18 Jun Make Music Day 2021 is Just Around the Corner
Make Music Day 2021 is just around the corner! Enjoyed around the world, the holiday was first celebrated in 1982 in France. Now, it’s held in more than 1,000 cities in 120 countries!
In France, the event is a pretty big deal. On summer solstice, June 21, the country shuts down and musicians take over.
To find the location of a celebration near you, just visit this website.
Our team here at Panyard had the opportunity to speak with a number of people across the country who are involved in helping promote the day. For our part, we sent a whole lot of Jumbies out as a way to support this special day!
For Barbara Hammerman in Gig Harbor, WA, music is the soundtrack of life.
“It’s uplifting during the down times, joyous in mutual celebration times, and allows an avenue to feel and to heal in personal and collective sorrowful times. When participating in playing music, all of the above are heightened,” Hammerman explained.
Together with United by Music North America, she and fellow participant Amanda Gresham will produce a four-stage festival on Monday.
This will be the 8th United by Music North America Make Music Day in three different cities.
“Amanda and I feel a kinship with the mission of Make Music Alliance & Make Music Day with the mission of United by Music North America, an organization and performing band we founded in this country in 2012,” Hammerman said. “In addition to audiences experiencing music that is played on stage in front of them, we know the value of making music together, and wanted to create that chance for people in our town of Gig Harbor, WA. Amanda and I believe the science that shows that experiencing music together can build better communities, create literal harmony between people and just provide a chance for fun, laughter and betterment of spirit, all leading to stronger communities.”
Their personal reasons for choosing to create and found music-related organizations and activities is based in the belief that “music is a convener of ideas and people and is often the landscape upon which the need for and love of social equity can be experienced.”
“Music is a catalyst for a feeling in a moment, and in United by Music North America, the moment has become a movement for an inclusion revolution,” she added. “We are seeing lives transformed by making music together in a band. As a nonprofit organization pledged to further that goal, we are honored to be partnering with Panyard to sound it out to ever more people!”
In Los Angeles, the feeling is much the same. Founder of Make Music Los Angeles Dorsay Dujon believes that music is more important right now than ever.
“The entire world shut down and we were in our homes away from connecting with loved ones, colleagues and friends,” Dujon explained. “Music brings people together. Our outdoor events on the Summer Solstice are a perfect opportunity to help our communities come together again safely, and to once again hear the beautiful music of any genre. Culturally, music is the one thing that needs no translation. We can listen and enjoy the amazing sounds that are perfected by the musicians who love to play. Music is love and in every note no matter how soft or how loud it comes with feeling.”
Personally, Dujon will produce a small pop up concert at a neighborhood park for children and their families.
“As a child, my family took me to concerts outdoors in the summer,” she said. “We sat on the grass to hear classical music, the American songbook, Broadway and the American original classical music — jazz. In those days, Blacks were not allowed to stay in the hotels where they performed, so my family housed many musicians that came through Boston. Musicians were my brother’s friends. I was the youngest and they were all 20 years older than me. So it gave me an opportunity to attend some rehearsals and hear performances from backstage.
“I found that music accompanied me through all of the celebrations of life. Music could help me feel better, get me up to dance around the living room, and help me cry when I was feeling blue.”
Founder and President of Make Music Platteville Nancy Fairchild will be a busy bee on Monday. She’ll lead a hands-on storytelling session for a senior living center, with percussion added to the story. She’ll also lead a percussion petting zoo with the steel pans and other instruments. She plays horn, piano, organ, percussion, and is passionate about the importance of music in people’s lives.
In Knoxville, Nicholas Horner will lead a parade, along with other activities.
“Make Music Day is a reminder that every part of the music making process belongs to everyone,” he said. “We get to break down the barrier between artist and audience, rethink the concept of what a venue is, explore new ways to welcome creative process into product and make music making more accessible to all!”
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