Knox County Music Interactive (KCMI), an organization founded this year by students at Kenyon, has announced its inaugural Notewave Festival, an afternoon of live music and interactive exhibits exploring the science of sound.
The festival will take place Sunday, May 6, from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Schnormeier Event Center in Ariel-Foundation Park in Mount Vernon. Admission is free, and food will be available for purchase on the event grounds.
Local artists Six Miles to Nellie and Sarah Goslee Reed will be Notewave’s musical headliners, with support on the bill coming from Kenyon College a cappella group The Kokosingers, jazz-funk band Booty Jones, electronic trio MaMi, singer-songwriter Jeremy Stern ’19 and DJ Mile$.
“The different acts we booked run the full spectrum of genres of music in the local scene,” explained Miles Shebar ’20, director of KCMI’s marketing committee (and the man behind the stage persona Mile$).
In addition to providing a family-friendly afternoon of live music and delicious food, Notewave seeks to stimulate intellectual curiosity among school-aged children by offering interactive exhibits and demonstrations designed for kids, like making rubber band guitars and visualizing sound waves using an oscillator.
“The intersection of science and music is demonstrated throughout the festival,” said Leah Dunbar ’20, director of KCMI’s ideas to action committee. “All the science booths are related to sound in some way, and all the music booths plan to talk about the mechanics behind their instruments. Our performers have also been asked to talk briefly between songs about their pieces and how they are making music.”
“We’ve been doing a huge amount of outreach to the Kenyon and Mount Vernon communities,” Shebar said. “Over the past week we have been visiting some Knox County schools to talk to kids about the festival, explaining to them how different instruments work.”
Knox County Music Interactive is a nonprofit community organization run by students in Professor of Music Ted Buehrer’s “Music and Entrepreneurship” class at Kenyon. KCMI produces and promotes music-based events in the greater Knox County area. “The class has been largely about creating experiential learning opportunities,” Buehrer said. “Rather than simply reading about being entrepreneurial, [students] were charged with designing, planning and implementing a community music event.”
“I’m hoping that this festival brings together multiple circles of people,” Dunbar said. “With the combination of interactive booths, food and live music, I think this event has something for everyone.”
More information on KCMI and Notewave, and links to all the performers’ music, can be found on Notewave’s official website or on KCMI’s Facebook page.