Blue Bear School of Music
Encyclopedia
Blue Bear School of Music is a non-profit organization founded in San Francisco, California
in 1971. Blue Bear has trained over 20,000 students in voice, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, piano, bass, drums, horns, songwriting, bands and ensembles. The School currently has more than 1,700 members annually enrolled in small group classes and private or semi-private lessons. Blue Bear offers numerous music programs for disadvantaged youth throughout the year.
Past celebrity sponsors have included Blackalicious
, Charles Brown
, Cake
, Tracy Chapman
, Les Claypool
, The Doobie Brothers
, Green Day
, John Lee Hooker
, Metallica
, Rancid
, Carlos Santana
and The Donnas
.
In 1978, operations moved from the original storefront on Ocean Avenue to Fort Mason Center. Blue Bear's current Board of Trustees include co-founder and Board President Steve Savage, well known singer/songwriter/keyboard player Bonnie Hayes, and noted author and journalist Peter Laufer. The current board chair is David Schwartz. Day-to-day operations of Blue Bear are under the direction of Executive Director David Roche. Carol Snow, Chief Financial Officer and Dennis Criteser, Program Director, are both former Blue Bear students who have been associated with the school for more than 35 and 25 years respectively.
In April 2007 five Blue Bear affiliated artists and groups provided artistic services to the Project Homeless Connect event held at Bill Graham Auditorium. In February 2009 Blue Bear was presented with a Certificate of Honor by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, which commended the organization for its ongoing efforts in bringing quality, affordable music education to diverse communities throughout San Francisco.http://www.sfbos.org/index.aspx?page=3009
For younger musicians between the ages of 12 and 25, Blue Bear has a Scholarship Program, supported by music businesses and individuals with an interest in making popular music instruction available to motivated youth who might not otherwise be able to afford lessons.
Current Blue Bear faculty includes GRAMMY nominated, platinum-selling songwriter, producer and musician Bonnie Hayes
; musician and songwriter Bill Spooner
(founding member of The Tubes); and composer, arranger, guitarist and singer Steve Kirk
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/entertainment&id=7171098.
In February 2006 Blue Bear held its first annual Music for Youth Benefit, BLUE BEAR LIVE I at The Independent in San Francisco. Blues guitar virtuoso Robben Ford
headlined the sold out event. Joining Robben on stage was Blue Bear alum, faculty member and Grammy nominated singer-songwriter Bonnie Hayes
and her band. Special guests included Vicki Randle
from the Tonight Show band, and guitarist, Blue Bear alum and guest faculty member Tal Morris of Creedence Clearwater Revisited
.
BLUE BEAR LIVE II took place on May 12, 2007 at The Great American Music Hall
. Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Booker T. Jones
was the featured headline artist. Returning from BLUE BEAR LIVE II, Bonnie Hayes
and Vicki Randle
were joined on stage with guest vocalists Sista Monica Parker, Amber Morris and Larry Batiste.
BLUE BEAR LIVE III took place on May 9, 2008 at The Great American Music Hall
. Blues guitar legend Elvin Bishop
was the headline artist, and was joined by Tommy Castro
, Bonnie Hayes
, John Németh, Vicki Randle
, Mighty Mike Schermer, André Thierry and R.C. Carriere, along with Blue Bear students, staff, and faculty.
BLUE BEAR LIVE IV took place on March 26, 2009 at Bimbo's 365 Club
. Los Lobos
was the headline band, joined by Jackie Greene
, Elvin Bishop
, and Blue Bear-affiliated student bands, The Korks from Rooftop School, Obstruction of Justice and Chrome Potato from James Lick Middle School, and Know Clue.
BLUE BEAR LIVE V took place on May 14, 2010 at Bimbo's 365 Club
. The headline act was Trombone Shorty
, joined by Zigaboo Modeliste and Ivan Neville
. Blue Bear-affiliated student bands also performed.
BLUE BEAR LIVE VI took place on May 20, 2011 at Bimbo's 365 Club
. The headline act was The Funky Meters. Blue Bear-affiliated student bands also performed.
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
in 1971. Blue Bear has trained over 20,000 students in voice, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, piano, bass, drums, horns, songwriting, bands and ensembles. The School currently has more than 1,700 members annually enrolled in small group classes and private or semi-private lessons. Blue Bear offers numerous music programs for disadvantaged youth throughout the year.
