The meeting was called to order at 8:16 PM on January 2, by President Elizabeth Lachowicz, welcoming the attendees and wishing everyone a happy New Year.  This meeting was held via Zoom.

ROLL CALL

Present: Mike Agranoff, Jeff Canter, Todd Dennison, Sam Edelston, Paul Fisher, Doug Heacock, Peggy Karr, Allan Kugel, Elizabeth Lachowicz, John Mahon, George Otto, Gary Pratt, Tina Ross, Sandie Reilly, Chris Riemer, Mark Schaffer, Robin Schaffer, Jean Scully

Absent: Loretta Brooks, Bob McNally, Pamela Zave

Guests: Andrew Warner

MOTIONS MADE

• The board accepted the minutes from the annual meeting and the monthly December 2023 meeting, after a few minor tweaks.

• The board accepted a proposal from the Future Planning Committee to allocate approximately $1,600 for a social media advertising program, as described below.

TREASURER'S OVERVIEW 

Peggy had nothing exciting to report, beyond what she had included in her earlier email, attached below.

OLD BUSINESS

The Folk Project Calendar

There was some discussion about the Folk Project calendar. Chris explained that this calendar was first formulated as a series of “key dates” in a Word document. The idea was that the president would check on everything pending and remind those responsible. Key Dates became a recurring feature of the monthly agenda.

It was converted to a calendar format when the wiki first came on line, and some of the background responsibilities have since changed. The calendar is due for a review and an update, and Chris volunteered to take that on.

That Thing We Do

Elizabeth also gave a shout out to Mark’s latest Music Alert email, which  summarized all the different things the Project is doing  in an eloquent and organized way. Doug cross-posted the idea to recognize the Swingin’ Tern  volunteers on the dance Facebook page and got  a lot of positive responses. Gary plans to do the same with his streaming contacts.

NEW BUSINESS

Social Media Advertising

Robin Schaffer took the floor to present the Future Planning Committee’s ideas about boosting the organization’s profile with social media advertising.

The committee wanted to dramatically improve the project’s operations, and social media was at the top of the list. There are two sides to that. There are organic things – things we’re doing anyway – but there’s also the potential of using paid advertising to boost selected events for particular target audiences, thereby drawing more eyeballs.

The committee wants to dip a toe in the social media world with a two-part strategy. About $1,200 would be spread across different activities over a period of six months. An additional $400 would be spent to engage a social media expert named Eleanor Kleiner (no relation to Dave).

Her expertise is specifically with social media for folk musicians and venues. She’s someone Robin met at NERFA, and she’s a great fit for us. She’s willing to work for $40 an hour, and her primary contribution would be strategy and objectives. We have a strong bench of people who can do this kind of work, but we need help with strategy and direction. So, the ask is $1,600 for six months. Discussion ensued.

Mike wanted to know if there was a plan to judge the efficacy of the program, and there was. It will involve special landing pages that can only be reached from the boosted social media posts, so we can measure how many sales can be credited to each advertisement. Sam spoke up in support of the idea, as well as the choice of Eleanor Kleiner. Doug wondered if Swingin’ Tern would be a possible beneficiary. He’d like to provide input, and pick the dances that would be most worth plugging. Robin will have the final say on ad placements, but will consult with venue managers. Gary added that for the streaming shows, he can create tracking links, which would be an other way to measure effectiveness.

In a social media context, Robin intends to focus is 100% focused on Facebook, and that led to a side discussion about demographics. Some felt Facebook was skewed toward older folks, and we really want to bring in a younger audience. Gary added that the performer plays a role, here; younger performers will attract younger audiences. He is fully behind the program. Tina felt we should at least consider Instagram and TikTok and Robin agreed to explore that. Jean felt it should be an interesting experiment and was a great idea.

Visual Identity

In other news, Robin plans to take on the re-branding of the project’s visual identity, something we discussed several years ago. She’d like a look that is fresher, newer and more appealing to younger people. A new look and feel, with a new logo, a new color palette and some punchier copy. Anyone who’d like to be involved should reach out to Robin. Otherwise, stay tuned.

Reporting Logistics

Mike expressed some concern at the information compression that occurs when a board meeting happens so close to the close of the prior period – today being an example. He has a hard time getting his own reports done with enough time for distribution and review. Would it make sense to move our meetings to the second Tuesday?

The general feeling of the board was that we should leave it as is. Chris and Jeff noted that moving it later puts the squeeze on newsletter content generation, and others mentioned that when we have moved a meeting, for election day, for example, There are always a few people who can’t make the alternative date.

Mike asked that people make every effort to get their reports submitted in a timely manner, even if we’re not going to change the schedule. It’s a trade off between providing a rich body of data, and the time it takes to assemble that data knowing most people may never use it. Gary pointed out that’s a challenge in the corporate world as well.

COMMITTEE REPORT HIGHLIGHTS 

Publicity

In a somewhat related discussion, Sam wondered if his Publicity report was too detailed. The feeling was that it was not. Some people liked seeing that detail, and felt that if they weren’t interested in a particular data point, they could just read past it.

