May 2007

MOTIONS THIS MONTH

• • Pam moved that we place an ad in the Clearwater Festival program, to promote the general image of The Folk Project. This motion carried.

OPENING CEREMONIES

The meeting was called to order at 8 pm on May 1, 2007 at the home of Pam Robinson and Bob Safranek.

Roll Call

Present were Lois DeRitter, Bob Isaacs, Jim King, Andy Koenig, Evelyn Maurer, Barbara Moo, Bobbie Rosengarten, Mark Schaffer and Jim West (Trustees), Mike Agranoff, Paul Axel-Lute, Lori Falco, Larry Flanigan, Elizabeth Lachowicz, George Otto, Brad Pryor, Tom Pylant, Sandie Reilly, Chris Riemer, Pam Robinson, Pat Rolston, Bob Safranek, Jean Scully and Rivka Willick (Other Board Members), and Rick Thomas, Allan Kugel and one small, frightened mouse (Guests). Nobody was absent!

Secretary’s Report

The minutes for April were accepted with some minor editorial corrections, e.g. typos and grammatical errors. There was a consensus that it is not necessary to list these type of corrections in detail at the meetings or in the minutes.

Note: We never discovered who mentioned the WNTI broadcast at the March meeting. It will remain a mystery for the ages.

Treasurer’s Report

Last month some questions were raised about how we account for income at venues that is not from admissions -- for instance, memberships that come in at the Minstrel. Chris was not at that meeting, but responded promptly afterward with the following e-mail that did an exemplary job of explaining the principles involved:

As we are in the process of transferring our accounts from Bank of America to Wachovia, we now have two checking accounts. People should use the new Wachovia account and we’ll leave the old one at Bank of America for about a month before closing it.

We have a CD, but Chris thinks a Money Market account would serve us better; he would like to put all our short-term surplus funds in it. We have approximately $2,000 $20,000 in checking and $85,000 in the endowment for strategic, long-term funds. Chris suggests putting about $30,000 short-term funds from the CD when it matures into a reserve account at Wachovia. There were some questions about this, including the interest rate for the CD vs. Money Market account and whether both products are covered by FDIC insurance. Barbara asked Chris to research these issues and report back to us.

Pat said that the taxes have not been filed yet, but she’s very conscious of the deadline. Barbara: "Can we help you?" Pat: "Only if you want to do them."

Key Dates

Tax Return/Form 990 May 15 Pat Rolston

BUSINESS ITEMS

Ad for Clearwater Festival Program

Pam suggested that we place an ad in the program for the Clearwater Festival. She recommended a 1/4 page ad, which will cost $300 including a discount for non-profit organizations and submitting the ad early (by 5/18). We have not advertised in their program in the past. She suggested either a general organizational ad or one for the Minstrel and Swingin’ Tern. We discussed which venue(s) to include and George noted it’s a good opportunity to push the brand. Mark said placing this ad would not be as effective at bringing in people as an ad in the local newspapers, such as the Daily Record. Chris said it’s more image advertising than an attempt to attract audience. Pat suggested we use the same art as for the NJ Folk Fest ad. Sandie suggested mentioning HSNOI in the ad.

George moved that we adopt the plan and authorize $300 to be spent on the ad. However, if there is not enough time to do a good job and get the ad in by 5/18, don’t do it. Motion carried.

REPORTS OF THE STANDING COMMITTEES

Minstrel Booking

April was a lackluster month. From May ’06 to April ’07 we averaged 83.5 attendance for regular shows, not counting Open Stage. For May ’05 to April ’06, we averaged 103. However, the previous year was a high point. Attendance for all shows the past year averaged 73 compared to 89 the previous year. We averaged 75 for regular shows during April ’07 and 105 for April ’06. We only had 95-98 people for Michael Smith. Larry noted that there was a good write-up for Smith in the Daily Record. At the Beppe concert we had 14 people sign up for the Minstrel-Gram.

Upcoming: 7/6 Massengill, 11/2 Mad Agnes, 11/23 Mike Agranoff CD Release.

Mike is thinking about moving the Minstrel starting time up to 8 pm based on the feedback from the last Board meeting. This would allow us to expand the break and get people out earlier, at 10:45 pm. Bob S. said it might be hard to get people there early enough to complete the sound check in time. Mike pointed out that other shows start at 8 pm. Rick said that Bill and Brad can cover, but he can’t be there till 7:15 pm.

Minstrel Staffing

Sandie has 158 people on her volunteer e-mail list. That doesn’t mean she doesn’t need people on a regular basis. There are five people who are there every week and another 30 who are fairly regular. Jim K. asked if we’re doing anything about screening MCs, making sure they know what they need to do and that they need to keep to schedule. Sandie said that we are.

Andy said that he had MC’d in the past for one of the upcoming performers and wanted that MC to know that it’s hard to get this performer off the stage. Several people felt that there should be a mechanism to get this type of information to other MCs. The Minstrel Manual still exists and Sandie sends the appropriate portions to new volunteers.