Past celebrity sponsors have included Blackalicious
Blackalicious
Blackalicious is an American hip hop duo from Sacramento, California made up of rapper Gift of Gab and DJ/producer Chief Xcel . They are noted for Gift of Gab's often "tongue-twisting", multisyllabic, complex rhymes and Chief Xcel's "classic" beats...
, Charles Brown
Charles Brown (musician)
Charles Brown , born in Texas City, Texas was an American blues singer and pianist whose soft-toned, slow-paced blues-club style influenced the development of blues performance during the 1940s and 1950s...
, Cake
Cake (band)
Cake is an American alternative rock band from Sacramento, California. Consisting of singer John McCrea, trumpeter Vince DiFiore, guitarist Xan McCurdy, bassist Gabe Nelson and drummer Paulo Baldi, the band has been noted for McCrea's sarcastic lyrics and deadpan voice, DiFiore's trumpet parts, and...
, Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her singles "Fast Car", "Talkin' 'bout a Revolution", "Baby Can I Hold You", "Give Me One Reason" and "Telling Stories". She is a multi-platinum and four-time Grammy Award-winning artist.-Biography:Tracy Chapman was born in Cleveland,...
, Les Claypool
Les Claypool
Leslie Edward "Les" Claypool is an American musician and writer, best known as the lead vocalist and bassist in the band Primus. Claypool's playing style on the electric bass mixes tapping, flamenco-like strumming, whammy bar bends and slapping.Claypool has also self produced and engineered his...
, The Doobie Brothers
The Doobie Brothers
The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band. The group has sold over 40 million units worldwide throughout their career. The Doobie Brothers were inducted into The Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2004.-Original incarnation:...
, Green Day
Green Day
Green Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, and drummer Tre Cool...
, John Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker was an American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist.Hooker began his life as the son of a sharecropper, William Hooker, and rose to prominence performing his own unique style of what was originally closest to Delta blues. He developed a 'talking blues' style that was his trademark...
, Metallica
Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...
, Rancid
Rancid (band)
Rancid is an American punk rock band formed in Berkeley, California in 1991. Founded by Tim Armstrong and Matt Freeman, both of whom previously played in the ska punk band Operation Ivy, Rancid is credited—along with Green Day and The Offspring—for reviving mainstream interest in punk rock in the...
, Carlos Santana
Carlos Santana
Carlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
and The Donnas
The Donnas
The Donnas are an American all-female rock band from Palo Alto, California. They draw inspiration from The Ramones, The Runaways, AC/DC, Bachman–Turner Overdrive and Kiss. Rolling Stone has stated that "the Donnas offer a guileless take on adolescent alienation; they traffic in kicks, not...
.
History
The Blue Bear School of American Music was founded as "Blue Bear Waltzes School of Genuine Music" in the summer of 1971 by a rock band called "Wolfgang & Strauss" Before moving to San Francisco they lived in Northern California on the Bear River. For a period in the mid-70s, when the founding members moved on, Blue Bear was run by a co-operative of teachers and students.In 1978, operations moved from the original storefront on Ocean Avenue to Fort Mason Center. Blue Bear's current Board of Trustees include co-founder and Board President Steve Savage, well known singer/songwriter/keyboard player Bonnie Hayes, and noted author and journalist Peter Laufer. The current board chair is David Schwartz. Day-to-day operations of Blue Bear are under the direction of Executive Director David Roche. Carol Snow, Chief Financial Officer and Dennis Criteser, Program Director, are both former Blue Bear students who have been associated with the school for more than 35 and 25 years respectively.
Programs
Blue Bear offers a number of programs for underserved youth which provide music education in the schools, in addition to underwritten summer programs at Blue Bear and youth centers, as well as sliding scale tuition programs for youth and adult students.In April 2007 five Blue Bear affiliated artists and groups provided artistic services to the Project Homeless Connect event held at Bill Graham Auditorium. In February 2009 Blue Bear was presented with a Certificate of Honor by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, which commended the organization for its ongoing efforts in bringing quality, affordable music education to diverse communities throughout San Francisco.http://www.sfbos.org/index.aspx?page=3009
For younger musicians between the ages of 12 and 25, Blue Bear has a Scholarship Program, supported by music businesses and individuals with an interest in making popular music instruction available to motivated youth who might not otherwise be able to afford lessons.