Swingin’ Tern

Doug has included a history of the dance with this month’s report, and Chris would like to store it in the library of the back office, rather than within this month's report. Doug is fine with that. Peggy was a little worried that bad weather might force the cancellation of the anniversary dance this coming weekend, and Doug will keep an eye on it.

Special Events

Mark and Robin are happy to report that the Martin Guitar company is making a $1,000 grant to the next Getaway. We all have to buy Martins now.

Troubadour Staffing

We recently had a coffee pot failure at the Fellowship, and Jean would like to replace both the coffee pot and the water pot. Chris offered to endow those purchases, as long as a suitable, tasteful sign goes up to acknowledge his contribution. Jean has also bought a nicer service piece for tea-bags. Many thanks to Amy, who does most of the heavy lifting within the staffing committee.

Open Stage

Nothing special to report. Later this month will be the annual hot chocolate open stage.

Membership

This activity is doing really well. We’re up about 100 members from last year, despite an increase in the dues structure.

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting  proper was adjourned at  9:36  PM. Next month’s meeting is February 6, at 8:15 PM, via Zoom. 

Submitted by Chris Riemer

NEWSLETTER

From: George Otto <g_otto@comcast.net>
Sent: Monday, January 1, 2024 11:32 PM
Subject: Newsletter Committee Report 2024-01

Things are proceeding as usual with the invaluable help of Kathi Caccavale, Pat Brangs, Bill Henderson, Gary Pratt, Paul Fisher, and Todd Dennison. 

George Otto
Folk Project Newsletter Editor
newsletter@folkproject.org

PUBLICITY

From: sam.edelston@folkproject.org sam.edelston@folkproject.org
Sent: Tuesday, January 2, 2024 4:33 AM
Subject: Publicity Report for 2024-01-02 Board meeting

Hi, all –

Here’s the January Publicity Report. Because of the holidays, I’ll send the Web numbers when I receive them from John. 

Let me know if there are any questions.

Sam

SOUND REINFORCEMENT

From: John Mahon <john_mahon@yahoo.com>
Sent: Tuesday, January 2, 2024 6:33 PM
Subject: Sound Reinforcement Committee - January 2024 report

In December we provided live and broadcast sound for 4 Friday night shows. This included 2 regular shows for Jay Unger and Molly Mason on Dec. 1, and Mike Agranoff with Jerry Krantman on Dec. 29, The Open Stage on Dec. 8, and the Benefit Concert for MUUF on Dec 15.

It was reported to me that the video sound tracks for the Open Stage had too much distortion making the video un-usable. I am reviewing the recordings and inspecting the audio system at MUUF to make sure that all the level controls are set to there proper levels.

SPECIAL EVENTS

From: Mark Schaffer <markschaffer100@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, January 2, 2024 6:14 PM
Subject: Special Concerts Report to Board January 2024

Board Friends,

Special Concerts Committee is starting the new year on fire. (That’s a good thing, actually.)

Uke Fest should be moving to August 23-25.

I’d like to move it to MUUF. I hope to coordinate Friday programming with the new Troubadour committee, as that appears to benefit both programs.. I’m awaiting approval from MUUF to reserve Saturday.

The Fall 2024 Getaway — due to Yom Kippur — will be moving off Columbus Weekend to the weekend before: October 4-6. I’m awaiting approval from Stony Point Center to reserve the new weekend. The Martin Guitar Foundation has awarded Getaway a $1,000 grant. We’re super grateful. 

Special Concerts at The Troubadour will be Peter Yarrow, April 5th, and John Gorka, July 26th.

Folk Project Guitar Day by Beppe Gambetta will be Saturday, October 19, 2024. It is a day of workshops and a concert. If successful, this will be a yearly fall event. Once again, I hope to coordinate Friday programming with the new Troubadour committee, as that appears to benefit both programs.

Of Guitar Day note: An application for a substantial grant was submitted to the International Bluegrass Music Foundation. If the grant is awarded, the day will feature bluegrass artists and guitar styles. If not, the day will feature a wider variety of guitar styles.

After a great year and a splendid holiday party, Evenings of Music return to the Schaffer in Rockaway for the immediate future starting January.

ho, ho, ho!
oy, oy, oy

Mark

STREAMING CONCERTS

From: Gary Pratt prattdiv@comcast.net
Sent: Tuesday, January 2, 2024 4:19 PM
Subject: Streaming Committee Report - January 2024

Folk Project Board Members,

The emphasis during December was the booking of Streaming Tuesdays.

Back in September, I was able to book the rest of 2023's Streaming Tuesdays concerts. I was quite proud of that, but between spending far too much time celebrating that accomplishment and taking on the role of Troubadour Committee co-chair, I found myself with four dates to book in January!

I asked Tina Ross if she could suggest a few perfomers that would be a good match for the Folk Project Streaming Tuesdays concert series. Little did I expect that she would connect me with well over a dozen performers within the next 24 hours! With that jumpstart, the Folk Project Streaming Tuesdays concert series is now booked into the month of April (with several more bookings still to be confirmed. Thanks, Tina!

