One of Batavia's most accomplished bands, The Bluesway Band, packed the house on Friday in Jackson Square for a night of classic rock and blues-based rock.
Photos by Howard Owens
Five bands and punk rock fans gathered at Pavilion #2 in the Genesee County Park & Forest on Sunday for the Second Annual Punk Picnic, which featured five bands from Genesee County and Buffalo.
The bands were Privatized Air, Cowboy Vampires, Election Day, Space Cowboys, and Bastard Bastard Bastard.
Previously: 2nd Annual Punk Rock Picnic offers venue for music fans to hear original local music
Southern rock band 38 Special, as they did in 2022, once again packed the house at Batavia Downs on Friday evening.
When you find there isn't much of a punk rock scene in your hometown, you create your own. That's the DIY ethic of the punk movement, after all.
That's the inspiration behind the second annual Punk Rock Picnic on Sunday in Genesee County Park & Forest.
"We come from Batavia, and we don't really fit in the Rochester scene or the Buffalo scene," said Ronald Ratulowski, one of the organizers of the picnic. "I'm old enough to know we're not going to create a scene in Batavia so this our scene."
There will be five bands playing on Sunday, the two Ratulowski plays in, Cowboy Vampires and Election Day, plus two bands from Buffalo, Space Cowboys and Bastard Bastard Bastard, and a fifth band, Privatized Air.
"We've played with the bands in Buffalo and liked them and wanted them to join our party," Ratulowski said.
The picnic starts at 11 a.m. in Pavilion 2, with the first band taking the stage at 1 p.m. Each band will play an hour-long set.
Ratulowski and fellow Cowboy Vampire Chris Humel worked together to organize the event.
There aren't many venues in Batavia that book bands playing original music so this is a chance for people to come out to the park and hear local bands playing their own songs, Ratulowski said.
"They can hear music they might not otherwise hear," Ratulowski said.
Submitted photos from 2023.
A young rock star -- shades of Elvis Presley -- is about to enter the Army after being drafted, and his manager needs to cash in on him one more time so he can get out of debt, return to college to become an English teacher and marry his sweetheart.
That story, set to song, is the plot of the classic musical Bye Bye Birdie, which the cast of Batavia Players will present this weekend at 56 Main Street Theater in Downtown Batavia.
It's the story of Albert Peterson, a mild-mannered young man with a talent for writing hit songs but none of the guile of Tom Parker, who has helped Conrad Birdie achieve stardom. His girlfriend, Rose Alvarez, wants Albert to exit the music business and return to his initial passion, writing, and become the English teacher and all the stability that represents, as he originally planned.
Albert is distressed when Birdie is drafted, but Rose sees this turn of events as a golden opportunity. She encourages Albert to write a hit song, "The Last Kiss," and get Birdie on national TV kissing one of his fan club members goodbye.
Hilarity and entertainment ensue.
The musical is set in the early 1960s, with Batavia Players' sets and costumes being period-perfect.
Showtimes are Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. For more information and tickets, visit bataviaplayers.org.
Classic rock fans certainly got an earful at Batavia Downs on Friday night with what essentially a double headline of a Tom Petty tribute band and a Fleetwood Mac tribute band entertained an estimated 4,500 concertgoers.
Practically Petty took the stage at 6:30 p.m. with a near-note-perfect performance of classics from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, including a few deep tracks.
Then, Rumors ALT took the stage and delivered a satisfying dose of Fleetwood Mac hits.
Photos by Howard Owens
Friday's musical entertainment at the Genesee County Fair was the Rochester-based band BB Dang.
Photos by Debra Reilly
The Bacon Brothers, touring in support of their fifth studio album, Ballad of the Brothers, stopped at Batavia Downs on Friday night.
Brothers Kevin Bacon, famed actor, and Michael Bacon, an Emmy-winning songwriter, formed their duo 30 years ago.
Their sound is solidly Americana, and their songwriting has earned them a strong fanbase.
