BY NANCY BURNS-FUSARO SUN STAFF WRITER
WESTERLY — While the Knickerbocker Music Center may be dark and the doors shut tight due to the coronavirus pandemic, the blues is alive and well and just waiting for some mojo to get working.
And while there may be no live music being played inside the iconic birthplace of Roomful of Blues, there's quite a bit going on behind the closed doors.
"The Knick will be back," said Mark Connolly, the music center's president, Tuesday morning in a telephone interview. "We just hope ... for now ...everyone stays safe and stays inside."
"We can't wait to get the place reopened," said Connolly. "This is a time when people need music more than ever."
Connolly, who was speaking from his home in Stonington, was joined on the phone call by musician Glenn Kendzia, a longtime Knick associate who's living in Nashville these days. Kendzia, a songwriter and frontman of the alternative rock band Wild Sun, has worked in a number of capacities at the Knick over the years, from Tap Room bartender to social media and PR guy to waiter, booking agent and co-founder of the Knick Collective.
These days, he's working working with Connolly to make sure the Knick remains a vital part of the region's music scene. The two men have also been working with the Knick's sister organization, the United Theatre, and the theater's artistic director, Tony Nunes, to find new ways to collaborate and help local musicians find audiences.
On Wednesday night, for instance, while the United streamed "Once We Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and the Band" — the film inspired by Robertson’s 2017 bestselling memoir, "Testimony" — during their Virtual Screening event, the Knick added an archived video of their house band, The Knick Collective, performing "The Wait."
Connolly and Kendzia are also putting together some virtual shows they'll eventually post on the Knick's Facebook page. "Tap Room" shows will feature original acoustic acts and "Main Stage" concerts will feature some nationally-known musicians and bands.
Kendzia said he has also created a new Knick series that he's producing and taping from Nashville.
Describing the series as part of the Knick's "educational outreach" program, Kendzia said he plans to interview music-industry professionals in a show set to debut Monday, April 13, at 3 p.m.
Although he's still pondering an official name for the series, he's got the first three interviews taped and ready to go.
Up first is Olivia Management founder Erin Anderson, an artist manager who led former clients the Secret Sisters to a Grammy nomination for Best Folk Album in 2018 and Amanda Shires to an "Americana Awards Nomination" and eventual win for Best Emerging Artist in 2017.
Kendzia's next guest will be Producer Jordan Lehning.
"It's a nice way to help other musicians," said Kendzia who plans to ask his guests for tips and advice about the business of music at the beginning of the show and leave time for a question-and-answer segment at the end. The shows will be archived for future reference, he said.
"I think we all need help with the business part," said Kendzia. "Like when it's time to get a manager."
Connolly said another successful collaboration with the United has been the "Youth On-the-Mic" event that had been taking place at the Knick in pre-coronavirus days. The program — designed exclusively for middle and high school student musicians — moved online for its late March show and featured 13 young performers playing music from their home. Renamed the "Live From Home" edition, the show has attracted roughly 2,000 viewers.
Connolly said student musicians in grades 6 though 12 who perform, sing, or play music — whether original or covers — are invited to take a video of a performance of 1-2 songs then e-mail it to Nunes who will then edit the videos together for an virtual open mic.
Nunes calls the "Youth On-the-Mic" an alternative "to the many adult open-mics out there."
"The events provide kids and teens with a place to play and a community of music-lovers eager to hear them. So, why not keep it going even if we’re all stuck at home?" he writes on the United's website.
"The bad news is that all shows are canceled through May 17," said Connolly. The good news is that June is "still in play."
"We're looking forward to an exciting summer," he said. "And an exciting fall."