Category: Community Event

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Join us for Headwaters Fiddle Camp Instructor Concert this Thursday, June 29 at 7pm!

It is Fiddle Camp week and that means it is time for our annual Fiddle Camp Instructor Concert! Scheduled for this Thursday, June 29, at 7pm, this annual event is always superb! Listen in as fiddle masters Mary Vanorny (Twin Cities), Carrie Dlutkowski (U.P. Michigan), and Sawyer Corcoran (Bemidji) join forces with founding member of The Gaels, Brian Miller (St. Paul) and Eric Carlson (Bemidji). If you have lived in Bemidji in the last couple of decades you are sure to have heard of The Gaels and you probably know Brian and Eric and how talented they are from that and their many other projects🎶🎻🥁

The concert will be held at Headwaters Performance Hall and is $10/person.

Purchase your tickets here.

Headwaters Fiddle Camp is made possible by the voters of Minnesota, through a grant from the Region 2 Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.

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Headwaters Music and Arts announces contestants for Bemidji Sings Vocal Competition 2023

Headwaters Music and Arts announces the contestants for Bemidji Sings Vocal Competition. Headwaters hosts the vocal competition annually to celebrate the talents of local amateur vocalists who live, work or attend school in Bemidji. This year’s event is set for 6pm September 8 at Bemidji State University.

Hosted by local singer/songwriter and musician Eric Carlson, the show will highlight 14 singers in three age divisions: 9-12, 13-20, and 21+.

On September 8 contestants will compete for cash and prizes. Finalists in the 13-20 and 21+ category will also compete for a chance to move onto the statewide Minnesota Sings Vocal Competition in October. The judges for the September Bemidji Sings Vocal Competition will be Zachary Swank, Caige Jambor, and NikkiLee Nolden.

Tickets for the September 8 event are sold on a sliding fee scale, between $5-$20, to make the music event accessible to all. Get your tickets now. To get details about becoming a Bemidji Sings sponsor, contact Headwaters at 218.444.5606, info@headwatersmusicandarts.org, or give now.

Bemidji Sings Vocal Competition  is sponsored by Headwaters Music & Arts with support from Supple Studios.

This activity is made possible, in part, by a grant from the Bemidji Area Arts Endowment, a component fund of the Northwest Minnesota Foundation.

The 2023 featured contestants are:

9-12 DIVISION
Ocean Mendoza
Natalie Corcoran
Lyla Mahaffey

13-21 DIVISION
Genevieve Oakes
Brooke Kemp
Maren Eickman
Kelyse Engel
Addie Dauner
Leah Scanlan

21+ DIVISION
Emily Brown
Aubrey Johnson
Tom Lucas
Adrienne Eickman
Alex Lundin

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Headwaters Welcomes back Paraguayan Harpist Nicolas Carter to Bemidji for Presentations and Performance

Headwaters Music and Arts is pleased to welcome internationally acclaimed Paraguayan harpist Nicolas Carter back to Bemidji for a series of workshops and a live performance. Some may remember Nicolas from his well received workshop and performance at Headwaters in fall 2021. Thanks to a grant from the Region 2 Arts Council Headwaters will partner with Nicholas to do it again, this time with a workshop 12-4 pm Thursday, June 22, followed by a free performance by Nicolas at 7 pm that same day. The public is invited to both of these events that will be held at Headwaters Music and Arts’ performance hall. For those who want another opportunity to experience Nicolas he’ll also be offering a presentation at Bemidji Public Library Friday, June 23, at 10 am.

Nicolas Carter is a talented and versatile International harpist, born in Minnesota and raised in Paraguay where he learned to play the Paraguayan harp. Carter creates unique performances blending his musicianship with his skills as a theater artist/storyteller. His authentic, warm and friendly interaction creates an intimate experience bringing inspiration, motivation and joy. Carter has been composing, recording, teaching and performing for over 30 years and has played all over the United States, Latin America, Europe and Israel.

Nicolas’ June 22 workshop Improvising with Latin American Rhythms is for local musicians ages 14-adult. There is limited space for this program so advance registration at HeadwatersMusicAndArts.org is required. The cost to attend the 4 hour workshop is $25. His June 23 presentation at Bemidji Public Library is a free educational event which will include a reading of Maliya Gorman-Carter’s book Hanish: The Story of the Harp.

