NORTHAMPTON — The Bow Bow Bash, a concert whose performers are all students at Northampton High School, returns for its fifth year at the Iron Horse on Friday at 7 p.m.
The concert raises money for the J. Scott Brandon (JSB) Grant Fund, which funds music-related expenses like private lessons, supplies and field trips for students at JFK Middle School and Northampton High School.
“The Bow Bow Bash is more than just a concert; it’s a community-driven engine for equity in the arts,” Brian Foote, director of arts and culture for the city of Northampton, said in a statement. “By attending, our community helps ensure that every student has the tools they need to succeed — whether that’s a new set of strings, private lessons, or the chance to see a professional performance.”
Steve Sanderson, arts events producer at the Northampton Arts Council, started the event in honor of his late friend and bandmate J. Scott Brandon, who got the nickname “Bow Bow” after he kept singing the scatting song “Rubber Biscuit.”
“One day, I just said, ‘Alright, Bow Bow, that’s enough of that!’ and it stuck,” Sanderson recalled. Besides that, Brandon played bass and trumpet, and “Bow Bow kind of sounds like a good nickname for a bass player, does it not?” Sanderson added.
Sanderson said an event like this shows kids that professional music careers are within reach and teaches them that “there really are no limits except the ones they put on themselves.”
This year’s lineup includes The Jackson Briggs-Nine, Mr. Saturn, Fundamental Frequencies, Avis Vomens, Road to Dalton, Quintastic, Nightshade, Bonz, Dr. Horrible and Trust Fall.
Trust Fall had its first show at the Bow Bow Bash four years ago. Lucinda Platt, the band’s drummer, said in an email, “Every year we get the chance to see how we’ve grown as a band, from a haphazard set of covers in year one to a mixed bag of original music and cover songs this year — we’re even planning on recording an album! I think it’s great to have the Bow Bow Bash as a recurring date we can look back on to appreciate our progress.”
Jack Aronstein, a junior at NHS who will be performing with three groups, is returning for his second year. Though he felt he could have played better at last year’s Bow Bow Bash, he wasn’t deterred. The bash, he said in an email, is “sort of a risk-free shot at what professionalism is like,” and every student musician who aspires to a professional career “has a better shot at achieving their goals because of the Bow Bow.”
“It’s so important for student musicians to have the Bow Bow Bash as an opportunity because it’s a different model for education, and it’s this kind of hands-on learning that most musicians don’t get before they’re forced to decide on college and careers,” he wrote. “This show is an important reminder that we can all be artists if we want.”
Tickets to the Bow Bow Bash are $24 for adults and $6 for students, including fees, at ironhorse.org. To donate to the JSB Grant Fund, visit northamptonartscouncil.org/jsb-fund.
