MS CHEAP

Library's lunchtime Courtyard Concerts take place every Tuesday

Mary Hance
mscheap@tennessean.com

This is the final week for the wonderful free lunchtime Courtyard Concerts at the downtown Library: And the final band, which will play Tuesday Oct. 7 at 11: 45 a.m. is the San Rafael Band. a Latin jazz band that fuses its sound with salsa, blues and rock.

I come from a time when libraries were places for shushing and whispers, not live and loud bluegrass, swing and salsa music.

But modern-day libraries like ours in Nashville are seeing music as a way to attract new patrons and familiarize them with the array of services and programs offered by the library.

The popular Nashville Public Library Courtyard Concerts series has been going on for weeks. The informal Tuesday lunchtime series, which is funded by the Nashville Public Library Foundation, includes everything from bluegrass and blues to salsa and swing, plus country and classical, as well as one slot featuring some local songwriters.

The line up has been great..... Marshall Chapman, David Olney, Riders in the Sky, San Rafael Band, Annie Sellick, Mr. Sipp, Mandy Barnett and others — all free.

Elyse Adler, associate director for community engagement for the Nashville Public Library, said the series not only promotes the library's mission to serve as a community connector but also is an effective way to heighten awareness of the good and useful services our library system has to offer.

"Music is a language everyone can relate to. It has been a great lure to people who would never come through our doors. And then we can better acquaint them with the library and let them know about our programs," she said, noting that the concerts include library card sign-up opportunities and details on upcoming library programs.

Reaching out

The idea for the concerts came from former Library Foundation board member David Tune, who believed a series of diverse live music could reach a lot of nontraditional library patrons, including our growing Hispanic and African-American communities.

"The library was good at getting people who already were readers, but we wanted to get to people who were not used to coming to the library," said Tune, who personally funded the concert series the first year and has supported it ever since.

His vision has definitely become a reality. Adler says that each week anywhere from 400 to 700 people show up to hear the music and often enjoy or learn about other library programs while they are there.

"We expect 3,000 to 4,000 people in attendance over the series. And they are from all walks of life. Once people are enticed by a particular musician or band, they have so much fun that they continue to come back. I think we really have created a civic meeting place," she said, adding that the concerts, which are now funded by the Library Foundation, are a "great example of how the foundation supports what we do."

"What I like to offer is a little something for everybody," said concert coordinator Elaine Wood, who books the concerts. "I think about who all is out there at the concerts, people in business suits, moms with children, people who waltz around the courtyard. We want them to all enjoy it and come back.

"It has to have mass appeal — nothing too far out and edgy, but then we do have John Jorgenson Bluegrass (Tuesday), which is super pickers. I mean, he has played with Bob Dylan and Elton John. The music is innovative, not your run-of-the-mill bluegrass."

Another exciting new act on the schedule is Mr. Sipp, the "Mississippi blues child." Castro Coleman, aka Mr. Sipp, has "made a big splash in Memphis. He just won the 30th International Blues Challenge where 250 acts competed. People here will love him," said Wood.

The concerts also are a perfect use for the library's lovely second-floor courtyard.

"It is like a little oasis in the middle of downtown," Adler said, noting that there is folding-chair seating as well as plenty of places in the courtyard to sit or stand.

The concerts, which officially run from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m., have the kind of informal and relaxed atmosphere where people of all ages and backgrounds come and go as their time permits.

Attendees can bring their lunch or buy food from one of the downtown restaurants or from one of the food trucks that are new to the event this year.

See you in the courtyard! Stay cheap!

Reach Ms. Cheap at 615-259-8282. Follow her at www.tennessean.com/mscheap, at Facebook.com/mscheap and on Twitter @Ms_Cheap, and catch her every Thursday at 11 a.m. on WTVF-Channel 5's "Talk of the Town."

Good to know: In case of rain, the concert moves inside. And the library's parking garage is free for the first hour and a half if you get your ticket stamped.

For more information about the NPL Courtyard Concerts, visit http://nashvillepubliclibrary.org/courtyardconcerts.
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