Ode to the Black Fiddler Music Festival at the Bronx Brewery
This is PART III of four posts looking back on my short but highly eventful trip to NYC last week > FOLLOW HERE
So I arrived in NYC on the evening of September 4th and on the following evening, took my ladyfriend Serena to Le Poisson Rouge (LPR) on Bleecker Street to check out The Lemonheads (after an Italian dinner at Monte’s Trattoria on MacDougal Street joined by my baby brother Ruben – the head honcho at LPR).
The following evening Serena and I discovered a live music venue in Harlem called Shrine and spent our Friday evening there checking out local psychedelic funk outfit Moon Soul. Day two was in the books.
Now it was Saturday and we were looking for a way to spend it wisely. In our search, we came across the 8th annual Ode to the Black Fiddler Music Festival at the Bronx Brewery, located in the South Bronx. Our interest was piqued.
Ode to the Black Fiddler Music Festival @ The Bronx Brewery
The Ode to the Black Fiddler Music Festival, produced by IAH Studio, “showcases the artistry and versatility of professional string performers of color (who present all genres of music), while engaging the local community and empowering the next generation of music makers”. The event also featured food & beverages, DJ sets, local vendors and interactive stations.
Driven by the need for diversity and visual representation in the classical music arena, IAH Studio was created to provide a safe space for Black and Latinx string musicians – generating avenues of support and visibility. While the mission of The Bronx Brewery is to create a diverse, vibrant culture that uses beer, art, food, and music to inspire, unite and drive positive change in the world.
Empanology, founded by chef and Bronx native Jason Alicea in 2018, is the official Bronx food sponsor for the Bronx Brewery and provided delicious empanadas at the event. They are open 7 days a week and available in the brewery’s taproom.
As for the event, the outdoor music performances had to be moved inside the brewery as there were thunderstorms lurking over the Bronx that afternoon. Despite that setback, we enjoyed the festival, as well as the Bronx Brewery, which holds arts and culture events throughout the year. We’ll most certainly be back.
Enjoy the photographs, which looked far better to me in black and white inside the brewery than they did in color – with one exception…
Josh Henderson of W4RP (né Warp Trio)
Now I was very pleased with the look of the black and white photos inside the brewery but felt it would be a disservice to the “Queen of the Violin” Kersten Stevens and her hot magenta lipstick (not to mention the electric orange bass guitar). Exceptions were made…
Epilogue
After the passing of a pretty heavy afternoon thunderstorm, things cleared up considerably and our evening plan was to head to Queens to Terraza 7 to catch a Colombian folk band at 7pm but as we arrived back at our home base of The Bronx, we found ourselves unable to get off the couch (we’re not as young as we once were, you know?). So the Ode to the Black Fiddler Music Festival ended up being how we spent our Saturday. There are far worse ways to spend a Saturday afternoon. Far, far worse…
