Bend Low 176 A Dw/Ji El Bob Marley
Make Me Feel 115 E El Ji/Dw Janelle Monae
Fire 124 A Ji/El Bruce Springsteen, Des’ree
Higher Ground 127 E El Stevie Wonder
11:30pm
Brown Eyed Girl 152 Ab Ji Van Morrison
Valerie 106 Eb El Amy Winehouse
Ain’t Too Proud To Beg 115 Bb Ji The Temptations
Crazy In Love 095 F El Ji Beyonce
Seven Nation Army 112 E Ji Jack White
Groove Is In The Heart 121 G El Deee-Lite
I Got You (I Feel Good) JB 144 Bb James Brown
Uptown Funk 115 D- El Ji/Dw Bruno Mars
12:25am
Addams Family Theme 126 Bb Ji All
Killing Me Softly With His Song 093 E- El The Fugees
Shaky Ground/Superstition 094 E Ji/El Temptations/Stevie Wonder
It’s been almost two years without any live music and some venues were being forced to close their doors for good. Fortunately, there have been new ones opening up. In Horseheads, NY, located in Chemung County, a new venue has arisen called The L, and its owner, Adam Bunce who is the organizer of iMatter Festival on September 16th, kicked off a show that did just that. It was only fitting to bring August Burns Red Leveler 10 year anniversary tour to be the first act, they were accompanied by Fit For A King, Erra, and Like Moths To Flame.
This new space has the capacity to fit 300, 500, and 1000 attendees in different rooms, and while this show wasn’t a sell out, attendance was definitely high. The show kicked off with Like Moths To Flames, followed by Erra, Fit For A King, then with heavy hitting August Burns Red.
With an owner who is used to running a festival with more bands and way more attendees, everything felt smooth, from the time you parked, till the last band, and even the food from the cafe was reasonably priced.
The night seemed like a huge success and they already have a line of shows announced. Head over and see what they have in store.
Nine musical performing artists and bands will be playing live in Elmira, New York at the Brand Park 2021 Summer Concert Series.
Come and join the Brand Park Beautification Committee in Brand Park from 3 to 5 PM every Sunday through the end of August. Don’t forget your lawn chair and enjoy the live music (the concert will be handicap accessible). The Dean Goble Band and Classic Too have already made their debut for the series earlier this month. However, seven more groups are set to perform: Loren V. & The Heart Beats, Blue Eyed Soul, Detour, Aunt Millie’s Biscuits, White River Band, Sgro Brothers, and Doc Cavallaro and the Doc Possum Band. View the announcement visual with exact dates and times at the end of this page.
Brand Park
For more information on the Elmira 2021 Summer Concert Series, future events and gatherings, or just the park itself, visit the Brand Park Beautification website and check out their Events Schedule. Also note, because of restrictions due to COVID-19, attendees are required to wear masks, practice social distancing, and follow all instructions from volunteers.
Also, be sure to visit the upcoming performers’ Facebook pages and websites below:
The Grateful Dead played their one and only show in Alfred, New York, 51 years ago today. After gigs at their usual stomping grounds like the Fillmore West and the Family Dog in San Francisco the previous month, May 1970 kicked off with the Dead going to school, playing this evening at Alfred College and the following night at Harpur College in Binghamton. These legendary performances serve as the first known “An Evening With The Grateful Dead” shows, where the band would be joined by others and play interlocking sets.
Their friends in New Riders of the Purple Sage would join the Grateful Dead at Alfred College this evening, and the following night, playing a joint opening acoustic set, before a set of their own music, with a set of electric Dead wrapping things up. It can be argued that this helped lay the groundwork of the formation of a traditional Grateful Dead show: an opening set with more acoustic, straightforward tunes before a set of heavy improvisational numbers.
The show starts off with an acoustic “Deep Elem Blues” with guitarist Jerry Garcia on lead vocals. The harmonies are certainly a little richer on this one, thanks to the additional backing support from their friends in New Riders. In an interview later this year, Garcia would explain this brand new format and the kind of live show it created.
What we’ve been doing in the States lately is having like ‘an evening with the Grateful Dead.’ We start off with acoustic music with Bobby and I playing guitars, light drums and very quiet electric bass. Pigpen plays the organ. Then we have a band we’ve been travelling with, The New Riders of the Purple Sage, where I play pedal steel, not guitar, Mickey plays drums, and three of our friends from the coast, musicians that we’ve known for a long time, are fronting the band. So we start off with acoustic music and then The New Riders of the Purple Sage — it’s like very snappy electric country-rock; it’s kinda hard to describe — and then we come on with the electric Dead, so it keeps us all really interesting, and it’s six hours of this whole development thing. By the end of the night it’s very high.
Jerry Garcia, 5/24/70
After “Elem,” a traditional blues cover the band recently re-adopted after playing once in 1966, the opening set carries on with a unique version of “I Know You Rider.” This one is played at a super slow, folksy tempo compared to the traditional Dead version of later years and features an additional verse with the lyrics: I’d rather drink muddy water / Than sleep in a hollow log.” Definitely not your customary “Rider.” Following this, fellow guitarist Bob Weir promises the rapt Alfred College crowd a song about “simian creatures behind the wheel” and the band delivers a quick take of “Monkey And The Engineer.” At its conclusion, Garcia does not cease strumming and quickly leads the group into a flawlessly acoustic “Candyman.”