Previously: Bacon Brothers celebrate 30 years of music with new album and upcoming tour
Photos by Nick Serrata.
Playing a set of classic rock and country hits, the Rochester-based band Another Vice entertained fairgoers on Thursday evening at the Genesee County Fair.
Photos by Howard Owens.
The Eagles tribute band, Eaglez, kicked off this week's live music entertainment at the Genesee County Fair on Saturday.
The coming week's fair entertainment:
Photos by Howard Owens.
It was about four months ago when Joey Pero played an alumni concert at Batavia High School and ended up in talks about doing a little something for Batavia Concert Band’s centennial season this year.
A collaborative discussion with band manager Jason Smith and band conductor John Bailey resulted in more than a little something, as Pero, a 1999 BHS graduate who went on to make a name for himself as a talented trumpet player and most recently went on tour with Jesus Christ Superstar, reached beyond merely playing a piece for the concert.
“And they said, ‘Well, what would you like to play?’ And I was just, I kind of mulled it over, and I said, 'Well, geez, you know, we have an alma mater song called Ever Batavia I remember playing in graduation. And why don't I do something really specific to Batavia for the 100th anniversary?' And you know, the more I thought about it, the more it kind of unwound in my head. And the more research I did, there are actually two alma maters. One was written in 1901 by Leslie Coryell, and it's called the blue and white. And then Hoyt Irwin wrote Ever Batavia in 1938. And that's been pretty much the song that is played at graduations, our alma mater events,” Pero said to The Batavian. “So after doing this research about the two, I said, well, I'm gonna write a piece for the concert band and weave these two pieces together kind of like a mash-up.
"And, you know, I wanted to also make the solo part easy for an intermediate level person so that at the conclusion of this concert Wednesday, I'll actually gift the piece to not only the Batavia Concert Band but the Batavia High School archives, so maybe in the future for the bicentennial they can play this piece," he said. "I wrote it with that in mind as well, that it would maybe have some forward life in the future.”
He took the 1901 piece, “The Blue and White,” written by W. Leslie Coryell, and “Ever Batavia,” written by Hoyt Irwin in 1938 and created a brand new piece for the band to celebrate two different decades, time periods and songs that were composed in contrasting tempos. Wednesday’s concert at 7 p.m. in Centennial Park will debut “Ever Blue and White,” a three-minute and 20-second composition by Joey Pero.
“No one's really done anything like that, for these pieces of music are two pretty standard types of pieces you would hear at any school, but I kind of gave it some cool elements and some cool counter lines and some sonorities that I think the band can really handle well and play the heck out of. So, for those who don't know, the concert band practices on Tuesday, the repertoire on Tuesday and performs it on Wednesday, so it's not like they're rehearsing this for months on end or weeks on end. It's really like a sight reading thing and then a performance the next day, and certainly, I'm looking forward to hearing this come to life,” he said. “You sit behind a computer and put these notes on a page. And you know, it plays back on a computer … so it's computerized sound. But the magic is really when they play the first note and that gives lift to the piece of music. So I'm looking forward to that the most.”
The rain location is at Stuart Steiner Theatre on the Genesee Community College campus, 1 College Road, Batavia. Inclement weather has pushed the musicians out to GCC the last two weeks, but Pero and band members, including band manager Jason Smith, are keeping fingers crossed for a clear-skied park performance this week.
“We are excited to have Joey join the Batavia Concert Band as we continue to celebrate our centennial anniversary! Joey was a proud member of the Band, and I was personally and musically thrilled when he returned to our hometown this past year,” Smith said. “Conductor John Bailey and I have enjoyed collaborating with him for this concert on Wednesday, and his presence and the special piece he composed for the Concert Band will be a special honor and is not to be missed — let's hope for no rain! Many of us, including me, have followed and appreciated Joey's musical career over the years, and for him to write a song incorporating the Batavia High School alma mater is indeed special.”
