Reported on Oct. 1, 2009

It has been three quarters of a century and still, every Wednesday night the lights turn on and amateur artists have the opportunity to perform on the same stage that Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and Michael Jackson did.

The Sphinx Laureates Harlem Quartet performing during the Open House on Oct. 3, 2009. Photo by Nikolia Apostolou

The Apollo Theater has always been a source of inspiration for new artists, according to long-time neighborhood residents and performers.

“It is where stars are born and legends are made”, said Jerry Suh, a Harlem composer. “I remember a story where the great James Brown had to borrow money from a nearby record store to buy a guitar in order to perform in the theater.”

It was 75 years ago, when Frank Schiffman and Leo Brecher took over the theater with the goal of presenting black entertainment to black audiences. This year, the Apollo Theater is celebrating its diamond anniversary: a fate that seemed uncertain just 10 years ago when financial mismanagement threatened to shut it down.

The neo-classical theater was constructed in 1914 and was originally called the “Hurtig and Seamon’s New Burlesque Theatre.” People of color were not allowed in the audience for the first 20 years, even though the theater has always been considered a symbol for black music.

The theater gained prominence, in part, through the amateur nights it hosted. On one such night, the Jackson Five performed.

“I was a Jackson insider during those years,” said Antoinette Holmes, who founded the first Jackson Five Fan Club in Harlem in 1967. “Now I am finishing a book about my childhood friendship with Michael Jackson called ‘Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star: The Michael Jackson I Knew.’”

The theater, which has been recognized as a national landmark, has always held special memories for the people who worked there.Nana-Oye Addo-Yobo was the special events manager for three years.

“Working at the Apollo Theater was a great opportunity to serve as a preservationist of U.S. history while helping to extend a treasured legacy for the next generation to benefit,” she said.

The Apollo Theater is still a landmark in the neighborhood, and on Oct. 10 and 11, it will participate in America’s largest architecture and design exhibition called Open House New York. The weekend will include a lecture on the Apollo Theater renovation, a discussion of other historic entertainment venues in Harlem and a tour of the theater

Years later, the Apollo remains a magnet for aspiring artists. Composer Suh, who just released his first album, works at a soul food restaurant as his day job. He said he still dreams of making it onto the stage where Ella Fitzgerald and Michael Jackson once stood.

“I haven’t performed at the Apollo. Not yet!” he said.

]]> http://neighborhoodbeatbox.org/2009/11/01/harlem-landmark-hosts-open-house-for-community/feed/ 0 http://neighborhoodbeatbox.org/2009/10/26/students-rock-out-at-rock-school/ http://neighborhoodbeatbox.org/2009/10/26/students-rock-out-at-rock-school/#comments Mon, 26 Oct 2009 19:51:54 +0000 Lauren Sausser http://neighborhoodbeatbox.org/?p=1854 Reported on Oct. 1, 2009

It was just before noon on Saturday and four pre-teens from Park Slope were stuffed into a small recording studio on St. Marks Avenue in nearby Prospect Heights.

Sabrina Kentis, left, Jack Ellrodt, middle, and Ian Silverstein, right, spend Saturday mornings in band practice.

They had been practicing with their instruments for about half an hour with music teacher Jason Domnarski when 12-year-old Jack Ellrodt asked, “Can we turn on the AC?”

“What are you talking about?” Domnarski replied. “We haven’t even started sweating yet.”
This was no regular music lesson.

Domnarski, 28, a professional rock musician, founded the Park Slope Rock School one year ago when he noticed a demand for a creative, musical outlet for the neighborhood’s teenagers.

The Rock School, which organizes 12 middle schoolers into four different small rock bands, is held every Saturday. Domnarski charges $450 per student per semester – 12 weeks of small group tutoring. It’s a price many parents say they are willing to pay in order to compensate for budget cuts to music education programs in their children’s schools.

“I was surprised there wasn’t a program like that already there. It’s grown quite rapidly,” he said. “You really don’t have a rock-based curriculum at the public schools. I think that’s a very big draw. It’s a form of music they don’t get to play very much. They are very interested in that kind of music.”

Stacey Ruiz’s son Brandon, 13, is a Park Slope Rock School student who attends Park Slope Community Middle School. Ruiz said one of the main reasons she enrolled her son in the rock school was because of the lack of quality music he receives programming during the week.

“My son’s school is a very small school which shares a building with another school,” Ruiz said. “Unfortunately his school does not have the budget or resources to start a music program.”

This week, the Rock School played Neil Young’s “Cinnamon Girl.” The students hadn’t even registered as twinkles in their mother’s eyes when the song debuted in 1969. They enjoyed practicing it, all the same.

“I think working as a group allows them to feel more like performers at a jam session,” Ruiz said. “The music they play is something they can relate to and the parents as well. It kind of bridges the gap between the two. Take it from me – there is no ‘Twinkle Twinkle’ in this class.”

Jack, who had the tendency to jump up and down during his electric guitar solo, exclaimed mid-way through Saturday’s practice, “This is by far the most fun I’ve had all week.”

And having fun is a point not lost on Domnarksi. Wielding a grande coffee in one hand and two drumsticks to keep the band’s beat in the other, he tries to instill in the group solid music theory and an appreciation for giving a good performance at the same time.

“On a different level, it allows them an hour and a half every week to play in a band in a rehearsal space that sounds good,” he said. “This semester there’s a very good chance we’ll be heading into the studio to record.”

Ian Silverstein, 13, who performed vocals and a bass guitar this week, said these lessons are unlike anything he has ever done before.

“Jason is much more involved with us and the way we play music,” Ian said. “I just like to play with people who are good musicians and who are creative.”

Seth Miller said his son Asa, who plays the drums at the rock school, looks forward to coming to rehearsals every week.

“It’s just a great outlet for his talent,” said Miller, who listened to the end of Saturday’s rehearsal. “It almost brings a tear to my eye.”