The Northeast Ohio Musical Heritage Association
During the pandemic . . .
2020 has been hard! But we’ve been busy. No festivals, no jams, no dances – and we really missed all that. But look at the great things that did happen here at NEOMHA!
Music From the House on the Hill
We produced our first-ever livestream concert, to rave reviews. Thanks for tuning in, and helping us employ local musicians. It was great to “see” everyone online – and we also developed new capacity and technology to reach new audiences, which will help us continue to spread the love for folk music through our mission. If you missed it, or just want to relive the moment, you can catch it all here.
Folk Community Summit
We hosted 49 enthusiastic and engaged people from every facet of our folk music community – musicians, dancers, venue owners, producers and fans – in an online folk summit that let us come together to dream, discuss and make some big plans. And we’re already acting on some of those plans, specifically ideas to help bring more youth into our community, diversify both our audiences and the music we present, and support education initiatives. Got more great ideas you want to share, while we’re in this process of dreaming and innovating? We want to hear from you! Send us an email.
Carry On
In August we launched this fantastic YouTube program, which brings live, FREE programs to students in grades 6-12 every week. Hosted by YouTube sensation Hal Walker, the series presents a new musical talent each episode. We feature musicians from all around the world – and from right here in Northeast Ohio, with at least 25% of the musicians presented being local, and the entire series offering an exciting range of diversity. We’re getting great feedback from students. We’re paying lots of artists. And we’re going the extra mile to support our teachers, offering them free educational resources to pair with each episode. You can check it out here.
Nellie McKay Concert
We managed to have one COVID-friendly live event in 2020, when we presented our first socially distanced live concert with nationally acclaimed artist Nellie McKay. What a beautiful day for an outdoor performance, and what a wonderful audience. We also showcased a local opening act, and got to introduce a nice group of newcomers to NEOMHA, in line with our mission of supporting musicians and building our folk music community. We look forward to the time when we can gather in person again!
COVID has meant a big pause in so many things we love, like our festivals and concerts. But it has also given us opportunities to find new ways to support our folk music community. We’re so glad to be doing this work together! If you want to help us keep the music playing, we would welcome your gift to NEOMHA.
We know we can’t do any of this without you. Your support, your time, your energy and ideas – they have all helped to make this hard year possible, and even inspiring. We aren’t just getting through this – we’re getting better, paving the way for new and good things to come.
Until then, we still need you. Your gift, in any amount that’s meaningful to you, would mean so much to our mission and our work this year. As we wrap up 2020, we have a lot to be proud of, and a lot to look forward to. Thank you for your generous support.
Your friends at NEOMHA
PS: If you prefer to send a check, it can be made payable to NEOMHA and mailed to 10848 Chillicothe Rd, Kirtland, OH 44094.
LOCAL COVID RESOURCES
- OHIO ARTS COUNCIL OFFERS TWO TRADITIONAL ARTIST PROGRAMS – DEADLINE MARCH 15
- HOW TO SUPPORT MUSICIANS DURING THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS
- LOANS AND OTHER RESOURCES FOR MUSICIANS
Carry On Traditional Music Program
Traditional music and the people who make it
Tune in from your classroom or home and discover a world of traditional music!
Carry On is a weekly, 30-minute YouTube Live program for 6th-12th grade students hosted by musical explorer and TikTok sensation Hal Walker. Each episode, Hal will interview a musician who plays traditional music. Weekly programs will be live on YouTube allowing students to interact with comments and questions. After the live broadcast, the programs will be archived for later viewing and discussion. Info and next live show
Carry On launched its first program in September and will run throughout the school year.
