Dace’s Rock ‘n’ More quarterly Rockcital March 23 will be part concert, part community gathering thanks to the venue.
With performances by students in the nonprofit music school’s Rockology class set up at the Maple Valley Creative Arts Center, which is next door to Rock ‘n’ More, those who attend the Rockcital will be able to step away from the show to chat and learn more about the programs offered in the music school.
Arielle Young, who helps run Rock ‘n’ More’s locations in Maple Valley and Redmond, explained the concept.
“We’re going to open up these two (lesson) rooms so we can have a green room for the bands,” Young said. “We used to do a lot of the Rockcitals at clubs and there would be a green room where the bands could meet and talk to one another. They’re all in the same boat. They’re all nervous.”
At other venues in the past such as the Hard Rock Cafe in Seattle, there wasn’t a green room where that kind of band bonding could go on, nor was there really a way for those who attended the event to really get to know each other.
“Also, we’re trying to build the same kind of community we have here in Maple Valley in Redmond,” Young said. “We have a band coming down from Redmond. It’s important to show them the kind of community we have.”
For Dace Anderson, founder and president of the school, it’s an opportunity to do something a bit different with the Rockcital program.
The two lesson rooms that will be cleared out will offer ways for people to go beyond the typical concert experience.
“We’re going to … have art supplies so they can really graffiti up the wall,” Anderson said. “The information about us is going to be there, but we really want people who come to the concert to communicate with each other, to get to know each other, to provide a gathering place for people coming to the show.”
The idea is to make it about bringing people together because a gathering is fun.
“We want to invite everybody around to come hang out with us, have some fun, eat some food, listen to some music,” Anderson said.
And since the Redmond location opened last year, Anderson said, they’ve discovered other private music schools don’t offer this kind of event.
Unlike in Maple Valley, Anderson said, Rock ‘n’ More has competition in Redmond. Some of the schools are great but others have different intentions when it comes to the services they provide.
“The for-profit schools give you lessons for money and the non-profit schools do it for the community,” Anderson said. “So, there’s some differences that are subtle.”
It will be a good time, Anderson and Young said, especially since the typical Rockcital crowd is filled with the good people from around here.
“Everywhere we go people are impressed with how nice our crowd is from Maple Valley,” Anderson said.
