1st Saturday looks to normalize city’s music culture

Leo DiLone, Rance Weaver and Ryland Weaver pose near

the 1st Saturday sign at the Launch party and fundraiser. 

Photo by Tony Russo

Last month more than 100 people packed Headquarters Live to celebrate what many are hoping will be the next major development in the Salisbury Arts scene: 1st Saturday. The plan was to raise money as well as awareness about the warm weather concert series, slated to begin April 4 and run monthly through October. Sarah Rayne, co-chair with her husband Ben of the 1st Saturday Committee said the event raised more than $2,100 and really stirred people’s excitement about the event’s possibilities.

Headquarters Live, which donated the space for the event, is a proper nightclub, where the entertainment is the central focus. This means that the crowd for a particular evening is often a reflection of the artist or artists performing. For the 1st Saturday fundraiser, though, the crowd was a little more than mixed. 

A healthy contingent of children were present for the event, as well as politicians, some middle aged folks and the younger crowd of college students and 30-somethings who tend to make up the bulk of Headquarters Live regulars.

Ben and Sarah Rayne chair the 1st Saturday Committee, 

which was established to promote the new cultural event. 

Photo by Tony Russo

Sarah Rayne, who co-chairs the 1st Saturday Committee with her husband Ben, was thrilled by the turnout generally, but the fact that young families came out was particularly gratifying.

“We encouraged people to bring their children out to the event,” she said. “That’s one of the things we’re trying to do; it’s important to put music into people’s lives.”

From its inception, 1st Saturday has been about normalizing live, local music. Salisbury is a hub for many musicians who make their livings playing venues along the mid- and upper Shore and on the Maryland and Delaware beaches.  The City of Salisbury proper, though, hasn’t been much of a live music destination, but as area restaurants continue to open and establish successful music nights, Salisbury increasingly is a draw for original music.

The Raynes and several of their friends approached the town to secure permission to hold an event under the auspices of the town’s Arts and Entertainment District (which is also the parent of 3rd Fridays) for a monthly music and art expo. Working with local artists Sarah Holcott and Robbie Johnson of Amused Studios, the members of what would become the 1st Saturday Committee set about looking for funding and also working out the event’s vision.

It settled on 1st Saturday as a complementary counterpoint to 3rd Friday, not only in name but also in attitude. Establishing the downtown as a regular destination is part of an overall economic development goal aimed at hyping Salisbury as a destination for locals. After decades of sprawl and blight, many towns are beginning to see the downtown as a tool and amenity. 

Visitors and potential investors, even those not interested in opening a business downtown, specifically, recognize that a healthy, “artsy” downtown is an indicator of a healthy or developing economy.

The Chris English Band was one of the three acts that
performed for the Launch party. Photo by Tony Russo

Salisbury has the additional benefit of being a college town, which makes it all the more an attractive place for young families. The hope is that 1st Saturday both solidifies that image and begins to develop cohesion among those drawn to the downtown for its visual and performance art scene.

Joey Gilkerson, who provides the portable stage used for the New Year’s Eve celebration downtown offered the use of his stage and his continued support throughout the project. The idea is to set the stage up on Division Street, near the Government Building but leave  Main Street open to traffic. This has the dual benefit of not having to apply for additional state road closure permits while encouraging access to the Downtown Plaza and parking for those drawn to the event. 

The event will also provide an opportunity for a local nonprofit to raise awareness of its mission. For the inaugural event, the Maryland Food Bank was selected as the beneficiary. People are encouraged to bring canned or non-perishable goods for donation. Spring donations sometimes fall off for food banks, as the winter and holidays are mostly considered a time of need.

The recent benefit was held 4-7 p.m., as the monthly event will be, to continue the premise that the event is family friendly. The bands are not kids bands, though, but rather groups and artists that are accessible to all interests. All three of the first bands booked for the event--Chris English, The Larks and Lewis and Clark--played a set at the fundraiser.

“It was a rock show and a party more than it was a gala,” Rayne said, adding of the donations and moral support the event received: “The people of this town really surprise me time and again.”

For more information on 1st Saturday visit https://www.facebook.com/1stsaturdaysby or email 1stSaturdaysby@gmail.com.