April 12, 2024

This paid event listing is sponsored by Levitt Sioux Falls.

As the countdown to summer’s highly anticipated Levitt outdoor concert season begins, Sioux Falls is already feeling the musical buzz. Levitt at the Falls and Startup Sioux Falls are teaming up to create connections with local musicians through Levitt Music Maker Mixers.

The next Levitt Music Maker Mixer will be from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Monday, April 15, at Startup Sioux Falls, 100 E. Sixth St.

“We have emerging and new musicians joining us alongside experienced artists, and that’s been a great synergy. We’ve been seeing 30 to 50 participants at each event this spring and were able to expand that reach to a statewide arts audience recently in partnership with Arts South Dakota, who livestreamed our March event,” said Rose Ann Hofland, Levitt vice president of programming.

“It’s been great to see some new partnerships and ideas emerging from our regular participants as well as seeing a mix of artists from different genres and backgrounds all connecting in this space. Our mission at the Levitt is to build community through music, and so this is one part of that work: building community within our local music-maker ecosystem.”

The free event includes a social and gathering time featuring a local musician and free snacks, then a presentation from 7 to 8 p.m.

On April 15, the topic is Musical Collaborations and will feature two different local artist collaborations between artists of diverse genres — indie rocker Mark Romanowski and jazz artist Joel Shotwell, as well as funk bassist Chris Garcia and country rock artist Bubba Startz.

“From co-released albums to collaborative live performances, they’ll delve into the intricacies of merging diverse musical perspectives, offering valuable insights into the rewards and obstacles encountered in the realm of musical collaboration,” Hofland said. “Music for our social time will be provided by the Shotwell Quartet, so it’s sure to be a fun night.”

Levitt also invites local musicians of all ages and those interested in the arts and music industries to attend. Since the program piloted in 2023, it has become a way to grow programming in the off-season and promote the local music community.

“Part networking and part professional development for local music-makers, these events are opportunities for our local musicians to see themselves as entrepreneurs connecting and gaining ideas and insight from others in the business,” Hofland said.

“We have been fortunate to partner with Startup Sioux Falls as our host for these events. It is a wonderful synergy or our shared efforts to build networks and business skills for arts entrepreneurs in our community. Our local artists are often working independently to book gigs, establish their marketing, creating and performing music, and handling the business side of their music-making. We wanted to provide an opportunity for them to find community in this part of the work and to leverage our partnerships to make a space for encouraging and building their music-business skills. It’s been a wonderful way for us to connect with local musicians and for them to connect with each other.”

The relationship with Startup Sioux Falls is a natural one, executive director Brienne Maner said.

“Just like in any other industry, it’s important to create opportunities for community-building, networking, education and shared resources. Being a solo artist is lonely!” she said. “Inclusion of artists brings diversity to the entrepreneurial ecosystem, both in terms of background and ways of thinking. This diversity can lead to more robust and inclusive solutions that address the needs of a broader range of people.”

It helps that the two organizations share a backyard in downtown Sioux Falls, both said.

“The partnership has been easy, fun and impactful,” Maner said. “The Levitt team is incredible to work with and very engaged with the local arts community. Startup is inclusive of all types of industries, and artists bring a unique perspective to problem-solving, ideas and innovation that is beneficial to the entrepreneurial ecosystem. We want to continue to activate our corner of downtown Sioux Falls and capture the energy from all the incredible development surrounding our facility location.”

After April 15, the next Levitt Music Maker Mixer will be May 20 also from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at Startup Sioux Falls, and the program will be a Recording Round Table with tips and ideas presented from three local experts at Augustana University who are faculty and instructors from the music entrepreneur program.

Levitt and Startup Sioux Falls also will be partnering on the All My Relatives Festival in July, which features Native makers, artists and organizations with a vendor fair in addition to programming at the Levitt Shell.

To learn more about Levitt Music Maker Mixer events, click here.