Faculty
Blue Bear's teachers are experienced educators and professional musicians who have played with, taught and/or written for numerous artists including Bonnie Raitt, Metallica, Huey Lewis and the News, Third Eye Blind, Carlos Santana, The Tubes, Billy Idol, Norah Jones, Counting Crows, Belinda Carlyle, The Sons of Champlin, Albert Collins, Charlie Musselwhite and Bobby McFerrin.Current Blue Bear faculty includes GRAMMY nominated, platinum-selling songwriter, producer and musician Bonnie Hayes
Bonnie Hayes
Bonnie Hayes is an American singer/songwriter/keyboardist from California, USA.-Late 1970s and early 1980s:In the late 1970s, she founded a New Wave band called The Punts, who released a 45 RPM single, "Shelly's Boyfriend" , b/w "Rochambeau," which received considerable airplay in the SF market...
; musician and songwriter Bill Spooner
Bill Spooner
William "Sputnik" Spooner is a musician, guitarist, and songwriter, and the founder of The Tubes, a theatrical rock band. His songwriting is known for its use of humor and satire. He has released three solo albums: First Chud , Mall to Mars , and Demo-licious...
(founding member of The Tubes); and composer, arranger, guitarist and singer Steve Kirk
Steve Kirk (composer)
Steve Kirk is a composer, arranger, guitarist, and singer. He owns Steve Kirk Pop Studios in Oakland, California.Kirk has composed music for video games, including the Zynga Facebook game FarmVille, the Disney game for the The Princess and The Frog feature film, and the full soundtrack of Voodoo...
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/entertainment&id=7171098.
Annual Benefit Concert
Each year Blue Bear presents a benefit concert that raises funds for the school's youth music education programs. http://cbs5.com/video/?id=33776@kpix.dayport.comIn February 2006 Blue Bear held its first annual Music for Youth Benefit, BLUE BEAR LIVE I at The Independent in San Francisco. Blues guitar virtuoso Robben Ford
Robben Ford
Robben Ford is an American blues, jazz and rock guitarist.-Biography:Ford was born in Woodlake, California, United States, but raised in Ukiah, California, and began playing the saxophone at age 10, picking up the guitar at age 13...
headlined the sold out event. Joining Robben on stage was Blue Bear alum, faculty member and Grammy nominated singer-songwriter Bonnie Hayes
Bonnie Hayes
Bonnie Hayes is an American singer/songwriter/keyboardist from California, USA.-Late 1970s and early 1980s:In the late 1970s, she founded a New Wave band called The Punts, who released a 45 RPM single, "Shelly's Boyfriend" , b/w "Rochambeau," which received considerable airplay in the SF market...
and her band. Special guests included Vicki Randle
Vicki Randle
Vicki Randle is an American singer, multi-instrumentalist and composer, known as the first female member of the Tonight Show Band, starting with host Jay Leno in 1992...
from the Tonight Show band, and guitarist, Blue Bear alum and guest faculty member Tal Morris of Creedence Clearwater Revisited
Creedence Clearwater Revisited
Creedence Clearwater Revisited is a band formed in 1995 by former Creedence Clearwater Revival members Stu Cook and Doug Clifford .-The band:...
.
BLUE BEAR LIVE II took place on May 12, 2007 at The Great American Music Hall
Great American Music Hall
The Great American Music Hall is a concert hall in San Francisco, California. It is located on O'Farrell Street in the Tenderloin neighborhood on the same block as the Mitchell Brothers O'Farrell Theater...
. Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Booker T. Jones
Booker T. Jones
Booker T. Jones is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, record producer and arranger, best known as the frontman of the band Booker T. and the MGs. He has also worked in the studios with many well-known artists of the 20th and 21st centuries, earning him a Grammy Award for lifetime...
was the featured headline artist. Returning from BLUE BEAR LIVE II, Bonnie Hayes
Bonnie Hayes
Bonnie Hayes is an American singer/songwriter/keyboardist from California, USA.-Late 1970s and early 1980s:In the late 1970s, she founded a New Wave band called The Punts, who released a 45 RPM single, "Shelly's Boyfriend" , b/w "Rochambeau," which received considerable airplay in the SF market...
and Vicki Randle
Vicki Randle
Vicki Randle is an American singer, multi-instrumentalist and composer, known as the first female member of the Tonight Show Band, starting with host Jay Leno in 1992...
were joined on stage with guest vocalists Sista Monica Parker, Amber Morris and Larry Batiste.
