2024 Wrapup

Written By Jesse Bay

2024 has been a great year for Weathervane Community Arts! Some highlights included:

  • Our annual World Music Mini-Fest in Peskeompskut Park, with performances and workshops by Juan Carlos Marin (NYC), Myrtle Street Klezmer, and more;

  • A 3-month Art of Makam workshop series with Tev Stevig (Boston). 14 local students took a deep dive into Turkish Makam music, with a master of the form;

  • A whole bunch of fantastic concerts at the Montague Common Hall and other venues, with amazing local and touring musicians;

  • Lisa Sokolov’s groundbreaking “Embodied Voicework as a Spiritual Practice” workshop in Northampton;

  • The launch of the Montague Center Oral History Project (in collaboration with Montague Public Libraries), bringing together Montague Center neighbors to tell and document the stories of our town;

  • A monthly singing group at Temple Israel in Greenfield, focusing on Jewish wordless prayer melodies and other related songs;

  • And, the 1-year anniversary of the Montague Marching Band, with a blowout performance at the legendary Montague Center Halloween Festivities!

All of our 2024 programming was offered on a “pay-what-you-can” donation basis, with no one turned away for lack of funds.

We are grateful to have received generous funding and support from Massachusetts Cultural Council, Harold Grinspoon Foundation, and New England Foundation for the Arts, and fostered exciting collaborations with partner organizations like Halcyon Arts New England, Labyrinth New England, the Montague Common Hall, Montague Public Libraries, and RiverCulture. We launched a spiffy new website, designed by Michael Crigler (of Rockin’ Puppies fame). And, in 2024 we became a 501(c)(3) organization, opening the door for new sources of support.

2025 will be another great year. Some of the programs we have in the works:

  • A residency with Vermont composer/singer Moira Smiley, including community workshops and performances;

  • Our 2025 World Music Mini-Fest in Peskeompskut Park, including a new Sephardic-Mexican musical collaboration;

  • A longer (possibly 5-day) workshop with Lisa Sokolov, to train practitioners in her Embodied Voicework method;

  • The expansion of the Montague Center Oral History Project, culminating in a series of podcasts and public events;

  • And more TBA…

As you can see, we’ve been busy, and we’re not planning on slowing down! If you like what we’re doing, please donate to WCA. Your donation is completely tax-deductible. We can’t do it without you.

Jesse Bay
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World Music Mini-fest in Peskeompskut Park