Greensboro College's Healing Blues Project Announces Second Benefit CD

Art Professor Ted Efremoff, one of the

founders of the Healing Blues Project

"GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Greensboro College's art and music departments, along with other faculty, staff, students, and area musicians, plan to produce and sell a second Healing Blues Project CD to raise awareness of and money to fight homelessness.

The first Healing Blues CD, released in October 2014, featured blues and blues-related songs whose lyrics were built from the true stories of persons experiencing homeless, with local musicians providing the music. The participating storytellers received songwriting credit with the professional songwriters.

The proceeds benefited the Interactive Resource Center, a day center in downtown Greensboro for people experiencing homelessness or who are at imminent risk of homelessness.  Guests of the IRC may shower, do laundry, receive medical care, as well as case management and assistance in looking for jobs.  The first Healing Blues album raised more than $10,000 for the IRC. 

Vol. 2 will feature both songs and spoken-word compositions, says Greensboro College music professor Dave Fox, one of the originators of the Healing Blues Project and producer of the first CD. Release date for the second CD will be June 2016.

Collaborating on the project will be art professor Ted Efremoff, another of the Healing Blues originators, who has moved from Greensboro College to Central Connecticut State University. The idea for the Healing Blues grew out of Efremoff's efforts in the area of social-practice art.

Initially, Efremoff had responded to a call for artists to create blues-themed art installations, designed to bring attention to the Piedmont Blues Preservation Society's Carolina Blues Festival. The society was immediately struck by the concept and scope of Eftremoff's idea and became a partner in the project, providing musician names and other support.

The musicians who provided their talents, along with many who did not take part in Vol. 1, will be contributing to the project.

"We all had such a great time making the first album that we're inviting the original musicians and songwriters to help out again," Fox says. "Plus, we're opening the doors to many new collaborators." 

Vol. 2 will be partially funded by a project-support grant from the local nonprofit ArtsGreensboro to the Interactive Resource Center.  Fox says a series of benefit concerts in support of sales of the new CD is being planned.  Downloads and hard copies of the first CD, which received critical acclaim from reviewers in the United States and Europe, are still available for sale.

"We want to raise even more awareness about homelessness in Greensboro," Fox says, "and we want to get even more people involved in working toward a solution." 

Greensboro College provides a liberal-arts education grounded in the traditions of the United Methodist Church and fosters the intellectual, social, and, spiritual development of all students while supporting their individual needs.

Founded in 1838 and located near downtown Greensboro, the college enrolls about 1,000 students from 29 states and territories, the District of Columbia and seven foreign countries in its undergraduate liberal-arts program and four master's degree programs. In addition to rigorous academics and a well-supported Honors program, the school features a 17-sport NCAA Division III athletic program and dozens of service and recreational opportunities."

- A Press Release

Greensboro College's Healing Blues Project CD Reaches No. 1 on AirPlay Direct Global Album Chart

"GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The Healing Blues Project CD, a recording intended to raise money to fight homelessness in Greensboro, has reached No. 1 on AirPlay Direct's Top 50 Global Album Chart.

The album also is No. 1 on AirPlay Direct's Top 50 Blues, Jazz, and R&B Albums, and "I'm Walkin'," a song from the CD, is No. 1 on AirPlay Direct's Top 50 Blues, Jazz, and R&B Singles.

The CD project, organized by faculty, staff, and students at Greensboro College, brought together local musicians and local homeless people to turn the homeless people's life stories into blues songs.

Those songs were recorded for a CD, proceeds from sales of which benefited the Interactive Resource Center, a local nonprofit day center for homeless people. Benefit concerts of the music also benefitted the center, raising more than $10,000 in all to date.

The people whose stories provided the lyrics for the songs received songwriting credit and receive royalties from sales and airplay of the CD.

Future efforts toward eradicating homelessness are planned; for more information, visit www.thehealingblues.org or contact Dave Fox, professor of music, at 336-272-7102, ext. 5321, or email foxd@greensboro.edu.

AirPlay Direct is an e-based artist marketing, promotion and education platform that allows artists, record labels and music publishers to securely deliver broadcast-quality music and digital press kits to music-industry professionals worldwide.

Its system allows radio programmers and film/TV music supervisors globally to connect to new music, create music calls, browse top downloaded artists and immediately download music and related artist information.

AirPlay Direct also provides its artist/label members its genre-based APD Global Radio Indicator Charts, which track download activity of members' music. AirPlay Direct reaches more than 9,700 radio stations and programmers in more than 90 countries.

Greensboro College provides a liberal-arts education grounded in the traditions of the United Methodist Church and fosters the intellectual, social, and, spiritual development of all students while supporting their individual needs.

Founded in 1838 and located near downtown Greensboro, the college enrolls about 1,000 students from 26 states, the District of Columbia and 10 nations in its undergraduate liberal-arts program and four master's degree programs. In addition to rigorous academics and a well-supported Honors program, the school features a 17-sport NCAA Division III athletic program and dozens of service and recreational opportunities."

- A Press Release

Greensboro College's Healing Blues Project Delivers $9,000 to the Interactive Resource Center

From left: Storyteller Shannon Stewart; Ted Efremoff, assistant

professor of art at Greensboro College; Michelle Kennedy,

executive director, Interactive Resource Center; Dave Fox,

professor of music, Greensboro College; and

Chip Berry, director of development, ArtsGreensboro.

"GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Greensboro College participants in The Healing Blues Project today delivered a check for $9,000 to the Interactive Resource Center, a day center in downtown Greensboro that serves people who are homeless.

The check is the first of many payments the project hopes to make as it raises money to benefit the IRC and raise awareness and understanding of homelessness and related issues.

"We are grateful for this and for how far out The Healing Blues Project has stepped" in raising awareness, said Michelle Kennedy, executive director of the IRC. "Thank you so much!"

The project was co-founded almost a year ago by Ted Efremoff, assistant professor of art at Greensboro College, and Dave Fox, professor of music at the college.

The project teamed local homeless people, called "storytellers," with local musicians to turn the storytellers' lives into blues songs. The songs were recorded, with proceeds from the sales of CDs and from several live performances going to the IRC.

More live performances are being planned, and more than 350 copies of the CD have been sold to date. Copies of the CD can be ordered online

In addition to faculty, staff, and students of Greensboro College, project co-sponsors and major contributors have included ArtsGreensboro, the Open Art Society, the Piedmont Blues Preservation Society, and Elsewhere Living Museum.

Individuals or organizations wishing to co-sponsor the project may contact Efremoff at 336-272-7102, ext. 5312, or email him at ted.efremoff@greensboro.edu.

Greensboro College provides a liberal arts education grounded in the traditions of the United Methodist Church and fosters the intellectual, social, and, spiritual development of all students while supporting their individual needs.

Founded in 1838 and located near downtown Greensboro, the college enrolls about 1,250 students from 32 states, the District of Columbia and 24 nations in its undergraduate liberal-arts program and four master's degree programs. In addition to rigorous academics and a well-supported Honors program, the school features a 16-sport NCAA Division III athletic program and dozens of service and recreational opportunities."

- A Press Release

Healing Blues CDs Go on Sale Online at TheHealingBlues.org; Third Concert Scheduled

"Copies of The Healing Blues Project's CD of blues songs now can be purchased online at TheHealingBlues.org.

Also, the project is sponsoring a third benefit concert, 2-9 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 12, at Ziggy's in Winston-Salem (map). Admission is $10 at the door.

Musicians for Sunday's performance include The BillyFolks,
Kris Ferris, House Of Dues, the Martha Bassett Trio, the Sonic Prophets, the Jack King/Dave Cecil Duo and the
Healing Blues Band.

Proceeds from both CD sales, at $15 per copy, and the concert benefit the Interactive Resource Center, a nonprofit Greensboro day center that serves homeless people.

The Healing Blues Project was created by Ted Efremoff, an assistant professor of art at Greensboro College, and Dave Fox, a professor of music there.

The project pairs local homeless people -- "storytellers" -- with area musicians to turn the storytellers' lives into blues songs. Those songs have been recorded on the CD now for sale.

Two previous concerts, Sept. 25 at Greensboro's Blind Tiger nightclub and Oct. 5 at Greensboro College, also raised money for the IRC.

 

For more information, contact Efremoff at ted.efremoff@greensboro.edu or Fox at foxd@greensboro.edu.

Greensboro College, an independent, coeducational college affiliated with the United Methodist Church, is an academic and social community that unites the liberal arts and Judeo-Christian values in an atmosphere of diversity and mutual respect.

Founded in 1838 and located near downtown Greensboro, the college enrolls about 1,250 students from 32 states, the District of Columbia and 24 nations in its undergraduate liberal-arts program and four master's degree programs. In addition to rigorous academics and a well-supported Honors program, the school features a 16-sport NCAA Division III athletic program and dozens of service and recreational opportunities."

- A Press Release

Greensboro College Will Host "Healing Blues" Communion Service Thursday, Oct. 2

"Greensboro College will host a Communion service at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 2, as part of The Healing Blues Project. It is free and open to the public.

The service will be held in the Hannah Brown Finch Memorial Chapel on campus. Music will be provided by Healing Blues songwriters and musicians, as well as GC faculty members Dave Fox and Neill Clegg.

The Healing Blues Project is a fundraiser to benefit downtown Greensboro's Interactive Resource Center, a nonprofit day center for people experiencing homelessness. People who have experienced homelessness or other trauma have worked with local musicians to turn their life stories into blues songs.

The songs have been recorded on a CD, sales of which benefit the IRC. Proceeds from multiple live performances, including a concert Oct. 5 at Greensboro College, also will benefit the center. The project's fundraising goal is $30,000.

For more information on The Healing Blues Project, visit its website.

Greensboro College, an independent, coeducational college affiliated with the United Methodist Church, is an academic and social community that unites the liberal arts and Judeo-Christian values in an atmosphere of diversity and mutual respect.

Founded in 1838 and located near downtown Greensboro, the college enrolls about 1,250 students from 32 states, the District of Columbia and 24 nations in its undergraduate liberal-arts program and four master's degree programs. In addition to rigorous academics and a well-supported Honors program, the school features a 16-sport NCAA Division III athletic program and dozens of service and recreational opportunities. "

- A Press Release