"Amplifying" Midd's music scene New student organization encourages artistic diversity

Author: Lauren Budzyna

By the end of last year, Conor Sheldon '06 and his band Larson had toured all over New England and played 17 shows, but they had practically ruined his friend's car by lugging heavy equipment all across the Northeast. By the same time last year, Sheldon had come across scores of musical Middlebury students who were looking for guitarists, drummers or vocalists for their bands, but who had no network of musicians from which to start. He had found substantial support for the idea of building a recording studio on campus, but there was no centralized group who could work together to make it a reality.

By the beginning of this year, Sheldon had written out a three-page constitution for the College's newest student organization: the Middlebury Musicians Guild (MMG).

"The MMG is an organization that aims to, and pardon the horrible pun, 'amplify' the music scene at Middlebury," said Sheldon of the club that became official at the end of last week. Before it had even become official, the club had tallied 35 members who ranged from every Middlebury class. While there are already over 20 musical groups on campus, the MMG will be one overarching organization that can bring them all together.

"Many members are additionally in campus organizations such as WRMC or MCAB, bands, a cappella groups or perhaps nothing else at all," said Sheldon. "But we all share at least one strong common bond: a passion for music."

The purpose of the MMG is to bring together musicians of every type under one umbrella group. "The MMG can be a sounding board for Middlebury's musicians," continued Sheldon. "It can be a place where musician's can find a band, it can be an arena in which one may choose to talk about issues in the world of music...the list goes on."

Anna Curtis '06, vice president of the MMG, stressed that the organization promotes unity among musicians, rather than competition. "There is no specific type of music that the guild focuses on," she pointed out, so members of the guild can come together "whether they are involved in classical music, folk, jazz, rock, heavy metal or a cappella."

Together, members could share access to resources such as College vans for off-campus gigs, performance space for shows, financial backing and a wide network of other musicians.

The creation of a recording studio at Middlebury is a central goal and source of inspiration for the MMG. As they represent a significant part of the student body, a large coalition of musicians has the potential to commit to making the studio a reality. One of the first objectives for the club is to complete a cost-analysis for this project.

"One branch of the guild is the 'Recording Club' that is composed of students interested in learning the 'ins-and-outs' of studio work," said Sheldon. "By amassing a group of interested students, we will soon have ably-trained, interested students who are proficient in the technical aspects of a recording studio and who could then run such equipment."

Sheldon also pointed out that the existence of a recording facility on campus would make Middlebury an even more attractive option for prospective students, benefiting the school itself as well as the student body.

The guild meets at 6:30 p.m. in the Ross Fireplace Lounge every other Wednesday and plans to put together a Web site in the near future. Sheldon pictures a day when the MMG logo will be both campus-wide symbol that will back up the endeavors of all its members and an engine for the completion of a great new campus facility. In the meantime, however, MMG members can sit back in the College vans on the way to their next gig and enjoy the ride.