The 7 pm Thursday, June 22 live performance is also free and open to the public. Folks are invited to come and relax, renew, refresh with nurturing soul music and touching stories of Latin American culture.

Headwaters Music and Arts is an independent non-profit multidisciplinary organization whose mission is to provide opportunities for creativity through instruction and to inspire community through music and the arts. They offer a variety of programs for all ages.

Register or find out more about Nicolas Carter’s Improvising with Latin American Rhythms  workshop here.

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota, through a grant from the Region 2 Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.

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Audition Applications open for Bemidji Sings Vocal Competition – Ages 9 to Adult Invited to Apply!

Headwaters Music and Arts invites amateur singers who live, work, or go to school in the Bemidji area to take part in Bemidji Sings, an annual vocal competition celebrating the musical talents of youth and adults who live, work or attend school in Bemidji.

Singers ages 13+ compete at Bemidji Sings Vocal Competition to determine who will represent Bemidji at the Minnesota Sings State finals in Fairmont, MN in October. Minnesota Sings vocal competition is separated into two age divisions: 13-20 and 21+. New this year Bemidji Sings features a 9-12 age division to compete. Those in the 9-12 division will compete locally but are not eligible to compete at the statewide Minnesota Sings Competition. Up to 7 singers from each age division will be chosen to perform at the Bemidji Sings Vocal Competition and the first and second place winner from both the 13-20 and 21+ division will move onto Minnesota Sings.

Those interested in taking part must register to audition by 5 pm Monday, June 5. Auditions are scheduled for June 10 and 11. They will be in person, with the option to meet with judges via Zoom. Each audition will take less than an hour. Auditions are an opportunity for judges to select the best performances for the Bemidji Sings Vocal Competition on September 8 as well as to offer advice and pointers to singers for their live performances.

Singers will be chosen based on their audition performance where they will be asked to sing one song. Auditioning vocalists will be evaluated based on their vocal skills, presentation skills, audience response, and judge's overall impression. Only individual contestants are eligible – no multiple singers or additional instruments may be used.

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Monroe Crossing in Concert with Headwaters & Friends this Saturday!

Headwaters Music & Arts is excited to welcome back to Bemidji world-class bluegrass entertainers Monroe Crossing for Headwaters’ biggest fundraiser of the year on Saturday, April 22, 7 pm, at the Historic Chief Theater. Opening for the band will be Headwaters & Friends, a lineup of talented instructors and students of Headwaters Music & Arts.

Named in honor of Bill Monroe, Monroe Crossing dazzles audiences with an electrifying blend of classic bluegrass, bluegrass gospel, and heartfelt originals. For over 20 years this Minnesota based band has entertained audiences throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. The band has released 17 albums and was inducted into the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame in 2007. The band’s diverse discography consists of traditional bluegrass, original bluegrass, bluegrass gospel, a tribute to Bill Monroe, classic country, Christmas music and two collaborations with the award-winning choir Vocal Essence. Monroe Crossing’s airtight harmonies, razor sharp arrangements, and on-stage rapport make them audience favorites.

Headwater & Friends is an ever changing lineup of skilled musicians from the Headwaters community. Taking the stage this year will be Dane and Julia Anderson, Wendy and Morgan Mellema, Sawyer Corcoran, Casey Rasmussen, and Vincent Noble.

$30 tickets are available for purchase here. Admission is open seating, advance ticket purchase is recommended (tickets are almost sold out!). Businesses, organizations and individuals are invited to be a sponsor for this fundraising event. Proceeds support the Headwaters Scholarship Program to help reduce student tuition based on financial need. Sponsorships help Headwaters reach their goal of giving the gift of creativity to kids in our community.

“Everyone who came had the time of their life that evening. Your show was just incredible....one of the freshest and original groups I have experienced....I was just blown away.” — Bill Adams, Habitat For Humanity, Waldorf MD

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A Review of Latin American Music with Antonio Arce

Music is universal; however, depending on the region of the world music can have different rhythms, beats, tempos, lyrics, or styles. Headwaters Music and Arts hosts A Review of Latin American Music with Antonio Arce on Saturday, April 1 at 7pm. Community adults are invited to join musician and educator Antonio to learn about the different music of Latin America as he shares his knowledge in this free presentation. The audience will experience different songs and short stories, view a variety of photos of the area where the songs originated, and listen to the music of Latin America as performed by Antonio.

