Luther College students Lindsay Sheridan and Dan Fernelius were bored one day.
Est. 1961
Ha. Just kidding. Between playing in orchestras and chamber ensembles at Luther, interning with various arts organizations, composing music, being involved in many, many activities at Luther, and, of course, classes, for some reason these seniors decided to take on a whole new endeavor: Create a community music series. It’s a pretty ambitious project for anyone, let alone a couple of really busy college students “You’re right, it is ambitious – a little crazy – but that’s why we love working on it!” says Lindsay. The Water Street Music Series (WSMS) started from a “big, crazy idea” and has come to fruition as a concert series that will bring together local musicians – both community members and Luther College-based – for fun musical collaborations in different venues throughout Luther and downtown Decorah. The series highlights everything from tango to bluegrass to jazz and is driven by “passion, enthusiasm, and the belief that the music we have in this little valley is worth sharing.” Plus, both Lindsay and Dan hope to make the arts part of their livelihood post-college, and what better way to learn about the steps needed to run an arts organization – crafting events, raising money, marketing to the community, etc – than by creating one? So they brainstormed, started meeting with movers and shakers in the area, and talked to musicians about their vision. “We asked, ‘Who would you love to see perform in Decorah and how can we present them in a way that really makes the concert something outstanding?’” Dan says. They hatched themed ideas, like February’s concert featuring couples and this fall’s “Coming Home Again” with well-known area or once area-based musicians Ellen Rockne, Erik Sessions, John Goodin, and Kathy Reed, then they landed Driftless Art Collective as fiscal sponsors, designed a logo and a website, and went door-to-door to businesses on Water Street, telling them more about the series.
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Seriously. How did they find the time? “There are always enough hours in the day and enough time to accomplish what you want, and sometimes need to accomplish,” Dan says. “College is the time to really push yourself to see what you are capable of.” Lindsay jumps in,“So, I mean, why not start a local music series!? This is truly just something we feel needs to be done – so we figured we are the people to do it. We are so excited to tackle this fun and exciting endeavor!” Inspire(d) caught up with them while they were at their summer internships – Lindsay at Virginia-based Wolf Trap and Dan at Interlochen Arts Camp in Michigan – to chat some more about the making of a music series.
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Tell us about the Series – why did you decide to launch a music series like this in Decorah? What was the “idea light bulb” moment? Lindsay: Dan approached me last winter with an Dan and Lindsay. Photo by Emily Voss. idea for a series in town that would get Luther students playing in the community, and I had been mulling over a way to have classical chamber music in interesting places around Decorah. Dan: It was our intention to create events that got music outside of the traditional concert hall and created collaborations between musicians who typically don’t perform together. With so much
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