Tuesday, Jun 21, 2022 is the inaugural “Rogue Valley Make Music Day” celebration, as part of a collective observance of the global “Make Music Day” summer solstice event. This event is a collaboration between Rogue World Music, Talent Maker City, Talent Parks & Recreation Commission, and the City of Talent. Location: Talent Commons Library Park. Time: 5 - 7 pm.

“Make Music Day is all about connecting people through FREE collective music experience(s). The goal is participation, not performance. Between this ethos, and the fact that it is a celebration observed around the world, inaugurating a Rogue Valley Make Music Day was a perfect community event for us to put our resources behind launching. The RWM mission is to build community and cultural connection through world music experience. The fit could not be better.”
- Ana Byers, Rogue World Music Executive Director.

Willow Mackey, constructing vertical marimba for installation in Talent Commons Library Park on Rogue Valley Make Music Day, June 21, 2022. Photo by Allison French, Talent Maker City Executive Director.

This event, as all Make Music Day events around the world, features multiple participatory opportunities for Rogue Valley community members to join in the collective creation of music! A “choir” of Tibetan singing bowls and music-shaker-making will be led by Southern Oregon University Percussion/History/World Music professor and director of the SOU Raider Band, Bryan Jeffs. A large-scale, vertical marimba designed by Willow Mackey (recent Phoenix High School ‘22 graduate and Talent Maker City volunteer) as her senior project will be installed permanently in the Talent Commons Library Park on the day of the event. The instrument will be open to the public to play, and accompanied by a small music group. The design, construction, and installation of this instrument were all supported by Talent Maker City staff.

"It has been an incredibly inspiring experience supporting Willow on this venture here at Talent Maker City. What started out as a community service idea for Willow has turned into a passion project. We've played with music, math, art, and even some engineering on this one! We're looking forward to seeing, and hearing, the finished product as a permanent installation."
- Allison French, Talent Maker City Executive Director.

All Rogue Valley community members are welcome to come participate by playing singing bowls, making/playing shakers, playing the newly-installed instrument, or by bringing their own instruments to play. For those interested in supplying shaker-making materials, Talent Maker City is collecting any item that can be opened and reclosed (think tins with lids, vitamin bottles, plastic easter eggs, etc) and small, dense filler objects (dried beans, paper clips, bbs, etc.) These items can also be collected the day of the event at the shaker-making booth in the Talent Commons Library Park.

“World Make Music Day is a wonderful way to celebrate life, celebrate song, and celebrate connecting with each other. Come join!”
- Jordan Rooklyn, Talent City Manager.

About Make Music Day:

Each year, over 1,000 cities around the world throw citywide music celebrations on June 21.

In 1982, France’s Ministry of Culture dreamed up an idea for a new kind of musical holiday. They imagined a day where free, live music would be everywhere: street corners and parks, rooftops and gardens, store fronts and mountaintops.

And, unlike a typical music festival, anyone and everyone would be invited to join and play music, or host performances. The event would take place on the summer solstice, June 21, and would be called Fête De La Musique. (In French, the name means both “festival of music” and “make music!”)

Amazingly enough, this dream has come true. The Fête has turned into a true national holiday: France shuts down on the summer solstice and musicians take over. Almost 8% of the country (5 million people) have played an instrument or sung in public for the Fête de la Musique.

Three decades later, the holiday has spread throughout the world and is now celebrated in more than 120 countries. In the U.S., the presenting sponsor is the NAMM Foundation.

For more information about Rogue Valley Make Music Day, visit www.rogueworldmusic.org

For more information about Make Music Day and the collective of cities across the nation observing this celebration visit www.makemusicday.org.

Inaugural Rogue Valley Make Music Day!