Newz from Big Heavy World

Thank you to everyone who came out May 25th to celebrate the release of the ‘In Silver Light’ CD. Over a dozen singer-songwriters shared the intimate setting of the FlynnSpace stage and performed for a full, appreciative house. Made possible by the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, proceeds from the evening and sales of the compilation CD – a ‘breathtaking sampler of Vermont’s singer-songwriting and instrumental music’ – will benefit the Vermont Music Library and Shop.

From the Native Daughters (Michele Choiniere and Deb Flanders), a duo who combines traditional French Canadian songs with Vermont’s folk roots, to The Cush, an eclectic band fronted by Gabrielle and Burette Douglas, whose influences are old tape delays, wind and constellations, and analog equipment, the night unfolded with the eerie sounds of “The Last Whale,” by Ken Mahren and the joie de vivre of Aaron Flinn who hit us right in the heart and kept on strumming.

The sound filtered across the stage seamlessly and the diversity was captivating. As host, Spencer Lewis shared his genuine appreciation of each piece about to be performed and capped the evening on violin and acoustic guitar.

Our deepest thanks are extended to the artists who performed to celebrate the CD and support our work, and also to Harry Chalkin, Sound Engineer; Sean Larock, Engineering Assistant; Brian Johnson, FlynnSpace Manager; and Arnie Malina, Flynn Center Artistic Director; to the family farmers of Cabot Creamery and Jeb Norris, Mike Luoma, and the on-air staff of 104.7FM ‘The Point.’ And again, if you were able to attend, thank you for your support and for sharing this magical night with us!

You can sample and order the ‘In Silver Light’ CD here.

Photo: Ken Mahren performing ' The Last Whale.'

Hey philatelists: Big Heavy World and the U.S. Post Office put together a pictorial postmark commemorating May 25 - a special day for us as we released the 'In Silver Light' compilation CD project at the FlynnSpace that night. We produced a few dozen caches that one day on offset-printed envelopes. It has a Henry Wadsworth Longfellow stamp and the Big Heavy World/Vermont Music Library official U.S. Post Office postmark on top of Josh Perrin's photo of the F-Bombs. Grab one for $2 at the Big Heavy office. Big thanks to Ginny Friedman at the USPS and John Lutz at Vermont Stamp for helping us figure this one out.

Big Heavy World has been preserving and promoting the music of Vermont since 1996. Working with a crew of mostly high school and college-aged volunteers, we've archived thousands of recordings by Vermont's musical artists at our Vermont Music Library & Shop and exposed hundreds of Vermont's musicians to new audiences. A lot of this work has been accomplished - and our web sites hosted - on equipment that Small Dog Electronics gave us or helped us acquire.

We've recently been given a century-old general store building in Addison County that is undergoing restoration to become a climate controlled archive for the VMLS recording collection. While raising capital for that effort, we're also fundraising to purchase equipment that will allow us to digitize the collection, aiming to meet the highest standards of digital cultural preservation. Small Dog is helping us with this goal by providing a donations page that accepts contributions to a VMLS-dedicated hardware account at Small Dog.

Your contribution, via a purchase from this page of a donation in any increment of $25, will help us acquire the hardware needed to preserve this unique cultural legacy. Your donation will be added to that of others with a similar interest in this preservation effort, and cumulatively enough funding will be raised to purchase the Apple equipment we need. Thank you for contributing!

The Big Heavy World Record Label is working with Maine filmmaker Nikolai Fox to produce the soundtrack to 'Music for the Sky' a documentary video featuring six Vermont fiddlers carrying-forward old time fiddle traditions. A special preview of the film will be shown continuously at the Vermont Music Library & Shop booth in the Vermont History Expo Museum Tent, June 23 & 24, 10am-5pm.

The Vermont History Expo brings together 150 local historical societies, museums and heritage organizations from across the state to gather at the historic Tunbridge Worlds' Fairgrounds. The exhibits, music, food, presentations, performances, and family activities at the Expo are a stellar experience; enthusiasm for Vermont's deep, quirky, and treasured cultural heritage runs high and the annual Expo is always memorable.

The Vermont Music Library & Shop will also be displaying information about our work to preserve Vermont-made music and the 1907 L. S. Gordon general store building we are working to restore to become our archive. T-shirts and copies of the new 'In Silver Light' Vermont artists compilation CD will be available. Come meet Ryan, Jim, and Tonya from the crew!

Directons, admission, and information can be found at the Vermont History Expo web site.

Photo: Michael Donahue, featured in 'Music for the Sky,' photographed by Amanda Kowalski.