The Music Will Not Be Muted, Part 2

By Bryon Knight, Special to the Neighb News

Last week I corresponded with seven local and regional musicians, and I shared their views on the impact that COVID-19 has had on them during this quarantine. This week I’ll tell you how these seven performers are coping with the virus, the lack of work and…quarantine.

As a group, musicians are a pretty resilient bunch. Maybe it’s because we have a built-in outlet for our emotions. I’ve been with these folks on a daily basis, all of my life, and I’ve found that most in the musical world are kinder and more empathetic toward their fellow humans.

It’s apparent that music in­dus­try veteran, Dave Charnley, cares deeply for his fellow humans: “For the most local musicians, playing gigs is a way to make a little extra money. I really sympathize with workers at the clubs and restaurants. This is their livelihood. Try to support places that supported you by buying takeout food from them,” said Dave. “I really miss the social interaction with all my friends in the clubs. I’m spending my time playing golf, when the weather is good… Getting my fishing gear together… Yard work… Taking a break from guitar for a while… and… avoiding people.” But when it comes to missing the music, Dave quoted Reggae “Wailer,” Peter Tosh: “You’ll never miss your water ’till your well runs dry”.

Johnny Barnes and the NightCrawlers have performed throughout New England and beyond. When asked about what he and his band are doing until the next performance, Barnes was…pragmatic: “I wish we could rehearse, but the NightCrawlers have a 30-song list to practice at home and hope everyone remains safe and does their part to stop the spread of this super-virus.” I have, recently, spotted him peering into my closed shop… longingly…

Ever the optimist, Giuliana Amaral, 18 year old Lead singer and bassist for a Led Zeppelin tribute group called “Band Inc.”, is quite positive. Like many her age, Giuliana has turned to tech­nology: “A big shout out to all the musicians who have been doing live streams on social media. I have a lot of friends who have been doing those and I always make sure to watch them and to share on my social media and to thank them for doing so. They have helped us in these tough times with their great music. I, myself, have done the same doing either acoustic or piano videos.”

Carolyn (Cal) Wingate has taught for over 30 years in public schools and she teaches music to young­sters as well. Cal has taken her lead from the On-Line classes that she pro­duces for her middle school students: “I started a boot camp morning video that goes out to our students with light exercises, jokes and words of encouragement while keeping things real…” Cal started her Musical contributions a few weekends ago: “…I sent out a song on Ukulele and some reflective thoughts on this whole situation. The feedback from these videos has been incredible and (they) will continue.” Cal added: “This has been a time for increased playing of my own music… The world has stepped up to share (and) People have been so generous with their music, time and spirit.”

Another performer who’s taking this opportunity to do some musical “wood-shedding” is Susan Sylvia. She usually entertains at 6–8 live shows per month but, due to the quaran­tine, she’s looking to add to her per­for­mances: “While we wait for this current crisis to pass, we are both learning new songs for our next prac­tice and we are planning to perform a few tunes sometime over the next week on Facebook. If it goes well then we are hoping to do that regularly until clubs and bars reopen!” Susan continued: “I am also in a full band called Carfax Abbey (with Allen Thomas, Brian Rapoza, Tim McKenna, Mike Murphy and Wayne Farias). We just came out of a 20-year retirement and May 2 is to be our second gig since we reunited in 2019. We will be performing at Oriental Pearl with Whiskey Affliction. We hope!”

I caught one of James Gagne’s live perfor­mances last Friday night and it is apparent that he has had music in his soul since he was born…and he’s not shy about sharing: “I am hoping to do more live Facebook concerts as people really like that and maybe I can raise some money for some causes by doing so as well.”

Of course, not everybody is using this time to play. There are those of us who look inward to better our craft and for those of us who are technically inclined, better our tools as well. Veteran musi­cian and fellow guitar technician, Kenny Motta, is putting his skills to good use: “Everyone I’ve talked to is just riding this thing out and hoping that the venues that support local music will make it.” Kenny explained: “As for me, I’m just taking guitars apart and putting them back together with some experimental ‘Mods’ in search of that perfect tone!”

In many ways, this is a great time to be a music lover. There are so many artists, both national and local, who are producing some wonderful work and putting it out on-line for all to enjoy.

On the national scene, artists are streaming for free or for insanely small fees…just to keep their crew and ancillary workers afloat. But just because you’re rich and famous doesn’t mean that you get a pass during all of this. The “stars” are doing it from their homes or from empty venues and streaming their music directly to you.

There are Broadway shows available for free on-line, Perfor­mances to empty music venues and the “bedroom” concerts can provide a glimpse into the lives of many of your favorite entertainers.

As Giuliana Amaral remarked: “One good thing about having to be home with all of this is that I got to see a lot of talented people with the live streams on social media that probably wouldn’t be otherwise.”

James Gagne was quoted: “I love that people turn to art in times like these, however art is the only thing that keeps us human when humanity itself is at stake.”

I encourage you to check out these links, on-line, to hear some great music from these talented folks:

• Johnny Barnes: www.johnnybarnes.com

• James Gagne: www.shipyardwreckmusic.com

• Cal Wingate, on Facebook: Carolyn Wingate

• Susan Sylvia, on Facebook:  SomthinElseDuo

• Kenny Motta, on Facebook: Kenny Motta

• David Charnley, on Facebook: David Charnley

• Giuliana Amaral, on Youtube: Giuliana Amaral

Music is a binding force. It connects each of us in a basic way. This is why we react, physically, to music: we tap a foot, we snap our fingers, we bob our heads and sway our bodies… instinctively… to the rhythm. It’s in our DNA! Each human on the planet has some kind of relationship with music.

Whether it’s making it or listening to it… I encourage you all to seek out YOUR relationship with music. Let it calm you… Let it stir your emotions… Let it be a release… Let it help you get through all of… this because… The music will NOT be muted.

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