And thank you to everyone who suggests performers for Streaming Tuesdays - keep those cards and letters coming!

Humbly submitted,

Gary

TREASURER

From: timpeg@optonline.net <timpeg@optonline.net>
Sent: Tuesday, January 2, 2024 4:30 PM
Subject: Treasurer Report Jan 2024

Hello Everyone,

Sorry for not getting this out sooner. The Bookkeeper was updating everything today so I wanted to have the P&L as up to date as I could.

There are still numbers missing. I spent the day getting our Liability and D&O insurance paid. I think the numbers are all in for the MUFF Benefit so the check should go out to the Fellowship in the next day or two. 

Not much to report. Business as usual. Again, the loss you see is due to the same things I have talked about in the past.

I should have final numbers next month for 2023.

Again it you have anything from 2023 that you need reimbursement for please get it to ma ASAP.

Peggy Karr
Treasurer

SWINGIN’ TERN

From: 'Doug Heacock' via BoardPlus
Sent: Tuesday, January 2, 2024 5:28 PM
Subject: Swingin' Tern Dances Report January 2024

In December we held two regular evening dance and our New Year’s Eve Dance

• 12/02, Sunny Lawrence & Strings Attached, 49 attendees [40 paid/9 staff] / Net profit  $127 

• 12/16 Donna Hunt & Dance Magnet, 50 attendees [41 paid/9 staff] / Net loss     $5

• 12/31 NYE Alex Deis-Lauby & BSEnsemble, 69 attendees [all paid incd staff]  / Net profit   $191

• December total $313 profit            

We had a nice tern-around in December.  Both regular dances were near our post-Covid attendance highs.  Doug & Brian always host the Annual Swingin’ Tern Holiday Party after the second December dance.  Everyone enjoyed themselves and the chance to relax, eat, and chat with other dancers for more than an 8-count swing.

The period leading up to our New Year’s Eve Dance was a bit nerve-racking.  Talent is paid more than three times their usual rate and we rent the dance hall for more hours.  Our last NYE was in 2019 and raised the question if dancers would still come out on NYE.  The answer was yes!  We had a post-Covid attendance of 69 dancers.  Beyond the financial success, the spirits were very high.  About 35 people came early for the potluck supper.  The potluck and dessert spreads were filled with homemade goodies.  Thanks to Andrew Warner & Jon Justin for taking on the sound challenges of the evening.  Thanks to Virginia Peace, Christy Cook, and Paul Keefer for putting up the festive light and balloon decorations.

The celebration continues this week with Swingin’ Tern’s 40th Anniversary Dance on January 6th!  For the first time, we will have an afternoon advanced dance along with our evening dance.

To mark our Anniversary, I have attached the History of Swingin’ Tern Dances.

Eternally yours,

Doug Heacock

TROUBADOUR

From: Gary Pratt prattdiv@comcast.net
Sent: Tuesday, January 2, 2024 12:22 AM
Subject: [REVISED] Troubadour Committee Report - January 2024 (REVISED to correct date of Zoe Mulford show)

Folk Project Board Members,

The Troubadour Committee has been meeting regularly, aiming to honor the Troubadour's history while devising strategies to enhance its future. We are merging past insights with ambitious plans for showcasing a more diverse range of folk music, elevating the caliber of artists, and creating a more enriching experience for our audience. Our current priority is finalizing bookings for 2024.

Respectfully submitted,

Todd Dennison and Gary Pratt (co-chairs)

December highlights and upcoming shows (written by Mike Agranoff):

Powered by a spectacular show on December 1st by Jay Ungar, Molly Mason, et famile, The Troubadour ended 2023 on a healthy note.  In operations alone, we came out $853 in the black for the year, and if we include $1,229 in personal donations, as well we should, it came to $2,082.  Our average paid attendance of 61.8 (79.5 total attendance) was still pretty anemic by pre-COVID standards, but healthy enough to run in the black.  The bottom line has been helped along quite nicely by our streaming attendance averaging 16.1 since we started streaming through Afton in May, adding an average of $75 profit per show.

As said, the December figures were very good.  The Jay & Molly show drew 162 paying customers, and when adding the ten non-paying attendees, we approached a sell-out for the first time since COVID.  That show alone netted us close to $700 in profit, and $2,173 for the artists.  Overall, our December paid attendance averaged 106 for the 2 shows, and netted us $776 for the two December shows.  Interestingly, the other December show with Mike Agranoff drew a disappointing paid live attendance of only 49, but the streaming attendance of 46 was a record high, eclipsing the next best of 29 by a whopping 59%. 

New bookings in December

• January 26:  Teddy Parker (AKA Julie Edelston) with The TriSonics, a primarily instrumental band opening 

• February 16: Ash & Eric, harmony-oriented singer-songwriter duo

• August 16:  Dead to the Core:  Greatful Dead acoustic tribute band.

Highlight for January

• January 19: Zoe Mulford  Transatlantic and traditionally oriented singer-songwriter