Swingin’ Tern

Paul was absent, but via email let us know that thee Rock 'n' Reel event April 21, 2007 had total attendance of 82, and net revenue of $250. Year-to-date net revenue for Swingin' Tern is $314.

Mark said that Rock’n’Reel went well, but there were a couple of glitches. He is anxious to make this a great event and hopes that we get to do it again. Bobbie said that people really enjoyed it and there were people there who had come for the first time in many years.

We then moved to a Committee of the Whole. When we returned, there was no report.

HSNOI

Ralph was absent, but submitted a report via email.

Special Concerts

We made $195 net profit from the Tommy Sands concert. There are less than 10 slots left for the Jack Williams workshop scheduled for 5/16 at Schaffers. The Schaffers will be out of the country, but are graciously allowing us to use their house. Jean and Sandie will handle hospitality and all the other arrangements.

Festival

Ken was absent, but submitted a report via email.

Ken has sent 200 e-mails and made phone calls to people who have come in the past to try to encourage them to register. We were all concerned about the attendance figures being so low. Barbara felt that it is time for the Board as a whole to have feedback into the Festival process. She has invited Ken to come to the Board meeting in July so that we can have that discussion.

A general discussion about Festival ensued. Here is a summary of the major issues that were raised:

Price:

• • The price of the Festival keeps going up and has gone beyond what a lot of members can afford. We thought the Agranoff endowment would contain costs, but that doesn’t seem to have happened. Some people who staff the Festival said they would not be able to attend if they didn’t get a scholarship. The price is high if you have several family members attending - $300 for the weekend for just an adult and one child. That’s a lot of money for a cot and camp food. Some thought the high price of gas may be a factor, others disagreed.

  • The survey the Festival committee conducted did not turn up price as a major factor in lack of attendance, but several Board members felt it is a factor. When they ask people why they aren’t going, they say they can’t afford it. Some felt Festival price has kept pace with the cost of living over the years. One suggested that the Project subsidize the Festival, others said the cost of doing that would be prohibitive. The camp fee is $102 per person for the weekend – doesn’t leave us a lot of wiggle room.

  • To reduce the price we could: pay performers less, get a lot more people to attend, find a different venue. Mike said the budget for performers is $6500-7500 total for the Festival -- $75 for each attendee. Going with FP performers only would be less appealing but would reduce the cost.

  • Results of the recent January 2006 survey were discussed. We surveyed both people who do attend and those who don’t. Ken said that the data were all over the place, but money was not cited as an issue. We took a straw poll – is cost a factor in your Festival attendance? About 1/3 of the Board members said that it was.

  • Perhaps we could set up an installment plan to help people pay for their admission. For comparison, the Chesapeake Dance Festival cost $225 per person for 4 to a room with 2 big acts.

Enthusiasm:

• • Twenty years ago, Festival would sell out in 2 weeks. It was smaller, cheaper, but there was more enthusiasm. But we were 20 years younger then.

Dancing:

• • Bob I. said that Victoria’s Revenge dance festival used to conflict with our Spring Festival, but it has been discontinued. He asked 20-25 people to consider coming to our Fest instead, and got an unenthusiastic response. The issues they cited were the conflict with Mother’s Day and that there is not enough dancing. Bob suggests changing the format to increase the amount of dancing, even overlapping with the concert. We could hire more callers, they could be FP or local performers. The dance community is skewing younger these days, but you don’t see this at Swingin’ Tern. These folks would want 12-15 hours of dancing; our Festival only has 7.5 hours. More dancing at Festival would be a way for dancers to discover the Project.

  • Mike noted that hiring a top notch dance band like Wild Asparagus has not attracted the dance community. It’s not a dance festival. If we re-designed it as a dance fest, are we serving the people who come for the music?

  • Getting good dance bands increased attendance, but then other factors took over. Dancing starts too late at night.

General:

• • Perhaps we could run a benefit to help cut Festival fees. There was concern that Ken does not attend all of the Board meetings. We require 200 people minimum for the camp and it’s hard for us to meet that number. We can have a good festival with fewer people, but we would have to change the venue.

  • Ken says that he would like to change things, but meets resistance on the committee.

  • Chris said when we were at Linwood, attendance declined. We got bigger name performers and moved to Fairview and that worked for a while, but “you can’t chase the audience forever.” The Festival we have now was a way to meet the problem of declining attendance, but maybe that is no longer a viable solution.

Venue:

• • If we changed sites, it would be good to have buildings with bathrooms and a nice place for the dance and the round robin. There are not that many alternative sites available. Linwood MacDonald is a possibility.

Summary

• • Barbara said that Ken is looking for input from the Board. One question he has is if we should move to a smaller venue. She said we should send him suggestions.

Storytelling

Rivka was absent, but via email let us know that the deadline for applications for teller spots has been extended to May 5th. If you know anyone interested, please spread the word. Tellers will have a dedicated stage at the NJ History Fair, May 6. The fair is free, come by and take in some NJ history and say Hey.

