Bands galore convene for a Saturday showcase at Tipperary Hill’s Pass Arboretum
By Jessica Zurell
Tipperary Hill bleeds more emerald than orange. It’s where the Guinness never runs out, the Blarney Stone tavern’s crowds spill outdoors on warm nights and trees at the Pass Arboretum beckon with outstretched limbs. On Saturday, Sept. 24, noon to 7 p.m., the fifth annual Tipp Hill Music Fest celebrates the arrival of autumn with food, music and a strong sense of community.
The Alternative To Retail Shopping The West Side festival takes place at the Pass Arboretum, diagonal from the Burnet Park entrance, on the corner of Salisbury and Avery avenues. It’s one of several parks in the area where organizers Ed Zacholl, Mike Lounsbery and Joe Henson formed some of the fondest memories of their youth.
“Growing up here, we used to practically live in these parks,” Zacholl wistfully recalls. “When we were first thinking the festival out, we always wanted it to be outside at {the Arboretum}. Even if the weather is bad, we’ll keep it in the parks and just move it to the ice rink at Burnet Park.”
Keeping the fest outdoors was a key priority the team established when they sat around Zacholl’s weathered basement bar to plan the first event. “We loved festivals,” Zacholl says, “so we just thought, why not have one here in the park? We brainstormed all of our best ideas and pitched the whole thing to Syracuse Parks and Recreation, who we thought for sure would never let us do it. But they were actually huge supporters. The first year was a real knockout.”
With more than 3,000 people in attendance for the 2007 inaugural Tipp Hill Music Fest, the three men knew their organizational methods were effective. The fact that the weather cooperated—as it has every year since—was a bonus. Yet having a sunny venue is only half of the music fest’s success story. As for the other half, attendees need only to open their ears.
As band mates in The Z-Bones, Zacholl and Lounsbery intended to give other local musicians a chance to showcase their skills. So they assembled a 12-mem-ber committee in order to help decide the festival schedule. “We wanted an honest opinion,” Zacholl notes. “When we organize it each year, bands submit themselves online, then everyone votes on their ultimate stage lineup. Our main criteria are that the bands play mostly original music, are working bands as opposed to old buddies having a reunion, and that they have a connection to the neighborhood.”
This year’s slate includes Nate & Kate, The Tipp Hillbillies, Causeway Giants, The Super Delinquents and White Picket Fence, the latter earning Best New Artist and Best Pop CD kudos at the 2010 Syracuse Area Music Awards (Sammys). Zacholl and Lounsbury first approached the budding stars about playing the show while the group was still in high school. Now they’ll be one of the 15 acts to play on one of the festival’s five stages.
“The fest isn’t entirely original music, because we do also have some traditional Irish music,” Lounsbery says. “But the bottom line is that great music is great music.
We want the lineup to be diverse and family-friendly, something the kids from the neighborhood can enjoy, and so could my mother. That’s the sense of community the festival is all about.”
Lounsbery and Zacholl’s shared passion for music goes further than just bringing the neighbors together for a September Saturday. As the festival’s financial success continues to climb each year, it has now become a 501c not-for-profit as well, which created an opportunity for the festival committee to award scholarships for aspiring youth who can’t afford music lessons. Lounsbury can relate: In grade school he pooled cash with a few comrades to buy a copy of The Beatles Complete Scores songbook. So he readily identifies with community youth who may not have the chance to pursue their musical dreams.
“Guitar Center donated a guitar to us last year to raffle off,” Zacholl says. “My favorite Tipp Hill Music Fest moment was seeing a young kid from Tennyson {Avenue} win that guitar. He was beaming from ear to ear, and because he got that guitar, he was able to start taking lessons. It’s nice that we get to help kids who are like we were. Some kid might go on to pursue music in the long run because they got lessons.”
Candidates for this year’s scholarships entered online, with winners to be announced at the festival. And while the music scholarships are available to the younger generation, vendors and musicians are chosen to appeal to the entire family. Although the far West Side has a wealth of Irish history, the Tipp Hill Music Fest is not an Irish festival, Lounsbery stresses. For every act such as the Tom Dooley Choraliers that leans heavily on the tartan-clad side of sound, there will be other bands that pay tribute to the growing diversity of art and music on Tipperary Hill. Among the many performers will be Blue Sky Mission Club, Donna Colton and the Troublemakers, Wendy Ramsay, Mere Mortals, Sirsy and the DeSantis Orchestra.“We’re really looking to foster that sense of community and pride,” Lounsbery explains. “In this economy, people start to tighten their belts, but it’s important to get out and have a good time.” For more information, visit www.tipphillmusicfest. org or call 299-4415.