Antonio is a singer and guitarist. He was born in Salta, Argentina as the eldest son of a professional musician who always had guitars at home. Learning guitar started as a practice but quickly formed into an obsession. Although Antonio picked up the guitar very quickly he did not learn the names of the chords or the notes in either Spanish or English. Instead, Antonio learned to play by ear something he still practices with his main repertoire of Música “Latino Americana” including Romantic Music in the genres of Boleros, Trova, and other styles. On April 1 the audience will experience Antonio’s music first hand as he performs different styles of music and shares little stories about the different songs he will interpret.

A Review of Latin American Music is a free event for adults that will be held at Headwaters Music and Arts in Bemidji (519 Minnesota Ave NW). Those interested in attending can contact Headwaters by phone at 218.444.5606 or just plan to show up.

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Annie Humphrey and David Huckfelt in Concert

Annie Humphrey and David Huckfelt.

Headwaters Music & Arts hosts Annie Humphrey in concert with David Huckfelt,7:30 pm January 20, 2023. As part of their ongoing commitment to create a welcoming space, Headwaters established a land acknowledgement statement in March 2022 to pay respect to the Indigenous Peoples on whose ancestral homelands they gather and to celebrate the cultural significance that Indigenous music and arts bring to the community. Annie Humphrey, both a visual and musical artist, was commissioned to design, build and install indoor signage with both English and Ojibwemowin translations to be used throughout the Headwaters’ building.

Born and raised on the Leech Lake Indian Reservation, Annie Humphrey performs both regionally and nationally. In addition to being an Anishinaabe singer and songwriter, Annie is a poet, teacher, and carpenter. She was named Artist of the Year at the 2018 Native American Music Awards. Her latest album, Eat What You Kill, was released in 2019 and is a meditation on accountability and gratitude. Annie frequently performs with Minneapolis folk-activist and songwriter David Huckfelt, founding member and front man for The Pines. His new record Room Enough, Time Enough is about restoring balance, space and attention, peace and equality, redeeming the marginalized, and remembering the forgotten.

Annie Humphrey with her original signs before they were hung.

Along with Annie’s original signs with translations, Headwaters Music & Arts celebrates the installation of a new outdoor sign featuring their latest logo and a welcome in both English and Ojibwemowin - Miigwech Bi-mawadishiweyan. The January 20 concert will be a chance to view and celebrate the outdoor sign and all of Annie’s interior signs.

Tickets for the concert are sold on a sliding fee, between $5-$20, to make the music event accessible to all. Funds raised will go to Headwaters scholarship fund. You can get your tickets here.

The signage and these activities are made possible, in part, by a grant from the Bemidji Area Arts Endowment, a component fund of the Northwest Minnesota Foundation. Midco Foundation provided funding to help build the new outdoor sign. Translations for the signs generously provided by Anton Treuer.

 

Headwaters' new outdoor sign.
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Headwaters celebrates the Anishinaabe Artisan Market Sale Dec. 16-17

Headwaters Rock Band Program (a.k.a., Bumble Grunge)

Bell Choir

Join us Dec. 16 & 17 for a weekend of special Bemidji events! Headwaters Music & Arts joins Watermark Art Center for a special weekend of shopping in support of the Anishinaabe Artisan Market Sale at the Historic Carnegie Library. Join us at Headwaters Music & Arts for hot chocolate and cookies during some awesome (and free!) music performances.

Friday Dec. 16

7pm • Bell Choir at Headwaters

Saturday Dec. 17

1pm • First City Singers at Headwaters
2pm • First City Singers at Watermark Art Center
6pm • Headwaters Rock Band at Headwaters

See the full schedule of weekend events at the Watermark Art Center's website and we'll see you out and about!

First City Singers

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Give to the Max 2022 kicks off!

We have done a lot since November 1, 2021. Thanks to a mixture of community contributions and grants, we have been able to:

👏Offer music and arts scholarships for ALL of our youth programming.
👏Increase our programming capacity by building a wall to separate our pottery and visual arts studios as well as build 2 additional private lesson studios.
👏Afford lighting improvements that both improved our buildings energy efficiency and made our space more welcoming for creative eyes.
👏 Make our space warmer and even more energy efficient with added heating in the pottery and visual art classrooms.
👏 And offer an even wider variety of programming and events for all.

