The palpable, wall-to-wall energy emanating from a recent sold-out crowd at WTMD’s Towson studio was unmistakable. It was the kind that almost certainly leads to a well-earned nap later that day.
“Can you hold your air guitar out like this?” Brooklyn, N.Y.-based performer Joanie Leeds asked the bouncing crowd, who quickly followed her lead by striking camera-ready poses.
This was no ordinary concert for the Towson University public radio station, more known for its indie-rock playlists and events that draw the over-21 crowd. Last month, though, WTMD launched Saturday Morning Tunes, a concert series geared toward children. (The next concert, headlined by 123 Andrés, takes place Saturday.)
Strumming her acoustic guitar, Leeds inspired about 100 kids to sing and clap along. Parents, seated on the floor, wore big smiles and encouraged the children to unlock their inner “rock stars.” In between songs, boys and girls drank juice boxes and milk and snacked on fig bars and fruit strips, all of which were included in the admission price.
Judging by crowd reaction and participation, the concert series has addressed a WTMD blind spot that Sam Sessa, the station’s Baltimore music coordinator and a father of two, noticed after talking with other parents at local children’s events.
They wished they could come to WTMD’s events, they’d say, but timing was difficult. The station’s “Live Lunch“ series is at noon — “right before nap time,” Sessa said — and the early-evening First Thursdays series in Canton is the “witching hour” for kids.
The latest indie-rock acts to participate in Pulse — the concert series from the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Towson University public radio station WTMD — include Houndmouth, Brett Dennen, Lake Street Dive and Baltimore’s Lower Dens, organizers announced this morning.
Indiana-based trio and…
The latest indie-rock acts to participate in Pulse — the concert series from the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Towson University public radio station WTMD — include Houndmouth, Brett Dennen, Lake Street Dive and Baltimore’s Lower Dens, organizers announced this morning.
Indiana-based trio and…
“I thought, ‘Why don’t we do a concert series just for kids?’” said Sessa, a former Baltimore Sun editor. “There are listeners who have come of age and gotten married and now have small kids. It’s basically a generation of people [who’ve] grown up listening to WTMD.”
Sessa said the first two Saturday Morning Tunes installments — a “test run” with the local six-piece band Milkshake last April and the Leeds show — sold out, which gave the station confidence to plan more concerts. WTMD also broadcasts the sets live.
On March 18, the Baltimore beat-boxing duo Baby Beats will perform, and the station plans to add one concert each in April and May, Sessa said. (Dates and artists are still to be determined.)
So far, Sessa said, he’s thrilled by the response.
“We had around 100 kids in the room and everything goes smoothly. What are the odds?” Sessa said with a laugh.
The series’ next artist is 123 Andrés (pronounced “Uno, Dos, Tres Andrés”), the bilingual Washington-based duo of Andrés Salguero and his wife, Christina Sanabria. Their most recent album, “Arriba Abajo,” won the best Latin children’s album at November’s Latin Grammy Awards.
The video for 123 Andrés’ "Dame una A," from his album "Arriba Abajo," which won the 2016 Latin Grammy for best Latin children’s album. (Photo credit: Dario Treviño)
The video for 123 Andrés’ “Dame una A,” from his album “Arriba Abajo,” which won the 2016 Latin Grammy for best Latin children’s album. (Photo credit: Dario Treviño)
Performing songs in Spanish and English, Salguero said part of his goal is to introduce young ears to unfamiliar vocabulary in an engaging way.
From ages 1 to 5, “we can’t fully express everything we learn, but we are totally absorbing everything, and so much is through the ears,” Salguero said on the phone last week, traveling through Texas. “Children learn to talk and learn the complexities of grammar and language only by listening.”
A native of Colombia who plays guitar, saxophone and clarinet, Salguero said parents often notice the value of 123 Andrés’ bilingual approach.
“They’re raising their kids, and they want them to connect with their own heritage or connect with other cultures that are going to be around them for the rest of their lives,” Salguero said. “I got an email from a [Venezuelan-born mother] saying that thanks to our music, her child was not ashamed of speaking Spanish anymore. She was excited about Spanish.”
The key to creating effective children’s music, Salguero said, is to not dumb down the message. Kids often don’t get enough credit for what they comprehend, he said.
“It’s about really [viewing] children as serious listeners. We don’t need to take shortcuts when we do art,” he said. “The listening power of children is amazing.”
On Saturday, Sessa will wear two hats — as a host and a dad — just as he did for Leeds’ performance, when he was joined in the audience by his wife and two children (ages 3 and 2). Seeing his kids and their peers enjoy themselves in a setting typically made for adults further solidified the event’s success, he said.
“As a parent who loves live music, you kind of want your kids to love live music, too. So to see that was just so heartwarming,” Sessa said. “We do all of these shows for adults at the station, so it’s really refreshing to see one for a waist-high audience.”
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