The Syracuse Community Choir welcomes singer and activist Holly Near for a spirited concert
By Tammy DiDomenico
Much about American culture has changed since Holly Near first lent her voice to the cause of social justice—by joining Another Mother for Peace in 1968. Indeed, her own career has evolved just as much; with forays into acting (from TV’s The Partridge Family to movies such as Slaughterhouse-Five), playwriting and teaching. But through it all, Near has held onto her belief that good things happen when people work together for common good. Community building never grows irrelevant.
She recalls that when she was just starting as a folk singer, inspiration wasn’t hard to find. “I heard many voices encouraging people to be the best self they can be,” says Near, taking a rare break during a short fall tour. “I think it would be good for all of us to expect that of each other.”
Near, 62, will bring her songs, and message of peace, to town on Thursday, Oct. 20, for a performance with the Syracuse Community Choir at St. Paul’s Cathedral, 310 Montgomery St. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. with the sounds of hybrid funkfolk artist Laura Love. Tickets are $25 at the door. Some of the proceeds of this celebration, dubbed “The Power of Song,” will benefit the continued mission of the choir.
Near first met Karen Mihalyi, founder and director of the choir, in the early 1970s. Near visited Syracuse to perform on behalf of the peace movement, and in her, Mihalyi saw a kindred spirit. Their shared commitment to peace and social justice has continued through the decades, and Near has performed with the choir on several occasions.
For Near, Mihalyi and the choir represent the essence of how music can be a positive motivator. It’s a role she contemplates often, and she says, still holds awe for her personally. “It’s an important relationship: the one between artists and community,” she observes. “The reasons may change with time, but I think music will always have a role to play in bringing people together. I admire people like Karen, who remain committed to doing that.”
Near’s current 10-city tour is her first in two years. She says with people connecting more and more through electronic means, getting people out to shows is more challenging than ever. She says this makes her more conscious of the role she has as a performer. “It’s harder to get people out that door, so we’re trying to remind people that there’s nothing like being in a room with your neighbors,” Near says. “We want to be uplifting.”
Acknowledging the difficult times many people in the country are experiencing financially, Near says there is more need than ever before for communities to be aware of their role in working toward social justice for all. She sees her own role as being something of a catalyst for positive thinking—and action. “I love the complex animal we are,” she says. “We can be good to each other or we can be horrific—there’s a wide spectrum. . . .”
In addition to her music, Near is active as a speaker and teacher. She will speak at Colgate University in Ithaca while in Central New York. Near offers master classes and workshops on performance and songwriting, and she clearly enjoys the opportunities to engage with young people. Her conversations with them give her a positive outlook for the future. She also notes that young people all over the planet are doing amazing things to try and make a positive change.
“Young people today are very environmentally conscious and they are doing great work that a lot of people don’t hear about,” she says. “The accumulative nature of these things is significant.”
While in New York City earlier this month, Near took time to visit the Occupy Wall Street movement. She praises the larger goal of the protest, and wrote indepth about her observations, which can be found on her blog: www.hollynear. com/art_wallstreet.html.
Mihalyi says the choir will perform four to five songs with Near at the end of her set. They have been rehearsing Near’s well known tunes such as “No More Genocide” and “Fired Up!” but Mihalyi expects that Near will have her own ideas once she arrives.
Indeed, Near says she and her longtime accompanist, pianist John Bucchino, typically like to let the local vibe influence what they play from night to night. Not only does it make for a more engaging show for the audience, it keeps things fresh for the performers.
“The songs you’ve been doing for 20 years change based on where you perform them,” Near says. “The best songs come alive where they stand. That’s also the great thing about collaboration: Other people bring different things to the tunes.”
One thing that never changes is her commitment to giving audiences a good performance. Near says Bucchino shares this commitment to high-level musicianship, which has made their 27-year collaboration so rewarding. “It’s really important to us that the music be good,” Near says. “We do our homework, but the trick is to want to do the best show possible every time—to bring the audience into that place.”
At this point in her career, Near says she is happy with the kind of small ripple effects her shows can make in a community.
Sure, she’s less likely to write a scath-ing tune about the current state of political affairs these days, but she is still committed to the power of music. “I’m not at a place where I’m career-building,” she says with a chuckle. “I’m offering {music} up in a way it can be useful.”
That means bringing people together— a mission she so clearly shares with Mihalyi and the Syracuse Community Choir. “What does happen is that whatever state of mind people come in with, they leave feeling better,” Near says. “They feel uplifted and they take those good feelings out into their own lives; that’s good for the community. We have the power, in those two hours, to make a difference. People have so graciously turned their hearts over to us, and we take that very seriously as artists.”
Mihalyi, who produced several local performances by Near over the years, says the concert will be an opportunity to show the audience how influential Near has been. “She has been a part of the conscience of the choir for all this time. I want to honor her and these connections.”
For further information, call the Syracuse Community Choir at 428-8151 or via email at hollynearinsyracuse@gmail.com.
Tickets can also be purchased at the Matilda Joslyn Gage Center, 210 E.
Genesee St., Fayetteville; Recess Coffee, 110 Harvard Place; Syracuse
Real Food Co-op, 618 Kensington Road; ArtRage Gallery, 505 Hawley Ave.;
St. Paul’s Cathedral; or via PayPal at www. syracusecommunitychoir.org.
