By Bruce Karnick

Hoot·en·an·ny /ˈho͞ otn ˌanē/ noun: hootenanny; plural noun: hootenannies an informal gathering with folk music and sometimes dancing. “We invited friends to a hootenanny on Saturday in downtown Hastings”.

The spelling may not be quite the same, but the definition is the same. The Hootenany in Hastings held their Fall Frenzy in downtown Hastings on Saturday, September 26th. The Fall Frenzy is a smaller version of the orignal April event, both of which benefit the Music Department of Hastings Middle School and local youth musicians. So, what or HOOOOOO is the Hootenany? The Hootenany is a group of musicians who come together annually to facilitate a full evening of live music in as many Downtown Hastings venues as are willing to participate. Think of the Hootenany as a band – only this band has enough members and equipment to play at eight or more establishments on the same night, at the same time – all volunteer, all grass-roots, all free live music for the community. Pretty cool, huh?

The Hoot started with about 10 musician buddies at one bar in 2010 – playing brisk 25-minute sets, all on the same equipment, with brief 5-minute switches between acts, which is a format the have preserved since – the brisk pace is a designed element of Hooting, it keeps music going continuously throughout the night at each spot, plus helps get as many different musicians involved as possible. This started as a celebration of local music and business, and has grown much more, including a fundraiser for Hastings musicians including the middle school music programs.

The main Hoot usually happens the last Saturday in August. Musicians sign up months in advance to be part of the Hoot because, well, it’s a hoot, so why not hoot it up? They also join up because it is for a good cause and can be really good exposure to music fans that give a hoot about local music. During normal years, the musicians rotate around to any of the eight or more different bars. Some musicians get in multiple sets at various times of the day, others just a few or one, depends on availability of the time slots and the needs of the Hoot.

The Hooteanny sets up a sound system at each venue and schedules a different act each half-hour from the start of the Hoot until a given venue closes. Since year five, they have also facilitated a fundraiser for Hastings Middle School music programs and local youth musicians. So, while the event is free to attend (a major tenet of the Hoot), there is a $10+ suggested donation at the door of participating venues or you can also donate online via PayPal, available at thehootenany.com (last year they started a 501c(3) called “River City Music & Arts Education Foundation” to enable tax-deductible donations online, as well as sponsoring scholarships for HHS graduates, visit rcmaefoundation. org for more info.).

In normal years, the Hootenany musical activities take place completely INSIDE of the downtown establishments, this is not a street dance or event taking place in a public area. The organizers of the Hoot are very mindful of the laws that establishments need to follow. They very clearly very often remind Hooters of such laws. Their website clearly posts: Any and all regular ordinances for downtown (parking, public drinking, etc.) on a Saturday night are the same as any other weekend evening. That means, NO DRINKS OUTSIDE OF BARS/RESTAURANTS – alcohol is not allowed anywhere it isn’t normally allowed – the Hootenany does not change any of these dynamics of attending a live music performance at a Downtown Hastings establishment, this is the personal responsibility of attendees. COVID, like everything else, has caused modifications of many events, even something as awesome as the Hootenany. In April, the large event was held via live stream where they were still able to raise over $4,000 dollars for HMS. Their annual goal is to raise $10,000. To reach that goal, The Hootenany has their large event in April. Aside from this year’s Fall Frenzy, they have previously held smaller events at key times of the year. Hootsgiving – Saturday of Thanksgiving Weekend. Antarctic Blast – First Saturday of February. Hoot Aftershock – Sunday of Memorial Day weekend. According to Drew Cavalier, Hootenany Organizer, the smaller events are going to have to change because an area bar has stopped hosting live music for the time being.

Cavalier pointed out, “We’ll see what we can come up with for additional Hoots next year.” Obviously, a lot still depends on the ability to have larger gatherings, even the April event is uncertain as of this writing, but that is seven months away. “We’ll have to see how April looks for a big Hoot by then as well.” He added.

Every Hoot is free with a fundraising opportunity. So how did this Hoot Fall Frenzy do for fundraising? According to Cavalier, “[Fall Frenzy] ended up being quite an afternoon, fortunately we didn’t get rained on. We raised over $3,300 [Saturday], still have a bunch of Hoot 11 shirts for sale and people can donate anytime online as well at thehootenany. com. Overall, it was awesome to have the opportunity to Hoot downtown again!” How did COVID change the approach to the first live Hoot since the limitations hit bars?

“From the start of planning the Frenzy, we thought it necessary to keep all Hoot activities outdoors. The existing patios at Legion and Lock & Dam were the two viable areas to set up bands, while still maintaining spacing; and both those venues had hosted music throughout summer.” Said Cavalier. A key piece of hosting any kind of live event is the safety of not only the entertainers, but guests as well. Cavalier expanded, “Whenever we plan a Hoot, we look to adapt to the available venues, and operate by their existing protocols for live music, which currently includes the spacing and capacity limits. So, the most significant change this year was the overall scale of the Hoot, dropping down to just two venues, which naturally limited the total number of musicians and attendees.”

With limited seating on the patios, attendees could still hear and watch the performances from around the Riverwalk area; that certainly helped with spacing. They also encouraged attendees to visit all the great places to grab a drink or bite to eat downtown, bars that would have hosted music back in April. During the eight-hour event, it looked like those patios stayed full, which is great. “Venues are an essential part of the live music formula. Supporting those local businesses who make live music possible downtown is certainly an intended element of the Hoot.” Cavalier proudly pointed out.

What about the setup for the equipment? Cavalier also explained the added safety measures, “Typically, Hoot musicians share guitars, bass, and other instruments. For the Frenzy, we asked that each musician bring their own instruments, so the equipment in people’s hands was their own. Many also brought their own microphones, and we provided a new microphone cover for each individual singer.”

Overall, the scaled back Fall Frenzy was a success. They raised over $3,300 for the Hastings Middle School music programs and people were able to enjoy live music at some of the great local businesses located downtown and on the river front. That sounds like a winning combination.

To learn more about the Hootenany and their fundraising efforts, find them on Facebook “The Hootenany” or visit their website. Some information in this article was obtained from thehootenany. com

Fans of local music gathered on Saturday September 26th to hear The Coxmen at the Legion. The Coxmen were the last of 32 bands to play music as part of the Hootenany Fall Frenzy fundraiser for Hastings Middle School’s music programs. The Hoot had two stages, one at the Legion, the other at Lock & Dam Eatery in Hastings. The music started at noon and went until after 8:00 p.m. with artist changes every 25 minutes.

Photo by Bruce Karnick