BLUE BEAR LIVE III took place on May 9, 2008 at The Great American Music Hall
Great American Music Hall
The Great American Music Hall is a concert hall in San Francisco, California. It is located on O'Farrell Street in the Tenderloin neighborhood on the same block as the Mitchell Brothers O'Farrell Theater...
. Blues guitar legend Elvin Bishop
Elvin Bishop
Elvin Bishop is an American blues and rock and roll musician and guitarist.-Career:Bishop was born in Glendale, California, and grew up on a farm near Elliott, Iowa. His family moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, when he was ten years old...
was the headline artist, and was joined by Tommy Castro
Tommy Castro
Tommy Castro is an American blues, R&B and rock guitarist and singer. He has been recording since the mid 1990s. His music has taken him from local stages to national and international touring. His popularity was marked by his winning the 2008 Blues Music Award for Entertainer Of The Year...
, Bonnie Hayes
Bonnie Hayes
Bonnie Hayes is an American singer/songwriter/keyboardist from California, USA.-Late 1970s and early 1980s:In the late 1970s, she founded a New Wave band called The Punts, who released a 45 RPM single, "Shelly's Boyfriend" , b/w "Rochambeau," which received considerable airplay in the SF market...
, John Németh, Vicki Randle
Vicki Randle
Vicki Randle is an American singer, multi-instrumentalist and composer, known as the first female member of the Tonight Show Band, starting with host Jay Leno in 1992...
, Mighty Mike Schermer, André Thierry and R.C. Carriere, along with Blue Bear students, staff, and faculty.
BLUE BEAR LIVE IV took place on March 26, 2009 at Bimbo's 365 Club
Bimbo's 365 Club
Bimbo's 365 Club, also known as Bimbo's 365, is an entertainment club located at 1025 Columbus Avenue in San Francisco, California. It specializes in live rock and jazz shows. The location is one of San Francisco's oldest nightclub sites, and has operated under two names with a series of owners...
. Los Lobos
Los Lobos
Los Lobos are a multiple Grammy Award–winning American Chicano rock band from East Los Angeles, California. Their music is influenced by rock and roll, Tex-Mex, country, folk, R&B, blues, brown-eyed soul, and traditional Spanish and Mexican music such as cumbia, boleros and norteños.-History:The...
was the headline band, joined by Jackie Greene
Jackie Greene
Jackie Greene is an American singer-songwriter and musician.-Career:Greene was born Chris Nelson in Salinas, California, and developed an interest in music at an early age, starting with the piano. At 14, he began to play guitar and within a short time, was able to sit in with local bar bands. As...
, Elvin Bishop
Elvin Bishop
Elvin Bishop is an American blues and rock and roll musician and guitarist.-Career:Bishop was born in Glendale, California, and grew up on a farm near Elliott, Iowa. His family moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, when he was ten years old...
, and Blue Bear-affiliated student bands, The Korks from Rooftop School, Obstruction of Justice and Chrome Potato from James Lick Middle School, and Know Clue.
BLUE BEAR LIVE V took place on May 14, 2010 at Bimbo's 365 Club
Bimbo's 365 Club
Bimbo's 365 Club, also known as Bimbo's 365, is an entertainment club located at 1025 Columbus Avenue in San Francisco, California. It specializes in live rock and jazz shows. The location is one of San Francisco's oldest nightclub sites, and has operated under two names with a series of owners...
. The headline act was Trombone Shorty
Troy Andrews
Troy Andrews , also known by the stage name Trombone Shorty is a trombone and trumpet player from New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. He has worked in jazz, funk and rap music. Andrews is the younger brother of trumpeter and bandleader James Andrews as well as the grandson of singer and...
, joined by Zigaboo Modeliste and Ivan Neville
Ivan Neville
Ivan Neville is a multi-instrumentalist musician, singer, and songwriter. He is the son of Aaron Neville and nephew to members of The Neville Brothers....
. Blue Bear-affiliated student bands also performed.
BLUE BEAR LIVE VI took place on May 20, 2011 at Bimbo's 365 Club
Bimbo's 365 Club
Bimbo's 365 Club, also known as Bimbo's 365, is an entertainment club located at 1025 Columbus Avenue in San Francisco, California. It specializes in live rock and jazz shows. The location is one of San Francisco's oldest nightclub sites, and has operated under two names with a series of owners...
. The headline act was The Funky Meters. Blue Bear-affiliated student bands also performed.