ONE of Teesdale’s most successful open mic sessions is planning a special bash to celebrate its tenth anniversary.
Butterknowle Village Hall’s open mic started with only a handful of musicians who got together in 2008 purely for a jamming session.
Taekwondo expert and guitar player Bryan Whiley and his wife Klara started the jamming session in March of that year with a few of Mr Whiley’s martial art students.
Since then it has evolved to attract some of the top musicians in the north, including the John Wrightson Band.
In those early days the small group would huddle in a small section of the hall to jam. Their first song together was Bob Dylan’s Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door.
Mrs Whiley said: “Because we were enjoying what we were doing we thought why don’t we do a night. We made a bit of a social so that is how it started up.”
The group invited their partners and family to that memorable session which boasted a grand total of 12 people – six musicians and six in the audience.
Out of that evolved the Whileys’ band Buttonhole Jam. Buttonhole because the village name is often mispronounced by those who have never heard of it, and jam because that’s what they enjoy doing.
The former teacher said: “Because we enjoyed it so much, we said why don’t we do another one.”
Soon the group held their first official open mic, using a borrowed PA system.
Mrs Whiley added: “In the beginning if we got 20 or 30 people we were over the moon. Then word got around and we got more and more performers so we decided to move into the main hall.
“The beauty of our open mic is that we have such a good listening and appreciative audience. They are really supportive, even of people who are not as accomplished and are just starting out.”
Although they average about ten artists at a session, Butterknowle Open Mic has had as many as 17 performers on stage on a night.
Among the performers to have graced the village hall stage have been Robson Field, John Wrightson Band, Trevor Bond and the Old Age Travellers.
Attending the open mic is free for audience members but they are encouraged to take part in a raffle which helps cover the cost of hiring the hall. They raise as much as £100 from the raffle with the extra cash going to buying equipment or being given to charity. Air ambulance, diabetes and breast cancer charities have all benefited.
Mrs Whiley said: “Where else can you go for free and have a good night out with such good music?”
The tenth anniversary of Butterknowle Village Hall’s Open Mic Night takes place on March 25 and all the proceeds from the raffle will go to the British Heart Foundation, in support of one of the founding members Keith Magnall, who recently recovered from a heart condition and is embarking on a mission to walk the length of Hadrian’s Wall.
People who attend are encouraged to bring a plate of snacks.