Pero is on a hiatus from the musical world, he said, since his contract with Jesus Christ Superstar ended in summer 2022 and he moved back to Batavia and launched his first AirBnB. Business has been booming, and the two-unit property has been booked ever since he began to advertise it, he said.
Visitors have come to stay from California, Indiana, Florida, Canada, New Jersey, Russia, and as nearby as Rochester, either for a relaxing staycation or to go see Darien Lake, Batavia Downs, Letchworth State Park or to get a glimpse of the eclipse in Genesee County, he said.
Of course, visitors could also attend a free concert every Wednesday, and Pero, who played in the group from 1997 to 1999, can attest to the quality of the Batavia Concert Band.
“It’s a damn good band; they sounded great,” he said of the last concert at GCC.
He described the process of taking this song through “various dynamics and tempos and time signatures.”
“I’ve morphed it into different time signatures and different tempos and I also interwove the two together. So if you listen carefully, you can hear one, and you can hear the other one kind of hinting in the background,” he said. So it's kind of cool how I mashed it up and was able to fit both in with both of them being so different at the same time. There's a beautiful intro to the tune with trilling flutes, clarinets, and piccolos, and the French horns come in with this Blue and White melody, and then the trombones come under it with Ever Batavia. So you can tell right off the bat here that both of the tunes are kind of infused in the introduction.
“I really hope the band enjoys playing it. There are some challenging parts, and I highlighted at least one section each of the band,” he said. “So there’s some moments for the percussion, there’s some moments for the French horns, the trombones, the clarinets certainly and the flutes certainly.”
He credits Josh Pacino for being a tremendous help with the archive search for the songs, which allowed Pero “to gain perspective on these two pieces of music,” he said.
The Red Hot Chili Peppers hit the stage hot at Darien Lake Performing Arts Center on a steamy Saturday night with an instrumental jam that featured Flea's funky slap baselines, Chad Smith's pounding beat, and John Frusciante's sizzling fretwork.
Then Anthony Kiedis took the stage and kicked things up a notch.
The LA-based punk/funk band ran through 18 songs on the night, both hits and deep tracks, pulling material from most of their 13 studio albums released since 1984, including Blood Sugar Sex Magik, Californication, Stadium Arcadium, and their two most recent releases, Unlimited Love and Return of the Dream Canteen.
"Eddie" is Frusciante's tribute to one of his guitar heroes, Eddie Van Halen, and it is a standout track on Dream Canteen. From the same album, they also played "Carry Me Home." From Unlimited Love, they featured the opening track "Black Summer" and Kliedis's name-dropping ode to the LA music scene of his youth, "Aquatic Mouth Dance," which opens with one of Flea's greatest bass riffs.
Reliable fan favorites in the set included "Suck My Kiss" and "Californication."
The Peppers also included two covers of the Ramones: "I Remember You" and "Havana Affair."
The biggest hits, "Under the Bridge" and "Give It Away," were saved for the encore.
The opener on Friday was LA-based psychedelic rock band Wand, which is currently on tour supporting its fifth studio album, Vertigo.
Singer and lead guitarist Cory Hanson, with a David Byrne-like wiryness, is an impressive musician and strong presence on stage. Unfortunately, the set was marred by a poor mix. The bass guitar and kick drum dominated and overwhelmed everything else coming from the stage, making the mix muddled and suppressing most sense of melody from the songs. That's a shame because a check of a couple of the band's releases indicates they strike the right tone to potentially win over Chili Pepper fans.
Country music superstar Chris Stapelton's All-American Road Show passed through Darien Lake Performing Arts Center on Thursday. Also on the bill, Marcus King and Nikki Lane.
There’s no question that Rachel Blecha knows dance since she practically grew up on her toes, dancing at her mom Jody’s studio in Attica before joining the locally esteemed David DeMarie Dance Studio at age 6, later renting space for her own place in Alden before meeting up with Fusion Dance in Le Roy.