It has been a productive twelve months! In the next twelve months we want to do more of the same. We rely on individual donations and sustaining membership contributions to keep us going, and to help us stay on solid ground as we fulfill our mission to provide opportunities for creativity through instruction and inspire the community through music and the arts.

GiveMN links donors with organizations that are working to make Minnesota a more generous place. This statewide, three week long, giving campaign starts November 1 and wraps up November 17. We invite you to join us for Minnesota’s giving holiday! And, as an added bonus, starting November 1 Schmitt Music commits to a cash match of up to $500 to Headwaters Music & Arts.

We are continually guided by our vision to Seek Music, Engage the Arts, and Build Community. This year we are celebrating 30 years of music and heART and we could not have got here without you!

You can give now here. THANK YOU for supporting Headwaters Music & Arts!

P.s. We are holding a ukulele giveaway through the month of november. The uke was generously donated by Schmitt Music and anybody can sign up to win but when you contribute any amount to Headwaters Nov. 1-17 in person or online you will automatically be added to the list.

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Dan Navarro Visits Bemidji September 3 & 4

Headwaters Music & Arts welcomes nationally touring musician and songwriter, Dan Navarro, to Bemidji September 3 and 4 with a concert and a guitar workshop for ages 13-adult.

Dan Navarro’s long and eclectic resume includes “songwriter,” “recording artist,” “singer,” “voice actor,” “road warrior” and “arts advocate” in its range of credits. His music probes life at its most resonant. In his rich baritone, he sings songs of heart and insight, steeped in experience, soulful tales from a long road well-traveled.

Dan started his career writing songs for a diverse array of artists including Pat Benatar (the Grammy®-nominated “We Belong”) The Bangles, Jackson Browne, Dave Edmunds, The Temptations, Dionne Warwick, The Triplets, Dutch star Marco Borsato, and Austin outlaw legend Rusty Weir.

In the 1990’s and 2000’s, Dan worked with Eric Lowen as they recorded and toured as the acclaimed acoustic duo Lowen & Navarro until Eric’s retirement in 2009. Dan has transitioned smoothly into a busy solo career over the past decade, touring nationally almost constantly.

Dan's long awaited first true studio-recorded album, "Shed My Skin" was released in 2019 and was well worth the wait. Recorded and produced by Steve Postell it, of course, features Dan Navarro / vocals, guitar, percussion, Steve Postell / Guitars, Jon Ossman / upright bass, Brendan Buckley /drums, Peter Adams / piano, Phil Parlapiano / accordion, David Glaser / mandolin and Debra Dobkin / percussion.

He has a parallel career as a voice actor and singer, in films like The Playmobil Movie, Pirates of the Caribbean 5, The Book Of Life, Rio (on the Oscar®-nominated “Real In Rio”), Happy Feet, The Lorax, Ice Age (2 & 3) ; TV series Turbo Fast, Prison Break, Family Guy and American Dad; records with Neil Young, Andrea Bocelli, Luis Miguel, Jose Feliciano, Janiva Magness, and Jon Anderson of Yes; hit video games Fallout 4 and Uncharted 4; and hundreds of TV ads for Subaru, Shakey’s, McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, Honda, Nationwide and more. Most recently, Dan sang on six Lin-Manuel Miranda songs in the Disney Film ENCANTO and, in Feb 2022, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart.

And now… Dan’s new album, "Horizon Line,” is finished and set for an August release. Produced by multiple Grammy®-winner Jim Scott (Tom Petty, Wilco, Dixie Chicks, as well as the first five Lowen & Navarro albums) over a dozen sessions in mid-2021 and a dozen more in spring 2022. You can pre-orders your album now at DanNavarro.com

Dan has a 26-year-old son, thinks sleep is for babies and is a known abuser of acoustic guitars.

You can see Dan perform live in concert Saturday, September 3 at 7:30 pm and you can join him for his guitar workshop for all levels of songwriters (beginners to advanced are all welcome!) 1-4 pm Sunday, September 4. Both the concert and the workshop will be held at Headwaters Music & Arts Performance Hall (519 MN Ave NW, Bemidji). Concert tickets cost $25/person and the cost to register for the guitar workshop is $50. Register or find out more about Headwaters workshops and music events here.