At its conclusion, Garcia beckons their friends David Nelson and John “Marmaduke” Dawson from NRPS to join them on stage. They make their collective presence immediately felt with a super-harmonized take on “Me And My Uncle.” This alt-country tune about gambling and betrayal sits square in the Riders’ musical wheelhouse and their presence make this one a truly pleasant version. The same can be said of the “Mama Tried” that comes next.
“Cumberland Blues,” a Dead tune that lends itself perfectly to vocal harmonies, goes off without a hitch next, with all guitars (and voices) on stage very much in synch. Nelson and “Marmaduke” stay on stage for the rest of the opening acoustic set and later contribute to a cover of The Everly Brothers’ “Wake Up Little Susie” which is succeeded by “New Speedway Boogie.” It’s only the tenth ever version of this Dead original penned by Garcia and famed lyricist Robert Hunter and the first ever on the East Coast. It’s a version so tight that it has Garcia and a least one other audibly “whooing” in delight mid-song.
The incredible musicianship and harmonies that serve as this opening act comes to a close with “Cold Jordan,” another traditional cover with hymnal-like lyrics that the Dead and NRPS would play together this year. And then a pristine take of “Uncle John’s Band,” replete with three-part harmonies. While it may not have all the accolades of the following night’s acoustic set at Harpur College in Binghamton, it’s beautiful in its own right and certainly merits a listen.
At its conclusion, Garcia states they’ll be back later with their “electric” stuff and preps the crowd for an incoming Pigpen performance. To start this last portion of the evening, “Not Fade Away” is the selection, done in traditional Grateful Dead-style. Garcia fires off a bevy of emotional guitar riffs and the double drumming tandem of Hart and Bill Kreutzmann only add to the power this one generates. Then, as promised, Pigpen takes center stage and lends his signature vocal prowess and swagger on a cover of Otis Redding’s “Hard To Handle.”
For a listen to this classic acoustic set and the opening two “electric” numbers check out the video below or go here.
The Grateful Dead close out the Alfred College gig with an absolutely ferocious “The Other One,” that’s sandwiched by “Cryptical Envelopment” on both sides, quite commonplace during this era. Bassist Phil Lesh finally gets a chance to let loose and explore the fret board, leading the band through this high octane, psychedelic sequence. The latter half of “Envelopment” gets particularly spacy and intricate at parts.
“High Time” gives Garcia one last chance to sing lead, justifiably slowing things down significantly from the improvisational madness that preceded it. Pigpen then sends the crowd home on a high note, ripping through another R&B-infused cover, this time Bobby Bland’s “Turn On Your Lovelight.” It serves as a more than fitting final number for a show that may have subconsciously helped shape the way live Grateful Dead shows are formatted for years to come.
Grateful Dead – Alfred College, Alfred, NY – May 1, 1970
Set 1: Deep Elem Blues, I Know You Rider, Monkey and the Engineer -> Candyman, Me And My Uncle, Mama Tried, Cumberland Blues, The Race Is On, Wake Up Little Susie, New Speedway Boogie, Cold Jordan Uncle John’s Band
Set 2: Not Fade Away, Hard To Handle, Cryptical Envelopment ->Drums -> The Other One ->Cryptical Envelopment, High Time, Turn On Your Lovelight
The music is starting to return… LonCon, a two-day music event to be held in the Southern Tier of New York’s scenic Catskills will feature national touring acts at the legendary Arrowhead Ranch over August 27-28, 2021.
In 1991, music producer Bill Graham brought a vision to Arrowhead Ranch, making the summer of 199 legendary, with acts including Phish, The Band, Richie Havens, Billy Preston, Hot Tuna, Blues Traveler, Widespread Panic, and many more. 30 years later, LonCon will hold its inaugural weekend at the historic venue over Friday August 27 and Saturday August 28, 2021.
“The event is going to be so humbling to all three of us in Baked Shrimp. Being younger and going to outdoor music concerts in the mountains has been something we’ve all been doing for much of our lives, and we’ve always dreamed that one day Baked Shrimp would do something similar and keep it going for years to come. Now that we can finally announce that we’re helping put together what will be a beautiful two-day event at such a historic venue, it’s really a dream come true. The lineup is also filled with artists who we have looked up to over the years, so we are unbelievably excited to share the stage with them.”
Jared Cowen, Baked Shrimp
Cowen also shared his thoughts on putting the event together in honor of Lon Conscious.
“The Live for Lon stream was so humbling in it’s own way. Where we’re at in the world is something no one could really prepare for. When Lon left us, we had to think of a way despite these hectic times to honor his incredible legacy and spirit. The stream was the best way we could have thought to do this. The night had a true sense of community, like we were all together, Baked Shrimp, our fans, family, friends, and so many of Lon’s hundreds of friends who he meant so much to. The performers were incredible, and we were able to raise over $2,700 for a really great cause, the White Light Foundation. The stream was our way to honor Lon, to reminisce, to laugh, to cry, and everything in-between. LonCon is our way to continue the Lon Gellman legacy. LonCon is how we will make sure Lon is always remembered, and we’re brainstorming things to include over the course of the two days and hopefully make traditions.”
Jared Cowen, Baked Shrimp
Health and safety are the number one priority for attendees at LonCon. Promoters are dedicated to ensuring all proper COVID-19 restrictions in New York State that are in place at the time of the event are followed.