Fusion’s owner, Kristin Alquist, and Blecha joined forces and taught together at yet another well-known studio, Images in Dance, in Batavia, before Blecha, 41, decided it was time for a resurgence of her own.
“It has been the only life I’ve known since I was 2. It’s my heart, It’s always been my outlet,” Blecha said to The Batavian. “I had a stroke at 30; it’s what got me through. It’s always been an outlet; I’ve had eight years trying to figure it out …With monthly chemo and infusions. I’m now stabilized, and I am now the best I’ve ever felt, dancing and teaching, and my kids are teaching.”
Enter Resurgence Dance, located at the former Fusion Dance Studio at 110 W. Main St. in Le Roy. Blecha wanted to focus more on training lessons and less on the choreography, she said. So if a student was taking a jazz class, “we do strength training, we do all the stretching techniques,” Blecha said. “They really need to learn more about their bodies, so it prevents injuries and things like that.”
“So we focus more on the training side, and we do fewer routines,” she said. “So in the long run, it saves parents a lot of money because they’re not buying 15 costumes for 15 different dances. We just focus and do what they’re best at and then maybe two and three routines.”
She also offers a pre-professional program, which includes auditions for competitive programs.
“Pre-professional is geared for the dancer who wants to continue on in the professional world. My older daughter teaches and does choreography and plans to continue in college,” she said of her daughter Macey.
“It’s a difficult world to get into. Dance has spun completely, professionally you may go into dance team … there are thousands and thousands and thousands going for 20 spots. When we go to nationals, there are 200 of the best dancers throughout the country, competing to get in the top 20 overall.”
Auditions are a must for any dancer to be considered for the competition program and nationals. It’s a huge deal to go to nationals, which her troupe of seven students recently did — traveling to Orlando, Fla., for two weeks. The whole purpose was not just about winning as it was to learn choreography and how to compete properly, take a class and teach proper technique, she said.
“A lot of that is what I’ve learned over the years, “ she said.
Her younger daughter Preslee also dances and teaches little ones, ages 2 to 4, and Macey’s goal is to work professionally in the field and then eventually return to join her mom at Resurgence, Blecha said.
Alquist has remained to teach one night a week, and staff also includes Miranda Spyropoulos and Rachel Bieron.
Blecha created the Resurgence Dance program two years ago with what she considers to be a unique approach into the dance industry — focusing on intense dance training. She now attends various conventions and competitions nationally with her daughters and students.
It’s not the same studio that it once was — Blecha completely flipped it in 10 days, giving it a New York City vibe, she said. Her landlord, Guy Pellegrino, “has been amazing” in helping out the renovation process with a new floor and all-new electricity, which is “really nice,” she said.
She’s thankful not only for her good health but also for the support of husband Michael and her father Tim Lutey, the ones that assisted with the physical labor in the studio and day-to-day needs.
“My dad was in this with mom for years, and my husband is learning the ropes, the things that have to get moved, mats, props, things that have to get cleaned,” she said. “It definitely would not have happened if not for their support. I didn’t think my husband thought his world would be surrounded by two girls and dance.
Her classes are for dancers aged 2 to adults, and schedules run through August.
“Dance is truly an art form that we like to share with others,“ she said. “It’s a release, an outlet for a lot of kids and adults, probably the best training you can get yourself in. Overall, this program is a vision I had several years ago. With Kristin approaching me, I thought, this is the right time. My focus is different: to show kids, get them prepared for the dance world, or for them to just have fun.”
She plans to have a couple of open houses in August. Details will be on her website at resurgencedance.com
There will be an audition for any dancer interested in competitive dancing on Monday. Times will be from 6 to 7 p.m. for ages 5 to 10 and from 7 to 8:30 p.m. for ages 11 and older.
Canadian rock band April Wine headlined a packed crowd in the Friday night summer concert series at Batavia Downs Casino on Friday evening.
