Musical acts are gearing up for a benefit concert in the newly-reopened Iron Horse Music Hall – all for a cause that supports local students pursuing music.
The third annual “Bow Bow Bash” is slated for 7 p.m.
According to the Northampton Arts Council, the event’s organizer, the concert will feature a mix of Northampton High School original bands, ensembles and soloists. Also joining them will be longtime local rock act the Drunk Stuntmen.
According to co-founder Steve Sanderson, the outfit will be returning to the venue for the first time in years — both after the Iron Horse was revived with new management after closing during the pandemic – and after a concert in memory of Bow Bow himself, who died in 2017.
Sanderson, who also serves as the event producer for the arts council, describes the bash as a prom of sorts – featuring a lineup that’s heavy with local, high school groups.
He says encouraging and fostering the student musicians is what the scholarship set up in his bandmate’s name is all about.
“These bands that have just begun in the last year - it's really unique, it's a fantastic experience,” he said. “And then you've got us old guys that, you know, have toured all over and have been to Europe and put out albums and have been through the whole thing and got jaded, and then have come back, you know, and we get to play alongside these young, fresh bands with all these new ideas.”
Also organized by the Northampton Arts Council, the J. Scott Brandon Scholarship Fund provides students at Northampton High with “financial assistance for music lessons and instrument supplies throughout their high school careers.”
According to the organizers, that includes a scholarship for weekly lessons by a musician at a local music school, such as Downtown Sounds or Northampton Community Music School.
“It's incredibly important to nurture, support and fight for the arts, especially in my case - music in our public schools, because if you don't, they'll get eliminated,” Sanderson said. “You have to fight for them every day - it's just like your freedoms. You have to continuously support and fight for them, or they'll disappear.”
Sanderson and Brandon go way back. The guitarist and vocalist says he first met his future bass player in the band room at Taunton High School back in 1986.
The two embarked on a musical journey spanning multiple countries, with a special home in NoHo.
“He was my best friend – absolutely,” Sanderson said. “His role in the band was searing honesty. He never held back how he felt - it was extremely passionate, and always strictly to the point. Sometimes, it turns a lot of people off, but also, you knew exactly where you stood with Bow Bow because he would not hold back.”
The group can be seen here playing in 2015 during the Florence Music on the Porch Series.
More information on the Iron Horse and Friday’s concert can be found here.