George felt there should be a notice on the website about the NJ History Fair. Rivka said that the Project is not formally doing it and the dedicated stage only came through a week ago. Ken is one of the performers – it was suggested that he bring Festival flyers with him.

Membership

Under control.

Newsletter

Tom has gotten compliments on the newsletter.

We have a potential for four pages without the flyers. Tom asked us to give him more material. There was a feeling that the recently published testimonial was a political statement and we don’t want to be going down that path. Lois liked the recommendations for best albums. Mark said he was thinking about expanding it to movies and other things.

The postage for the first ounce is going up, but the postage for additional ounces is going down. The newsletter only weighs one ounce.

Publicity/Webmaster

George received an e-mail from New Orleans asking if we had any CDs available. He pointed them to the Tsunami CD, but we’re not selling it anymore. He said that the merchandising page has been dormant and he’d like to revive it. If you think that’s a good idea, please contact him or Brad.

The Performer’s List is more visible now. PayPal is now able to send money to both banks. Web hits are down somewhat, averaging 7.5 hits per day. George would like to put the workshops on the web – as they are scheduled, please let him know. Tom said the calendar was easy to input this time. Pam noted we have 15 entries on the ACMA calendar from now to July.

Merchandising

We have 18 T-shirts left; Brad will bring them to Festival. He needs the contact info for ordering T-shirts. Margaret Crowl should be able to give him this information. Evelyn wore her black T-shirt to the NJ Folk Fest and people said, “What a great shirt!” Lori said that perhaps next month Brad could report that he had ordered the new T-shirts.

Community Affairs

Bill Meyers’ mother passed away -- we sent a card. The NJ Folk Fest was great – Elizabeth thanked the volunteers. Next year the festival will highlight German traditions and has asked for input. If you have any thoughts, e-mail Elizabeth.

Elizabeth likes to give people complimentary tickets to the Minstrel, such as librarians at libraries where she has posted our flyers. She deducts them from her “ticks” and writes the information on one of her business cards. Lois asked how many people take advantage of this. Rick said very few. We have also been giving out tickets for a complimentary return visit to newcomers. Rick said he sees 1-2 of them a night. Bob I. said that maybe it depends on geography.

Sound Reinforcement

Under control.

Internal Affairs

No Evening of Music in May. June EOM is at the home of Rick and Cathy Thomas. The rest of the year is booked except for July and December. Leslie Brown is a new person hosting an EOM. Jim W. suggested Jean check with Ed Roffman about July.

Mark is working on new workshops

THE IN BOX

Barbara said that Seton Hall offered to send us an intern.

GOOD OF THE ORDER

Mike Agranoff recently spent 2.5 weeks in England, covering 1500 miles, doing some interesting sightseeing, calling a contra and experiencing an evening of Welsh dancing. Jim King thanked everyone for their encouragement, cards, e-mails and the like while he was recuperating from his recent illness. Jim said he would be playing the role of Orson Welles in the Hunterdon Radio Theatre’s re-creation of the “War of the Worlds” broadcast at the State History Fair on 5/5. Sadly, Paul Axel-Lute is serving as the administrator of the estate for his cousin, Melanie Melinda Gail Axel, who died recently at the age of 46. Melanie lived in Watchung. Rivka Willick is performing at the 40th anniversary celebration of the NJ Historic Preservation Act. There is a move to dilute the law, so she urged us to get informed on the issue and get involved. George Otto completed 10 shows with former Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson that can’t be aired because Thompson is now running for President and airing the programs would violate equal time provisions. Jim West, not an operaphile, found an opera simulcast from the Met, held at the North Brunswick Regal Theater to be outstanding. Jim recommends next year's program, which will begin in December. Mark Schaffer is wearing a cast on his pinky, but is still able to work. He will be going to Hong Kong later this month, missing his first Festival in 23 years. His step-daughter Devan recently graduated from college. A friend of Pam Robinson’s father is selling a baby B-3 organ, the seminal 60’s organ. Contact her if interested. Pam said that the Festival has a new stage backdrop. It’s made of wood and has a door. Tom Pylant’s daughter got married in May. Jean Scully went with daughter Siobhan to a wonderful concert at NJPAC where the orchestra deconstructed and reconstructed Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. She and Siobhan just came back from a whale watching trip in Provincetown and saw 14 whales in 3 hours. Brad Pryor went to Arcadia and met a man from Morristown who had attended the Beppe Gambetta concert and recognized seeing Brad at the Minstrel that night. Brad just got Christine DeLeon’s new CD and said that it is incredible. Rick Thomas went out to San Jose in April with his father to make one last visit to Rick’s dying aunt. Rick found his cousins gathered round a kitchen table covered with love letters that his aunt and uncle had exchanged when his uncle was stationed in Okinawa during World War II. The letters contained “daily recordings of their lives and how much they loved each other” and the romance continued for 50 years after that.

ADJOURNMENT

Meeting adjourned at 10:14 pm.

The next meeting will be held on June 5 at the home of Chris Riemer.

Respectfully submitted,

Lori Falco

Secretary