Category Archives: Music

Polka Rising / Our Leadership Lens

Posted on February 11, 2015 by Aprilart Studios

I love when a new generation grabs onto old traditions and swings them back into life. I love even more when they don’t grab it so hard that the older generations get left by the wayside. I was stoked, therefore, … Continue reading →

Posted in Building Community, Local Events, Music, People Who Inspire Me, Public Space | Tagged change, cleveland, complexity, culture, dance, grassroots, Grassroots Grantmakers, leadership, Ohio, polka, revival, tradition | 1 Comment

“Love the Life I’m Livin'”… Danny’s Meal

Posted on August 1, 2013 by Aprilart Studios

Last Friday, I attended an incredible dinner hosted by Danny Comacho, a natural roving listener in the Broadway neighborhood. The gathering underlined for me the power of hosting, and the importance of keeping hold of “mystery” as we practice community. This would … Continue reading →

Posted in Current Issues, Music, Neighborhoods, People Who Inspire Me | Leave a comment

Bee Ridge Park Jam: 15 years of bluegrass, country and gospel

Posted on August 12, 2012 by April

[Originally published in This Week in Sarasota] Last Thursday gave me an opportunity to do two cool things: Fulfill a pledge made two months ago to visit and report on one local open mic per month, then report back on its … Continue reading →

Posted in Building Community, Local Events, Music, Public Space, Published Articles | Tagged April Doner, bee ridge, bluegrass, community, country, florida, gospel, hospitality, inclusion, local, music, music jam, musicians, neighborhoods, open mic, roving, sarasota, Southwest Florida, sustainability | Leave a comment

Dial Tone defies Debby: a sensory recap

Posted on July 2, 2012 by April

Originally published in This Week in Sarasota In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve become a somewhat obsessive fan of the unique local project The End of the Dial Tone Radical Experimental Collaborative Music Band Band. It’s pretty serious — … Continue reading →

Posted in Being an Artist, Building Community, Local Events, Music, Published Articles, Stories Behind Artwork | Tagged April Doner, art, artists, collaboration, community, dance, end of the dial tone, eric de barros, experimentation, florida, Hunter Slade, improvisation, jake's tavern, john lichtenstein, Kari Bunker, live art, local, lois betterton, matt gunter, mike murphy, music, musicians, painting, performance, photography, poetry, radical, sarasota, scene, scott braun, Sishir Bommakanti, this week in sarasota, van jazmin, writing, zachariah skylab | Leave a comment

Circling back: A year of Dial Tones

Posted on May 31, 2012 by April

Originally published in This Week in Sarasota When I heard that this month’s End of the Dial Tone would take place upstairs at the Gator Club, I got a particular kind of excited. Aside from the fact that the antique … Continue reading →

Posted in Being an Artist, Building Community, Local Events, Music, People Who Inspire Me, Published Articles | Leave a comment

Authentic Florida Brilliance: How Ben Prestage rocked my world

Posted on February 12, 2012 by April

I have long grappled with whether I’m an actual fan of blues, honky-tonk and bluegrass. Upon hearing one of the best musicians I’ve heard live in Sarasota last weekend — Mr. Ben Prestage, “One Man Band,” who happens to excel … Continue reading →

Posted in Local Events, Music, People Who Inspire Me | Tagged April Doner, authenticity, Ben Prestage, blues, da Lee Woodman, discovery, florida, folk, music, native, sarasota, Sarasota Music Scene, St. Pete | Leave a comment