Members formed the band in 1969, based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. From its inception, the band was led by singer-guitarist-songwriter Myles Goodwyn, who died in 2023. Brian Greenway now fronts the band.
On Record, an album released in 1972, reached the Top 40 in Canada and yielded two hit singles: a cover of Elton John's "Bad Side of the Moon” and a cover of Hot Chocolates' “You Could Have Been a Lady.”
Currently on a US and Canadian tour through the summer, you can find more details on their website www.aprilwine.ca
To view or purchase photos, click here.
A new event that many who attended, including the organizers, hope will return in future years premiered in Jackson Square on Friday night, the night before the Ramble Music and Arts Fest.
It was an open mic for local musicians and an open art session for local visual artists.
More than 200 people attended, and more musicians than time available signed up to sing and play.
Jo David Arts and Iburi Photography presented the event.
Jo David Arts is a partnership between local artists Mary Jo Whitman and Brian Kemp. Iburi is a photography studio on Jackson Street that started hosting increasingly popular open mic sessions about five months ago.
"We're excited to bring this event to Jackson Square," Whitman said. "This is a great opportunity for local performers and artists to showcase their work and connect with the community in a fun and supportive environment."
The open art night is an extension of the First Fridays Open Art event at GO ART!, which was created by Kemp, who compared the event to a pick-up game of basketball.
"You just get together," Kemp said. "Like, I never got together with anybody and done art before until I had this idea, 'Well, I play basketball with other people, why can't I do art with people?' We're all working on our own thing, but sometimes we'll do collabs where somebody works on something that somebody else works on the same thing."
The Ramble started at 10 a.m. on Saturday and runs until 10 p.m., with music on two stages -- Jackson Square and Jackson Street. There will also be art and artists, activities, and food and beverages.
For a lineup of musical acts playing the Ramble this year, click here.
To view or purchase photos, click, here.
Barracuda, a Heart tribute band, certainly did Rock the Downs on Friday evening with a spot-on recreation of the class rock band's sound.
The band is led by Shareen Ann King, a Rochester native and currently a Nashville resident. She delivers an excellent, Ann Wilson-like vocal.
Jennifer Janet is on rhythm guitar, and Chris Reynolds plays lead guitar.
Photos by Howard Owens.
A weekend of art and music kicks off a week from today, Friday, July 5, with an open mic and open art session in Jackson Square.
Then, on Saturday, July 6, the 2024 Ramble Music and Arts Fest will celebrate the music and art of Genesee County and the region.
The events on Friday are hosted by Iburi Photography, Jo David Arts, and GO ART!
Musicians are encouraged to arrive starting at 5:30 for the open mic, which starts at 6 p.m. and runs until 9 p.m. Following the open mic, Scotty DiMartino of Esdee Entertainment will close the night with music and a light show.
GO ART! is bringing its "First Friday Open Art Session" to Jackson Square that evening. Artists of all media are invited to bring their latest pieces or start new ones. While tables will be set up for convenience, artists are welcome to bring their easels and create in the open air.
The free event is open to the public.
The Ramble features 26 performers on two stages -- the main (and newly constructed) stage in Jackson Square and on a stage on Jackson Street.
Jackson Street will be closed for the day. It is were attendees can find artists' booths, vendors, and food.
Here is the lineup for the two stages:
Jackson Square Stage
Jackson Street Stage (On the corner of Jackon St. and School St.)
James Taylor, the maker of such hits as Fire and Rain, You've Got a Friend, and Sweet Baby James, performed on Tuesday at the Darien Lake Performing Arts Center.
Photos by Howard Owens.
Smash Mouth brought more than a decade's worth of hits and some poppin' new tunes to Batavia Downs on Friday night.
The set ranged from monster hits like Walking on the Sun, I'm a Believer, and All Star to their latest single, Ride On, which kept the crowd dancing and smiling throughout the performance.
Previously: Smash Mouth rides the next wave of 'Classic Rock' into Batavia Downs on June 21
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